'The Voice' recap: Trevin Hunte heads home, leaving three

‘The Voice’ recap: Trevin Hunte heads home, leaving three

By Amy Reiter

Dec. 12, 2012 12 AM PT

Team CeeLo’s Trevin Hunte was sent home on “The Voice” on Tuesday night, leaving his teammate Nicholas David and Team Blake’s Terry McDermott and Cassadee Pope to duke it out for the win in next week’s finale.

Hunte seemed like a sweet, humble guy, but I can’t say I’m terribly disappointed – or really at all disappointed – that, of the four contestants who’d sang in the semifinals this week, he was the one “The Voice” voters opted to send home.

From the start, the coaches’ praise for the 18-year-old from Queens, N.Y., who we only just learned had lived in Georgia since age 12, had seemed, to me, way over the top. They’d called him a prodigy, compared him to an angel sent from heaven and fanned themselves so as not to expire from the heat he’d generated. But I just couldn’t connect with him.

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I admired his fluidity and occasional power notes, but vocally and emotionally, he felt remote, as if he were holding back or wasn’t even sure he had much to offer. He never really came right out and grabbed the audience by the lapels with those power ballads he kept singing. Even the “Dreamgirls” song “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” – a song made to stake a claim – felt sort of “meh” to me. That song should bowl you over and leave you gasping for air. I wasn’t bowled. I didn’t gasp.

And of course, Hunte’s fans needn’t worry about him: His coach, CeeLo Green, and not-at-all-secret admirer, Christina Aguilera, who has offered to take him under her wing, will see to it that he continues to make music and prove wrong that teacher who once told him he’d never amount to anything. One of them may yet help Hunte find the confidence to truly bring his talent to the fore.

Certainly, the show’s dedication to its non-winning contestants was clearly on display this week, when three of last season’s also-rans -- Juliet Simms, Chris Mann and RaeLynn – performed. Another, Tony Lucca, appeared with his former coach, Adam Levine, to announce he’d signed with Levine‘s label.

Meanwhile, three fine contenders – McDermott, Pope and David -- will move on to next week’s finale.

Which of them do you think will win?

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Our experts and readers are ranking the best competitors on the singing competitions. Vote below and tell us in the comments. To see last week’s rankings and view the performances, click here. Who will be the favorite this week?

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