Who Will Win The Voice Now That it's Down to 8?
The Voice is in the latter stages, with just eight contestants remaining following the second and final round of the playoffs.
This week it was the turn of coaches Kelly Clarkson and Niall Horan to pick two acts each to progress to next week's live semifinals after Blake Shelton and Chance the Rapper picked two apiece — NOIVAS and Grace West, and Sorelle and Ray Uriel — last week.
Clarkson put through Holly Brand and D. Smooth, while Horan went for Gina Miles and Ryley Tate Wilson, and the One Direction star is now convinced he has the winner on his team.
He said: "I've got two incredible young singers that are going to capture the hearts of the nation, and I believe that the winner of The Voice season 23 is on my team."
It wasn't to be for Team Horan's Ross Clayton, Tasha Jessen, and Michael B., and Team Clarkson's Neil Salsich, ALI, and Cait Martin, who was a surprise departee after being just +500 to win the contest last week.
That leaves eight wannabes to battle it out in the live semifinals. With these hypothetical odds provided by industry sports betting experts, we've looked into which "The Voice" contestants have what it takes to be the show's season 23 winner.
Brand Reduces The Voice Coach Clarkson To Tears
There was plenty of quality on show in the second round of the playoffs on Monday night, but the four acts who progressed could not displace the top two in the market.
Shelton's NOIVAS, and Chance's Sorelle remain the first and second favorites to win this year's The Voice, at +150 and +200, respectively, after progressing last week.
Brand is into +250 to win the 23rd season of The Voice, from +400 last week, after her performance of Jo Dee Messina's "Bring On The Rain" in rehearsals was enough to bring her coach, Clarkson, to tears.
After Brand sang the tune on the show, Shelton said: "I thought you did a killer job."
Clarkson later revealed she chose Brand to progress to the next round because of her versatility, saying: "She can conquer different lanes. She can do whistle notes, she can do R&B kind of pop runs, there’s just something super special about her and I don’t think people realize how gifted she is yet, and I’m just excited to see what the next level is for her."
Whether Brand is gifted enough to win The Voice remains to be seen, but she will also face stiff competition from Shelton's other act West, who is +350 fourth favorite after impressing last week, as well as market leaders NOIVAS and Sorelle.
Miles' Wicked The Voice Performance
Miles is the +500 fifth favorite to win the series after she earned a standing ovation from all four coaches following her performance of "Wicked Game" by Chris Isaak on Monday night's episode.
Shelton told her: "That was my favorite thing that I've heard in a long time."
It was no surprise Horan picked Miles after telling the wannabe she had put in her best performance of the season so far, and he tipped her to progress further than next week's live semifinals.
He said: "She smashed the playoffs. She's ready for the live shows and beyond."
Miles is just ahead of Chance wannabe Uriel, who is +700 in the betting.
D. Smooth was a huge +1400 last week, but the star is now just +800 to win The Voice after Clarkson picked him to go through to the live semi-finals.
Smooth clinched his place in the next round with a classy performance of "Location" by Khalid, after which Shelton told him: "I don't know that anybody has lived up to their name quite like you."
Chance described his performance as "insane," and Smooth's team coach Clarkson was full of superlatives for his rendition.
She said: "It’s almost like it’s your song. It’s a very rare thing. Congratulations. It was awesome. His voice is so incredible."
Check out the odds to win American Idol!
The Voice's Wilson Has a Bright Future
Wilson is at the foot of the market at +1000, but Horan certainly has plenty of confidence in his act being a potential season winner.
The star admitted he could see "glimpses of myself" in Wilson following his performance of Billie Eilish song "When The Party's Over," and Horan's fellow coach Chance the Rapper went one step further with his praise.
He told Wilson: "I don't know how I forget that there's a 15-year-old on the show that's doing stuff like this, but I thought that was the greatest show of control out of all the performances today."
Before Horan's final decision, Chance admitted it would be "a shame" if Wilson went home, and Shelton told his fellow coach: "You have got to put Ryley through."
After picking Wilson, Horan admitted that he had done so because he is "the future of our music industry."
But whether Wilson's future on The Voice ends in victory remains to be seen, with the live semifinals set to air on Monday.
Be first to get our exclusive sports offers!
Join today to stay up to date on your states gambling news and offers.