‘The Voice': Todd Tilghman and Jon Mullins Battle on a Shenandoah Classic
The nation may be in near-complete quarantine this week, but on Monday night (April 6), The Voice continued with pre-taped Battle Rounds, giving us all a bit of respite from coronavirus news. The episode featured returning coaches Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson and John Legend, plus new coach Nick Jonas, pitting their team members against each other in cutthroat duets to see who will move on to the final rounds.
As always, this segment of the show features help from celebrity mentors, with Shelton choosing Bebe Rexha, Clarkson earmarking pop star Dua Lipa, Legend enlisting Ella Mai and Jonas keeping things simple with his own brothers, Joe and Kevin Jonas. Shelton's battle for the night consisted of Jon Mullins vs. Todd Tilghman, a formidable pair of vocalists who both have compelling backstories.
Despite their proven ability to handle real-life drama, Shelton seemed a little hesitant regarding the song he chose for the pair to perform: Shenandoah's "Ghost in This House." As he related, "This is a song that, like, when I was in, like, middle school was a huge country hit ... It probably isn't really in their wheelhouse at all, and they probably already regret choosing me as their coach, but, to me, Battle Rounds is like, you got to throw something at these guys and see if they step up or not."
"This is a classic song that is sacred to hardcore country music fans," Shelton added, "and it's under a microscope anytime somebody performs something like this."
Tilghman, a father of eight kids, told both Shelton and Rexha that he had some high hopes for his battle: "To be away from my family to be here is really, really difficult, but The Voice could change everything for me. Right now, I only sing at church. I don't perform or record. And to be able to support my family strictly through music would be a dream," he shared.
Meanwhile, Mullins had his own family concerns to share: "My wife is my biggest supporter, biggest fan. I couldn't live without her. Years ago, my wife fell and hit her head. She started to lose speech and motor functions. Thank God, over time, she started to get better," he revealed.
When it came down to the battle, both singers had no problem putting forth convincing fronts on the sad ballad -- but when it came down to decide their fate, Shelton was hesitant. "I made a monumental mistake by pairing you two together," he admitted. "Jon, that's really to your credit. You're the one that stepped up and made this into this impossible decision because it was such an epic performance."
That said, Shelton went ahead and granted the battle to Tilghman. However, things perked up right away when Jonas handily used his steal to grab Mullins.
"The thing I love about Jon's voice is that he's got this ability to deeply connect it to emotion, and you can't teach that," Jonas said. I" was impressed by his blind audition, and I even said, 'If I get the chance, I'm gonna steal you.' Um, and I did!"
The Voice's new episodes were pre-taped prior to the coronavirus pandemic, so fans will be able to keep watching and enjoying the contestants' progress for a few more weeks. The TV singing competition airs on Monday nights on NBC.
WATCH: 6 Unforgettable The Voice Moments
LOOK: The 10 Most Successful Country Singers from The Voice