The blind auditions continue on Tuesday (September 23) night’s new episode of The Voice, and we’ve got a sneak peek at a four-chair turn that gets very personal for one of the coaches.
In the embedded clip above, we meet Max Cooper III, a 23-year-old man from Kansas City, Kansas, who taught himself to play piano by ear as a toddler and has a passion for infusing pop with jazz.
His performance of “Cooler Than Me” (originally popularized by Mike Posner) gets the attention of all four coaches — first Snoop Dogg, then Reba McEntire, and finally, both Niall Horan and Michael Bublé jump in after hearing the consistency in his strong delivery.
McEntire praises his voice for “growing and growing and growing” throughout the performance, while Snoop notes that he was all-in from the first few notes — “and then they followed me, as usual,” he said with an air of snark. Niall also touts his tone and delivery choices, but the competitive element of the coaching pitch comes to a crashing halt when Cooper reveals a little something about himself: that his first-ever performance was of Bublé’s “I Just Haven’t Met You Yet.”
After that, the other coaches seem resigned but get to enjoy the show as Bublé takes the stage for a spirited duet alongside his inevitable recruit. Together, the two belt the hit lyrics while Cooper mans the piano and Bublé leads the audience in a cheery reaction.
“I just love the future of music for the world and America when a young dude like you has that passion,” he then says after the impromptu performance. The proud coach also expresses his intention to share the stage with Cooper once again in the season finale.
Watch the above clip for the full performances and coaches’ remarks!
The Voice, Mondays & Tuesdays, 8/7c, NBC
