Tuesday’s episode of The Voice rolled off of the assembly line some wonderful performances — and a singularly bitter disappointment. After Monday’s cliffhanger was resolved — Austyns Stancil chose to be stolen by Snoop Dogg — a contestant was let go who was probably the next best thing to Season 25’s Nathan Chester. (And you know I’m still mad about him only coming in fourth!) Read on, and we’ll discuss not only that disturbing twist but all of Night 4’s Battles.

Team Snoop: Georgia Starnes (Grade: A) defeated Dreion (Grade: A+) on “Perfect Combination” | Couldn’t describe this Battle any better than the title of Stacy Lattisaw and Johnny Gill’s ’80s duet does. Dreion and Georgia were, in a word, superlative. She was so on point, you’d have sworn someone was mixing her note by note. But hands down, Dreion was the winner for me. He wasn’t as good as Georgia, he was even better, singing with a liveliness and presence that she altogether lacked. I’m not just sad that he was eliminated, I’m pissed.

Team Gwen: Kay Sibal (Grade: B+) defeated Beya (Grade: B) on “Please Please Please” | Welp, so ends the hoopla that surrounded Beya after her Blind Audition. On Sabrina Carpenter’s smash, Beya was better than just OK, but she needed to be better still if she was going to top Kay, who sang with an urgency and flair that made her the clear standout. Perhaps a different number would have allowed Beya to really shine?


Team Reba: Jaukeem Fortson (Grade: C+) defeated Tsola (Grade: C) on “Higher Love” | Though we didn’t hear all of this Battle, we heard enough to know that it wasn’t 100-percent “there.” Both Jaukeem and Tsola were clearly giving it their all and digging deep to give it some more, too, it just never quite gelled. In the end, I’d have handed to win to the season’s youngest contestant, who sang with real fire if not flawlessness.

Team Bublé: Sofronio Vasquez (Grade: A) defeated Aliyah Khaylyn (Grade: A-) on “The Power of Love” — Aliyah stolen by Snoop | Wish I could say that I found this Battle majorly moving, but I didn’t. Both contestants were technically very good, it just left me feeling nothing. Snoop disagreed. Watching, he felt like the duo was a meant-to-be couple “at dinner somewhere in Paris.” Anyway, in Michael’s loafers, I also would’ve chosen Sofronio, whose range seemed to be greater than Aliyah’s.