With her triumph in the final of The Voice, Alexia Jayy is a trailblazer, a record-setter and the hero of NBC’s Battle of Champions.
This 29th and latest season of The Voice enjoyed a makeover, with several format changes and a new-look panel of coaches, marking the talent quest’s first-ever three-coach lineup: Adam Levine, Kelly Clarkson, and John Legend.
For those armchair viewers who followed Jayy’s journey from the start, her victory should come as no surprise.
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After bagging the very first “Triple Chair Turn” of the new season, joining team Adam, and earning favorable comparisons to Whitney Houston and Lauryn Hill, Jayy always looked like the goods.
On Tuesday night, April 14, she put it beyond doubt with a cover of “Lady Marmalade,” duetted with her coach on “Sunday Morning,” and smashed it clean out the park with a rendition of Adele’s “One and Only.” Donning a white gown, gold cape and necklace, Jayy sounded like someone who was sent here to win.
“That was, crazy,” Clarkson told Levine during the final. “You are so good. Wow, you’re like a vessel. Girl, that was so good, and you felt it … That was like a therapeutic release my heart needed, thank you. And, look, I love Adele, she’s one of my favorite singers, but damn!” The original American Idol quipped, “Just promise me this — never cover my songs.”
If Clarkson was crying, she wasn’t the only one. “You got us all weeping over here,” Legend remarked. “We’re just proud of you, honestly. You’ve just been remarkable every single time and you’ve just been a blessing to all of us.”
Levine had the last word. “You make people reflect on their own life. When you tap into that, you make the world feel a little bit more together and communal,” he noted. “That’s really, really, really special. I’ve never experienced the feeling we all just had together. Thank you for being the messenger, you’re unbelievable.”
Watch Jayy’s performances below.
At the nervy, pointy end of the competition, Jayy was asked about the unwavering support of her coach. “Oh, it has meant the world to me,” she enthused. I didn’t expect I’d get this far, so Adam giving me his kind words and, you know, just motiving me has really brought me so far.”
The Maroon 5 frontman, who inhabited one of the red chairs for the show’s first 16 seasons, as well as season 27, is now a four-time winner as coach, having lifted the trophy with Javier Colon (2011), Tessanne Chin (2013), Jordan Smith (2015) and now Jayy.
Hailing from the small town of Irvington, about 20 miles southwest of Mobile, Jayy, 31, a mom of two, becomes the first African-American woman to win The Voice.
As champion, she receives a $100,000 cash prize, a recording contract with Universal Music Group, and a special “Artist Launch” home recording studio kit.
For the record, Liv Ciara (Team Kelly) is the season 29 runner-up, Lucas West (Team Legend) completed the podium in third place, while Mikenley Brown (Team Kelly) came in fourth.
Check out the big reveal below.
