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`The Voice` (NBC graphic)
"The Voice" (NBC graphic)

'The Voice' musician coaches to bolster 'battle' rounds with Reba, Monica, Sia and Adam Blackstone as advisers

by jmaloni
Fri, Apr 29th 2011 02:00 pm

NBC revealed that it will add more star-power to its new vocal competition series "The Voice" with singers Reba, Monica, Sia (Furler) and music producer Adam Blackstone joining the series as new advisers who will lend their experience and talents to musician coaches Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton for the next "Battles" competition phase.

"The Voice" next airs Tuesday, May 3 (9-11 p.m. ET) and then will be broadcast from 10-11 p.m. (ET) each Tuesday night on May 10, May 17 and May 24 following new episodes of "The Biggest Loser" (Tuesdays, 8-10 p.m. ET).

Aguilera (@therealxtina) will team up with singer/songwriter Sia (@Siamusic), Levine (@adamlevine) with Maroon 5 Music Director Blackstone (@bassicblack), Green (@CeeLoGreen) with singer Monica (@MonicaMyLife), and Shelton (@blakeshelton) with veteran singer Reba (@Reba) - eventually cutting their teams in half by pitting two of their own artists against each other in a series of dueling duets.

Each of the musician coaches chose their advisers to help them at the next "Battles" stage that lasts across four episodes. Reba, Monica, Sia and Blackstone were picked because they are in the trusted inner circle of the respective musician coach that they are helping. They are being brought in by the musician coaches to bring out the best in each of their artists, help to select songs that suit specific vocal styles and provide advice for performance. These adviser rosters will expand when the competition moves on to the live performance stage.

The announcement was made by Paul Telegdy, executive vice president of alternative programming for NBC and Universal Media Studios.

The Grammy-winning Reba is one of country's music's most celebrated singers and holds the record for the most Top Female Vocalist Awards received from the Academy of Country Music Awards as well as the most from the American Music Awards for Favorite Country Female Artist.

In addition, Reba has starred on Broadway in "Annie Get Your Gun" and in "South Pacific: In Concert from Carnegie Hall." She starred in her own television comedy series "Reba" from 2001-07 and appeared in the feature films "Tremors" and North," and in the TV movies "Is There Life Out There" and "The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw."

Monica is a multi-platinum Grammy-winning and 15-million-plus-selling singer, actress and entrepreneur. The young music veteran returned to the scene after a four-year hiatus with her recent album "Still Standing," which garnered two Grammy nominations for Best R&B Album and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and for her hit single "Everything to Me." "Still Standing" also just received two Billboard Music Award nominations for Best R&B Artist and Top R&B Album. She began her career at the age of 15 with her hit singles "Don't Take It Personal (Just One of Dem Days)" and "Before You Walk Out of My Life." As a result, she became the youngest female ever to have two No. 1 back-to-back hits on Billboard's R&B chart from her 1995 debut album "Miss Thang."

Monica recently began her entrepreneurial career by creating a new nail polish line called "New Bride by Monica," distributed by Orly International Inc., which will premiere at Monica's upcoming July wedding to Shannon Brown of the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers. Monica's "New Life" album and "New Bride by Monica" nail polish will both be available by September.

Sia is an Australian vocalist and winner of three Aria awards last year. She previously worked with Aguilera. Their collaboration, "Bound to You," was nominated for a Golden Globe award earlier this year. She was featured as a VH1 "You Oughta Know" artist for her song "I'm in Here" from her latest solo album, "We Are Born".

In addition to her solo career, Sia provided vocals for Zero 7 on their albums "Simple Things" and "The Garden." Her songs have appeared on such series as "Six Feet Under," "Grey's Anatomy," "Nip/Tuck," "Dollhouse," "Nikita", "Private Practice" and, most recently, her song "My Love" was included on the Grammy nominated "Twilight: Eclipse" soundtrack.

Blackstone is considered to be one of the industry's top music directors. He has collaborated and toured with such artists as Maroon 5 (with Levine), Eminem, Jay-Z, Janet Jackson, Drake, Mary J. Blige and Kanye West, among many other top-flight performers. As a producer, Blackstone was named one of BMI's "Top 10 Producers to Watch," with his production credits including works with Jill Scott, Joss Stone, Kanye West and Diane Burch, to name a few. Blackstone's work currently can be heard on tour with Chris Brown, Janet Jackson, Kid Cudi, and he frequently can be seen on shows as NBC's "Saturday Night Live," "Ellen," NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and "Late Night with David Letterman."

"The Voice" is a vocal competition series modeled after Holland's top-rated vocal talent discovery show, "The Voice of Holland." Hosted by Daly, the show features four musician coaches, Aguilera, Green, Levine and Shelton, who will coach only the most talented vocalists.

The show's innovative format features three stages of competition: the first begins with the blind audition, then the competition enters into a battle phase, and finally, the live performance shows. The show's casting team is working with the music industry for the best singers to bring to the blind audition process. During the blind auditions, the decisions from the coaches are based solely on voice and not on looks. The coaches hear the contestants perform, but they don't get to see them -- thanks to rotating chairs. If a coach is impressed by the contestant's voice, he/she pushes a button to select the contestant for his/her team. At this point, the coach's chair will swivel so that he/she can face the contestant he/she has selected.

Once the teams are set, the battle is on. Coaches will dedicate themselves to developing their singers, giving them advice, and sharing the secrets of their success. During the "Battle" rounds, the coaches will pit two of their own team members against each other to sing the same song together in front of a studio audience. After the vocal face-off, the coach must choose which of his/her singers will advance.

At the end of the "Battle" episodes, only the strongest members of each coach's roster remain and proceed to the live stage shows. In the performance phase of the competition, the top contestants from each team will compete against each other during a live broadcast. The television audience will vote to save one talent on each team, leaving the coach to decide live who they want to save and who will not move on. In the finals, each coach will have one artist/contestant left to represent them and that artist's fate will be in the viewer's hands. One of the four finalists will be named "The Voice" - and will receive the grand prize of a recording contract with Universal Music Group and $100,000.

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