Steffy Beyong, Jay, Julie St-Pierre and Adam El Mouna won their place in the semi-finals on Sunday evening during the first live of the season of “La Voix”.
The atmosphere was feverish at Mels Studios, where twelve candidates defended their place in the adventure.
Jennifer Lee-Dupuy, who will play the main character of the musical “The Bodyguard”, opened the evening with a number involving the twelve candidates of this first quarter-final. His incarnation of Whitney Houston is rather successful and his voice does not suffer the comparison.
Frédérick de Grandpré simply made an appearance at the end of the number to emphasize his presence in the show.
Start of the competition
Three candidates per team found themselves on stage to interpret a song of their choice that they worked on with their coach, in addition to benefiting from the advice of Serge Denoncourt in the staging of their number.
At the end of the performance of the candidates, the coach must distribute his 100 points between each, this vote is then combined with the percentage of the public’s vote. The contestant with the highest result advances to the semi-finals.
For Mario Pelchat’s team, Steffy Beyong was able to breathe all the intensity and emotion that the song required. She was able to directly touch the hearts of the public with her deep and moving voice.
Corneille knew how to follow Jay’s desire to defend himself with a completely revisited version of “Crying in the rain”, by Mario Pelchat. A daring bet which will have finally paid off, since it received the strongest vote of the public of the evening.
In Marjo’s team, Julie St-Pierre has finished hiding, she now shines with her magnificent voice, and the public follows her in this new adventure.
Finally, Adam El Mouna proved that he was already an artist in his own right with his electric performance on “Hit The Road Jack”, by Ray Charles. His coach Marc Dupré and the public were not mistaken.
Julie St-Pierre wins her bet
For her team’s quarter-finals, Marjo first started rehearsals with Will by asking him why he had come to “La Voix”, she was so impressed by his talent and his confidence.
He chose to accompany himself on the electric guitar on the song “Né pour être sauvage”, by Philippe Brach. A title that he knew how to energize with a finale much more grunge than the original. Marjo was obviously super happy with this version.
Julie St-Pierre chose “Is that Alright”, a song from the movie “A star Is Born”, which corresponds to the moment when Lady Gaga’s character is getting married. “I’ve been married for six years and that’s exactly how I feel in my couple,” she said to justify her choice. “I have so much pride,” his former coach Marc Dupré told him after his performance. Marjo emphasized her powerful voice. “But what I love most about you is your vulnerability. You let us into your inner garden.”
Philippe Plourde then accompanied himself on the piano on “Promenade sur mars”, by Offenbach, a song which is his father’s favorite. “Not only do you have a unique stamp, but you are unique. Tackle a great classic to make your own version of it, well done,” said his coach.
With Marjo’s 33 points added to the public’s 45 points, Julie St-Pierre reaches the semi-final with real happiness. “I learn a lot, I free myself from a lot of things,” she advanced to comment on her adventure so far. She who dreams of singing and being on stage even more often will be able to make her wish come true.
Jay acclaimed by the public
Saved by his duel coach, Mélodie-Jade performed with some difficulty the song “Respire”, by Gaël Faye, during the quarter-finals of “La Voix” for Corneille’s team.
“If anyone has found their artistic identity since day one, it’s you,” said Marc Dupré. Corneille, for her part, insisted on underlining the difficulty of the text she had chosen and which she rendered with brilliance.
Surprisingly, Jay wanted to defend his place with “Crying in the Rain,” which he sang with aplomb in front of whoever popularized it. However, he brought the song into another atmosphere, with a little groove, a nod to his Caribbean roots. A performance that ignited the crowd. “It’s touching, it came to get me, said Mario Pelchat. What you did with it, I want to do it like that now.” Corneille also said he was extremely proud of his candidate.
Third candidate from Corneille’s team, Élysabeth Rivest opted for Yseult’s song, “I Love You”, which denounces toxic relationships. His intensity and the power of his voice allowed him to get the message across, with the presence of a string quartet. “You have just shown Quebec what I had guessed at the duels, thank you”, addressed his coach to him.
At the 34 points awarded by the coach, Jay received an imposing total of 60 points from the public, an impressive score which gave him enormous pleasure. “It means everything to me,” he confessed. I don’t make music just for myself, I don’t sing just for myself, but I do it for the people who listen to me. Thank you so much.”
The moving intensity of Steffy
Mario Pelchat has lined up three great voices from his team for this first quarter-final of “The Voice”. Marie-France Lantin, who had broken the ice of blind auditions, was part of Corneille’s team, before being robbed by Mario Pelchat.
It was also she who opened the competition with “A beautiful story”, the classic by Michel Fugain. She delivered a completely different version of the original. “She was the one who suggested doing this song, and when I heard it, she immediately convinced me,” admitted Mario Pelchat.
In tribute to his parents, Joël Boudreault has chosen to reinterpret the song “Laisse-moi t’aimer” by Mike Brant. “I would let myself be loved anytime,” commented Marjo after her performance. Mario Pelchat added that he sang really well and his interpretation was powerful.
Seeing the emotion she distills with her voice, Steffy Beyong feels like singing is her mission in life. To defend her place, she called on the song “If only I could miss her”, by Calogero, which she dedicated to her father. “When we speak with a voice that comes from the heart, that’s it. It is felt and true. What is good with you is that even before you start to sing, we know that we are going to experience something grandiose,” said Marc Dupré. The comments of the coach went in the same direction.
With 35 points from the coach, and 43 points awarded by the public, Steffy Beyong won 78 points which allowed her to advance to the semi-finals. “It was not an easy song to do, but I was able to count on a good coach, she declared. Thanks to everyone for voting for me.”
The assumed talent of Adam El Mouna triumphs
Darren Vaudreuil has a rock-star side that the coach wanted to exploit in this quarter-final.
In rehearsal, the candidate took the opportunity to reveal to him that he had a tattoo of his face on his leg. He then defended his place with the song “We do what we love”, by the group Les Respectables, injecting it with even more energy than in the original version. At the end of his performance, he even revealed that he had a tattoo of Charles Lafortune’s face. “You were unleashed,” commented Marc Dupré.
Since she was young, Sorrene has struggled with authority and she chose the song “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word,” by Elton John. “I calculated with the rehearsals, you’ve done this song 47 times and I still get chills when I hear it. I also like your journey, you fight, you grow, you are magnificent,” said his coach.
Adam El Mouna concluded Marc’s trio. Dupré with “Hit the road Jack”. He confessed that he discovers himself at each step in this adventure and that he amazes himself. He transformed Ray Charles’ classic into a very personal version during which his interpretation was totally embodied.
“I’m so happy to have blocked Mario for you, said Marc Dupré. You are an artist, you surprised me again tonight. You have an aura around you, bigger than your hair.
The coach’s 34 points and the public’s 47 allow Adam El Mouna to reach the semi-final. “It means a lot of things to me at the same time, he commented. This song was dedicated for my brother, whose birthday it is today. To convey this message to him, to tell him to continue on his road as far as he wants to go, is a lot.
They advance to the semi-finals:
Mario Pelchat Team
Steffy Beyong, 23, Montreal
Corneille Team
Jay, 24, Montreal
Team Marjo
Julie St-Pierre, 37, Montreal
Team Marc Dupre
Adam El Mouna, 19 years old, Ville-Sainte-Catherine