The Voice is back for its 24th season, and things started off with a bang. The two-hour season premiere featured some of the strongest collections of Contestants in recent memory, but none shone brighter than “magical gem” Mara Justine (21), from Galloway, New Jersey.
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Success in a Blind Audition is about choosing the right song almost as much as it’s about talent. Any doubt about Justine’s choice — a smoky rendition of Elton John’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” — evaporated within seconds of the first notes.
“Magical Gem” Mara Justine performs Elton John’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” on The Voice Blind Auditions
It’s clear Justine made the song her own from the first notes, and that’s what captured the immediate attention of the Coaches. The song begins, “When are you gonna come down? When are you going to land?” And that’s as far as Justine got before Coaches John Legend and Gwen Stefani hit their buzzers one after another.
“The thing that made me turn around so quickly was your tone in that lower part of the song. Then you had the finesse to do those really light touches. I would love to have you on Team Legend,” Legend said after the Audition.
Justine managed one more line of the song, “I should have stayed on the farm,” before Reba McEntire’s chair turned toward the stage as well. And then there was one: Niall Horan, returning from a victory with Gina Miles in Season 23. He managed to hold out until nearly the end of the first verse before he cracked, earning Justine the coveted Four-Chair Turn.
“God, they make them different in Jersey. Someone that’s willing to go into the first round with an Elton John song and sing it like that, takes something. If this is where you’ve set the bar, what are we going to see from you down the line? America is going to fall in love with that voice,” Horan said of the performance, making his case for Justine to join his roster.
“I hope you noticed I was the first one who turned for you. They just didn’t have the foresight that I had in understanding what a magical gem you are as a vocalist,” Legend said. Stefani , Horan, and McEntire also made their arguments for why Justine should choose them, as well.
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But who will she pick? Find out by watching The Voice Mondays and Tuesdays at 8/7c on NBC and next day on Peacock!
