'The Voice' Fans Are Livid About Blake Shelton's "Big Mistake" Letting This Artist Walk Away

Blake Shelton may have thought that the first round of the knockouts was “an epic night,” but some folks believe that The Voice coach didn’t make the wisest decision for Team Blake.

On Monday night, season 21 contestants Hailey Green and Libianca went head to head, performing two different songs to try to stand out from one another and stay on the show. Hailey sang Blake’s own song “God’s Country” while Libianca performed Billie Eilish’s “Everything I Wanted.”

After hearing the Mississippi high schooler and the Minneapolis native, Blake looked to his fellow coaches for guidance on who he should pick. Ariana Grande applauded Hailey for her “brave” song choice and complimented her “strong and powerful” voice. But she loved how Libianca switched up her song’s melody even more. John Legend echoed similar words about Hailey but he was thoroughly impressed by how Libianca brought her A-game. Kelly Clarkson then compared Hailey to a young Janis Joplin and declared that it was a rare sight. Although Libianca “had so much cool texture and vibe,” Kelly said Hailey stood out from the rest of her competitors.

In the end, Ariana and John rooted for Libianca and Kelly threw her support behind Hailey. And before making a final decision, Blake shared some of his thoughts. “Hailey, I’ve literally lost years off my life trying to get through that vocal and listening to you sing that, holy crap,” he said. “And then Libianca was having a hard time even getting through the song in rehearsals, and to see you pull it together and do it, that’s incredible.”

Ultimately, when Voice host Carson Daly asked Blake to name a winner of the knockout, he shouted Libianca’s name. But it wasn’t who some fans had been hoping for. Although the coach said it was a “soul crushing” decision, many viewers were taken aback by who he chose and called him out on Twitter.

“Wow wrong decision right there picking someone else over her. Literally had me with my mouth open at how good she was the minute she started the song. You picked the wrong one 🤷♀️,” one person wrote. “She rocked that song.. amazing singer.. you made a mistake letting her go,” another added. “She would have won it for you Blake… What the hell?” a different fan said. "She did a FANTASTIC job... the most unique person of the entire season and she went home? That's just wrong!" someone else tweeted.

In an off-camera interview, Blake opened up about why he didn’t go with Hailey and explained that it all came down to growth. “My heart’s broken right now. It wouldn’t have mattered who I chose, but there was no way in hell I was gonna let Libianca leave,” he said. “I feel like she had the tallest mountain to climb, and she was able to get it together. As a coach, there’s no way I can’t reward that.”

So, there you have it. It definitely wasn’t an easy choice either way, but let's be clear — both are incredible artists, with or without The Voice.

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