The Battle Round kicked off on Monday’s episode of The Voice (Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CTV2) and lent itself extremely well to physical distancing. Instead of teammates getting up in each other’s business while going note for note on a duet, singers are now separated in their own boxing ring-style stage. If you squinted really hard while watching last night’s episode, it was almost as if everything was back to normal. Just ignore the fact that the audience are now floating heads in the background.Even with the pandemic raging on, superstar advisors were still in the studio to help the singers nail their performances. John Legend partnered with Miguel, Blake Shelton brought in Kane Brown, Kelly Clarkson worked with fellow Texan Leon Bridges and Gwen Stefani teamed up with returning advisor Julia Michaels. Gwen even assigned one of her teams a Julia Michaels song, taking an already intimidating situation and turning it up to an 11. Nerves are good for your vocal chords, right? That’s a thing?One of the best parts of the Battles Round is seeing two singers who are evenly matched find a beautiful new harmony together in their duet. This is also one of the worst parts of the Battle Round, because it typically means someone who is extremely talented is going home. Thankfully, the Saves and Steals are back again the season, giving each coach two chances to provide a singer with a lifeline. The four artists who are saved by their coaches will face off in a four-way knock out battle with one winner. Again, yay nerves?

LAUREN FRIHAUF V. PAYGE TURNER – TEAM GWEN

Team Gwen’s Lauren Frihauf and Payge Turner had the honour and terror of performing a Julia Michaels song in front of Julia Michaels. Both women gave emotionally wrought performances of “If The World Was Ending,” showing off their individual style and strengths. Blake and Kelly chose Payge as the winner, while John declined to make a choice. “This was probably going to be my hardest [decision] on my team,” said coach Gwen, adding “The music and the emotion is really coming from deep inside.” After Gwen made the difficult decision to pick Payge, Lauren received Saves from both Blake and John. Blake said that he picked Payge as the winner in an effort to throw Gwen off the scent so he could steal Lauren, while John reminded Lauren that he turned for her in the Blind Auditions. We’d say guess which pitch won out, but it’s obvious.Winner: PaygeSteal: Lauren to Team Legend

 

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@paygeturnermusic and @laurenfrihauf absolutely rock #TheVoice Battles Monday 8/7c on @nbc.

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WORTH THE WAIT V. TARYN PAPA – TEAM BLAKE

There’s no denying that Worth the Wait have an incredible ability to harmonize that is partly brought on by genetics. No amount of practicing can make up for DNA. There’s also no denying that as the only trio this season, the family singing group has a wow factor that solo artists can’t match. That’s what made Monday’s pairing between Worth the Wait and Taryn Papa so difficult. Although Worth the Wait harmonize beautifully, individually their voices are no match for the uber-talented and seasoned performer, Taryn. The coaches were split on the battle and Blake decided the best decision was to make no real decision, choosing Worth the Wait as the winners and saving Taryn. That means Taryn will now face off against the three other artists who will be saved by their coaches in the Battle Round. This was likely a strategic move on Blake’s part with the country singer knowing that Taryn has enough talent and experience to dominate the four-way knock out. Maybe he is the King of The Voice?Winner: Worth the WaitSave: Taryn Papa

 

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#TeamBlake Battle. #TheVoice

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BAILEY RAE V. SID KINGSLEY – TEAM LEGEND

One of the best pairings of the night was Team Legend’s Bailey Rae and Sid Kingsley, who delivered a beautiful and powerful performance of Chris Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey.” If we had a dollar for every time Team Legend had the best country performance of the night, we would have one dollar. Sid attacked the song, while Bailey Rae’s power grew throughout the performance. The judges were divided on who won the evenly matched battle. Bailey Rae’s traditional country delivery had elements of Patti Loveless (according to Blake), while Sid brought in Ray LaMontagne (according to us). Thankfully, neither singer is going home. After John chose Bailey Rae, Kelly continued pushing the red button that she had already hit several times throughout the performance and stole Sid.Winner: Bailey RaeSteal: Sid to Team Kelly

 

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Can we keep both @sidkingsley and @baileyraemusic? #TheVoice

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OLIVIA REYES V. TAMARA JADE – TEAM LEGEND

Tamara Jade had the first four-chair turn of the Blind Auditions this season and proved she was deserving of every spin with her performance of H.E.R.’s “Hard Place.” While Tamara’s first appearance on The Voice set expectations at an all-time high, Olivia was a pleasant surprise. The teen singer also delivered an impressive audition but going against a powerhouse like Tamara would have left most competitors in the dust. Olivia rose of the occasion and delivered an impressive performance that showed off her beautiful tone and strong high register. Tamara still took the W, but Olivia definitely left an impression.Winner: Tamara Jade

 

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showed up to Battle. #TheVoice

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Watch new episodes of The Voice Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CTV2.[video_embed id='-1']BEFORE YOU GO: Typical morning discussion between husky and owner [/video_embed]