CAN JORDIS UNGA WIN "THE VOICE"?
March 12th 2012 11:13
Link: thejukeboxhero.com
Last year, in the typically uninspiring world of reality TV, NBC struck gold with its sensational new music competition called "The Voice". Produced by Mark Burnett, the master of reality TV competitions, "The Voice" delivered a unique new format whereby a panel of four well-known superstar musicians serving in the role of judges and mentors determined the worthiness of auditioning contestants solely by virtue of their singing voice rather than a spiffy visual image as do other reality shows like "American Idol" and the much inferior "XFactor". That's not to say contestants on "The Voice" weren't altogether unpleasant to look at. That's not the case at all. Weelllllll....... However, contestants on "The Voice" evoked audience reaction not by their looks, or lack thereof, but by the raw quality of their singing voice, which made lots of sense, being it was a singing competition, and it was definitely a refreshing change-of-pace from the same tired old Barbie Doll-Ken cookie cutter mold used yearly at Idol and on Simon Cowell's lame "XFactor USA". It also didn't hurt that the panel of judges/coaches on "The Voice" consisted of Maroon5's Adam Levine, flashy Soulman/hip hop extraordinaire, Cee-Lo Green, country music star, Blake Shelton, and, of course, one of the best voices in the whole music business, Christina Aguilera. With lively spontaneous repartee flowing constantly from the judges combined with a splendidly-talented cast of contestants, "The Voice" became an instant American hit and arguably surpassed the longrunning "American Idol" in terms of quality viewing.
At least it did for me.
In the wake of crowning its first champion, the sweet-singing Javier Colon, fans of the show could not wait for its second season, and now that it's finally here and in high gear, clearly the show has proved to be even better than last season's inaugural offering.
One reason for that is the astonishing abundance of awesome singing talent on display, even noticeably better than last season, which has made for some memorable blind auditions and even more compelling head-to-head singing match-ups early on in "Battle Rounds". In this season of "The Voice", even the auditioners who were rejected by the judges were powerful, accomplished singers, most of whom could easily outsing any Idol or XFactor contestant.
But, even amidst the assemblage of splendid talent on "The Voice" this season, one solitary contestant stands out for me, and I'm pulling for her shamelessly.
It's JORDIS. Jordis Unga, the rousing, ruby-throated, ripping rocker who dazzled me 6 years ago when she competed for the job of INXS's lead singer on another Mark Burnett-produced talent show, "Rockstar". I loved Jordis then, she was so cool and badass with her flowing dredlocks, tattoos and often-animated style of singing which flowed through the soul sometimes like butter and sometimes tore like razors. Although she finished fifth in that tough, hard-driving competion (but the top girl. INXS never really wanted a female lead singer) she gave some of the most memorable vocal performances I ever heard on TV. One in particular was a stellar version of John Lennon's "Imagine", performed so exquisitely and poignantly I still play the video when I need a big pick-me-up shot of magical music. There were several other song performances on "Rockstar" for which Jordis was praised, also, "Heart-Shaped Box" being one, but, I'll never forget the night she blew me away with her rendition of one of the best songs ever penned. So, it wasn't altogether surprising to feel my jaw dropping onto my chest as I watched Jordis step out on the stage to audition on "The Voice", and when she cut loose with a blistering, perfectly-performed version of Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed", the chairs of the judges were spinning like tops and so was my head. There was no maybe about it---I was amazed and enthralled and captivated by the performance. Good Golly Miss Molly, Jordis was back, and better than ever!
All at once the interest level of "The Voice" picked up significantly.
But, I'm wondering now can Jordis actually win "The Voice"? With her audition she made glowing headlines and once again became talk of the town. Some insist she is one of the frontrunners. I agree. I agree she SHOULD be. She's THAT good. And, like me, a legion of music fans spread out over America and several other countries are elated to see her back and on "The Voice", so, naturally, she will have a large fan base to cast plenty of votes for her. Jordis Unga is an amazing singer by anyone's standards and certainly worthy of eventually coming out on top in this season"s "Voice" competition. Yet, after her first "Battle Round" match-up with rocker Brian Fuente, which she won handily in my opinion, I noticed there is something a bit....different.....about Jordis Unga this time around. No, it's not just the absence of the dreds or the transformation from the look of a smokin' rock chic to that of legal secretary. During her song performance duet in which she sang the Alanis Morissette hit, "Ironic" with Fuente, Jordis appeared to me, and to the judges, off her game---- uncertain, hesitant, emotional, a little too out of synch. Oh, she sang her part well enough, but it lacked the old familiar Jordis moxy and kick ass style that her fans have all come to love and expect, and what set her apart from other good vocalists.. Me? I chalked it up to the song choice Blake Shelton gave her because, ironically, "Ironic" has never sounded much like a "rock song" to me, and that's exactly what Shelton said he was trying to do: give Jordis and Fuente a REAL rock song. I also think Jordis might have been a little uncomfortable in performing a duet, something for which she is typically unaccustomed. And then maybe she is just overwhelmed a bit by the self-induced pressure she is putting on herself to excel and win "The Voice" before time passes her by. (Jordis is closing in on the Big 3-0 ) Whatever the real reason, Jordis Unga, one of the baddest rock chics and best singers around, looked a bit out of sorts to me last Monday night, and not only did that surprise me, it also gave me a temporary surge of foreboding about her eventual fate on "The Voice" if she continues that pattern. Her coach and mentor, Blake Shelton, said it best: "I don't know what's up with Jordis."
But, rethinking the issue, I believe my worries are much too premature. After all, this is Jordis Unga we're talking about, not some Cookie Cutter blonde on "American Idol" or one of Simon Cowell's rawboned, fresh-faced kids of marginal talent that he likes to lavish with faint praise before casting them away into the scrap yard. Personally, I think Jordis will be fine now that she has had her first exposure to "The Voice" system, and whatever song Blake elects to give her and her her next competitor, she will perform it flawlessly and with the old fire and passion we come to expect from Jordis Unga. Looking over the cast in Team Blake, I don't see any reason why she can't win this bracket and move on into the Finals. The only stiff competition I see, really, comes from Alisha Key's backup singer, Jermaine Paul, who has shown he is definitely not shabby in the singing department, but Jordis has the chops to win this thing if she can just muster up the same air of confidence she projected consistently during her "Rockstar" days. If we get lucky, maybe Blake will let her break out "Imagine" from the closet, and that would be a special treat to behold indeed.
Like I said, I don't believe for a minute INXS was actually looking to hire a female frontman, and that's a shame since JD Fortune turned out to be such a schmuck, but "The Voice" is definitely willing to put a crown on a worthy female vocalist, and there's no reason it can't be Jordis.
Go Jordis! The Jukebox Hero is pulling for you!
At least it did for me.
In the wake of crowning its first champion, the sweet-singing Javier Colon, fans of the show could not wait for its second season, and now that it's finally here and in high gear, clearly the show has proved to be even better than last season's inaugural offering.
One reason for that is the astonishing abundance of awesome singing talent on display, even noticeably better than last season, which has made for some memorable blind auditions and even more compelling head-to-head singing match-ups early on in "Battle Rounds". In this season of "The Voice", even the auditioners who were rejected by the judges were powerful, accomplished singers, most of whom could easily outsing any Idol or XFactor contestant.
But, even amidst the assemblage of splendid talent on "The Voice" this season, one solitary contestant stands out for me, and I'm pulling for her shamelessly.
It's JORDIS. Jordis Unga, the rousing, ruby-throated, ripping rocker who dazzled me 6 years ago when she competed for the job of INXS's lead singer on another Mark Burnett-produced talent show, "Rockstar". I loved Jordis then, she was so cool and badass with her flowing dredlocks, tattoos and often-animated style of singing which flowed through the soul sometimes like butter and sometimes tore like razors. Although she finished fifth in that tough, hard-driving competion (but the top girl. INXS never really wanted a female lead singer) she gave some of the most memorable vocal performances I ever heard on TV. One in particular was a stellar version of John Lennon's "Imagine", performed so exquisitely and poignantly I still play the video when I need a big pick-me-up shot of magical music. There were several other song performances on "Rockstar" for which Jordis was praised, also, "Heart-Shaped Box" being one, but, I'll never forget the night she blew me away with her rendition of one of the best songs ever penned. So, it wasn't altogether surprising to feel my jaw dropping onto my chest as I watched Jordis step out on the stage to audition on "The Voice", and when she cut loose with a blistering, perfectly-performed version of Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed", the chairs of the judges were spinning like tops and so was my head. There was no maybe about it---I was amazed and enthralled and captivated by the performance. Good Golly Miss Molly, Jordis was back, and better than ever!
Maybe I'm Amazed with Jordis Unga
All at once the interest level of "The Voice" picked up significantly.
But, I'm wondering now can Jordis actually win "The Voice"? With her audition she made glowing headlines and once again became talk of the town. Some insist she is one of the frontrunners. I agree. I agree she SHOULD be. She's THAT good. And, like me, a legion of music fans spread out over America and several other countries are elated to see her back and on "The Voice", so, naturally, she will have a large fan base to cast plenty of votes for her. Jordis Unga is an amazing singer by anyone's standards and certainly worthy of eventually coming out on top in this season"s "Voice" competition. Yet, after her first "Battle Round" match-up with rocker Brian Fuente, which she won handily in my opinion, I noticed there is something a bit....different.....about Jordis Unga this time around. No, it's not just the absence of the dreds or the transformation from the look of a smokin' rock chic to that of legal secretary. During her song performance duet in which she sang the Alanis Morissette hit, "Ironic" with Fuente, Jordis appeared to me, and to the judges, off her game---- uncertain, hesitant, emotional, a little too out of synch. Oh, she sang her part well enough, but it lacked the old familiar Jordis moxy and kick ass style that her fans have all come to love and expect, and what set her apart from other good vocalists.. Me? I chalked it up to the song choice Blake Shelton gave her because, ironically, "Ironic" has never sounded much like a "rock song" to me, and that's exactly what Shelton said he was trying to do: give Jordis and Fuente a REAL rock song. I also think Jordis might have been a little uncomfortable in performing a duet, something for which she is typically unaccustomed. And then maybe she is just overwhelmed a bit by the self-induced pressure she is putting on herself to excel and win "The Voice" before time passes her by. (Jordis is closing in on the Big 3-0 ) Whatever the real reason, Jordis Unga, one of the baddest rock chics and best singers around, looked a bit out of sorts to me last Monday night, and not only did that surprise me, it also gave me a temporary surge of foreboding about her eventual fate on "The Voice" if she continues that pattern. Her coach and mentor, Blake Shelton, said it best: "I don't know what's up with Jordis."
Jordis Will Have To bring Her A Game To Win The Voice
But, rethinking the issue, I believe my worries are much too premature. After all, this is Jordis Unga we're talking about, not some Cookie Cutter blonde on "American Idol" or one of Simon Cowell's rawboned, fresh-faced kids of marginal talent that he likes to lavish with faint praise before casting them away into the scrap yard. Personally, I think Jordis will be fine now that she has had her first exposure to "The Voice" system, and whatever song Blake elects to give her and her her next competitor, she will perform it flawlessly and with the old fire and passion we come to expect from Jordis Unga. Looking over the cast in Team Blake, I don't see any reason why she can't win this bracket and move on into the Finals. The only stiff competition I see, really, comes from Alisha Key's backup singer, Jermaine Paul, who has shown he is definitely not shabby in the singing department, but Jordis has the chops to win this thing if she can just muster up the same air of confidence she projected consistently during her "Rockstar" days. If we get lucky, maybe Blake will let her break out "Imagine" from the closet, and that would be a special treat to behold indeed.
Like I said, I don't believe for a minute INXS was actually looking to hire a female frontman, and that's a shame since JD Fortune turned out to be such a schmuck, but "The Voice" is definitely willing to put a crown on a worthy female vocalist, and there's no reason it can't be Jordis.
Go Jordis! The Jukebox Hero is pulling for you!
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