MANILA, Philippines - Clearly, boys were favored in The Voice (US) Season 7, which recently concluded with the big win of country singer Craig Wayne Boyd. A prized talent of coach Blake Shelton, Craig was pitted against three other male finalists all from Team Adam Levine, but the singer from Nashville, Tennessee emerged as the champion.
Craig bagged a cool $100,000 check, plus the more important Universal Music Group recording contract. The long-haired single dad will release the single, My Baby’s Got A Smile On Her Face, written by Blake. Craig’s victory marked the fourth win for Blake as coach.
Second placer was college graduate from New Jersey, Matt McAndrew. Twenty-year-old falsetto singer Chris Jamison, a campus mail man from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was in third place. Wild Card contestant Damien Lawson was fourth — all from Team Adam. The Maroon 5 vocalist, however, was proud about his finalists, although none of them made it as winner.
The talents also performed with guest singers in the star-studded finale. The 35-year-old Craig crooned Sweet Home Alabama with Lynyrd Skynyrd. Matt performed Centuries with Fall Out Boy. Chris did a duet of Masterpiece with Jessie Damien sang Your World with American Idol finalist and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson.
Solo guest artists also graced the finale. Ed Sheeran brought the house down with his latest moving ballad, Thinking Out Loud. Bruno Mars (with “new fad,” hair curlers on) performed Uptown Funk, his groovy mega-hit with Mark Ronson.
Young singer Meghan Trainor ignited the stage with her new single, Lips Are Moving. Irish artist Hozier also performed his Grammy-nominated song, Take Me To Church.
Meanwhile, the four coaches, including Pharrell Williams and Gwen Stefani, did a haunting rendition of the Christmas song, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.
The Top 20 contestants of The Voice 7 reunited for a grand opening number, Pompeii (by British rock band Bastille), with the Top Four as frontliners.
In The Voice Season 8, Pharrell will return for his second stint as coach. Christina Aguilera will also be back after her maternity leave, which lasted for two seasons. Moreover, Carson Daly will return as host.