The Voice 7 - Live Blog and Recap - The Knockouts, Part 3 (VIDEO)

Welcome to the live blog and recap of The Voice 2014 Season 7, "The Knockouts, Part 3"!

The Knockout Round comes to an end! Blake has the final steal of the Knockouts, which puts all the pressure on the country music mentor. Taylor Swift is back as the guest mentor, as the teams are narrowed down for the live playoffs.

Tonight's matchups and song spoilers are...

Team Blake:
Reagan James ("Hit 'Em Up Style") vs. Grant Ganzer ("Apologize")
Taylor Brashears ("Landslide") vs. Allison Bray ("Sin Wagon")

Team Adam:
Chris Jamison ("Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay") vs. Blessing Offor ("Your Body Is A Wonderland")
Matt McAndrew ("Drops of Jupiter") vs. Rebekah Samarin ("You Give Me Something")

Team Pharrell:
Jean Kelley ("Chandelier") vs. Menlik Zergabachew ("Could You Be Loved")

Team Gwen:
Anita Antoinette ("Rude") vs. Craig Wayne Boyd ("Can't You See")
Ryan Sill ("Miss Independent") vs. Beth Spangler ("Too Little Too Late")

Rickey will be posting individual videos as the night rolls on. Until then, add your thoughts in the comments below, and keep refreshing for analysis, thoughts, and links to videos of the night's battles as they become available.

Let's get this show on the road!

Credit: NBC

RECAP

-Blake has the final steal, and his choice is more important than ever. His team is the night's first battle...

TEAM BLAKE: ALLISON BRAY VS. TAYLOR BRASHEARS

-Allison is stoked to meet Taylor Swift, and I'm wondering if being star struck is partially what has her looking so stiff onstage for her version of "Sin Wagon". Taylor notices and suggests they both take their shoes off as an experiment, since Allison is on these six-inch heels that Taylor likens to stilts. She wants Allison to be more free and sloppy, and to be able to move around onstage without worrying about being pretty or popular. She wants Allison to just be a mess, since everyone loves a mess. I kind of love Taylor Swift and wish she'd stick around.

-Taylor B., meanwhile, is facing a challenge with "Landslide," which Blake calls a rock standard. Taylor Swift loves the yodel in Taylor B's voice, but feels she uses it too much and compromises the effectiveness of it. However, she feels Taylor B's eye contact is incredibly poignant, to which she responds by saying she simply imagines all her ex-boyfriends out there.

-Allison is up first, and this is instantly better than her rehearsal. It's still not as sloppy as Taylor suggested it should be, but it's a really powerful, high-energy performance. She could use work in the stage presence department, but I thought Allison showed heaps of potential here. That said, I'm a wee bit distracted by how much she looks like Jessica Simpson. Not that this is a bad thing, mind you, but I'm easily distracted, I suppose.

-Taylor is up next, and I actually think this is a much closer battle than I expected it to be. I figured Taylor would mop the floor with Allison and that would be that. But while Taylor's vocal is absolutely beautiful, she just seemed a bit distracted and off in her own world. I loved the vocal, but the performance itself seemed off.

-Pharrell says he's always wanted Taylor on his team, and tells Allison he fully understands her now. Gwen is blown away at how well Allison commanded the stage, but warns that it sounded a bit shouty in places. She then tells Taylor that she loves the control and restraint of her voice. Adam says he was naturally leaning towards Taylor, but was surprised by how much Allison roped him in, getting him to love a song he didn't know. He's backing Allison here. Blake loved the quality of Taylor's voice, but sticks up for Allison against Gwen's accusation of shoutiness, saying that while it was still there, she's working on it. Blake makes his pick...

TAYLOR BRASHEARS ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-Allison chokes back tears as she thanks the coaches and expresses her joy at having made it this far. Naturally, since Blake is the only coach left with a steal, Allison cannot be stolen. Still, even if all the coaches had steals, I'm not sure she'd have been stolen anyway. Good singer with potential, but I'm not sure she'd have made it through the live playoffs.

WATCH: Allison Bray sings ‘Sin Wagon’ (VIDEO) / Taylor Brashears sings ‘Landslide’ (VIDEO)

TEAM GWEN: RYAN SILL VS. BETH SPANGLER

-Ryan is singing "Miss Independent" by Ne-Yo, and he feels he needs to take it to an entirely new level to be as good of a performer as Taylor Swift. She says that his cute boy charisma is his secret weapon, and he can be a real force to be reckoned with if he nails the big note towards the end. Ryan sounds really good here, even though I'm not sure this is a great song for a battle. Upbeat songs tend to lose if the opponent chooses a ballad. It doesn't always happen, but I get the feeling it happens more than some people realize.

-Beth is singing "Too Little Too Late" by Jojo, and what the hell ever happened to Jojo? I used to like her. And this song, because apparently I'm secretly a 13-year-old girl. Beth runs through the song with Taylor Swift, and she instantly picks up on the same thing I was noticing, that she tends to over-sing -- to the point of approaching hoarseness. They work on adjusting the key to better suit Beth, and I think this sounds a thousand times better. I love Beth and think she could go far if put through to the live playoffs.

-Ryan sounds incredibly smooth here. His face is utterly lifeless though, like he's concentrating on not messing up. He's pacing around the stage and doing these overly rehearsed poses, and it all just feels a little stiff. Still, that vocal though. This is easily the best Ryan has sounded so far, in my opinion.

-I think Beth sounds wonderful here. Hell, she sounds so good that Ryan can be seen rocking out in the corner, showing more enthusiasm during her song than he did for his own. I still think her upper register is a bit dodgy, but she hits some wonderful runs here, and her tone is just lovely. This is ultimately going to come down to a matter of taste, since they both did a good job.

-Adam is impressed by Beth, although he notes her upper register does get a little "squirrely". However, he notes that he himself is the king of "squirrely". He ultimately gives the battle to Ryan. Blake, meanwhile, feels this is a dead heat, and he can't possibly choose. Pharrell says the choice on who to take to the live playoffs will mostly rely on who Gwen most wants to work with. Which brings us to Gwen, who recalls how Ryan used to wear a suit and was stiff onstage, noting how far he's come. She loves Beth too though. So it's tough for her. But she bases her decision off this battle...

RYAN SILL ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-Beth doesn't get stolen, which is a bit surprising to me, since she seems right up Blake's alley. But I'm guessing he probably has an artist in mind to steal. That said, I kind of wish they wouldn't spoil things by saving the big steal for the night's last battle. I mean, I'm assuming that's what they're doing. I'd love to be proven wrong though.

WATCH: Ryan Sill sings ‘Miss Independent’ (VIDEO) / Beth Spangler sings ‘Too Little Too Late’ (VIDEO)

TEAM PHARRELL: JEAN KELLEY VS. MENLIK ZERGABACHEW

-Jean will be singing "Chandelier," a song she picked because of the alcoholism message. Basically, she thinks it's a beautifully sad song, and she only wants to pick songs that mean something to her. However, she does admit that she doesn't have a personal history with alcoholism. But she's still able to connect with the song, just the same. Taylor is in love with her voice from the first note. "Oh my God, that was the most emotional performance I've seen in SO long!" Taylor says. She praises Jean for her choice to start off the first chorus very tenderly before giving the full power, comparing it to interpretive dance.

-Menlik is singing "Could You Be Loved" by Bob Marley, and he's enthusiastic to finally be singing straight reggae. Pharrell likes Menlik's voice, but thinks he's in his own world and shutting the audience out. Taylor notes that when he closes his eyes, the audience can't see what he's feeling. "A singer sings for himself, but a performer performs for everyone else," Taylor notes, in one of the best pieces of advice I've ever heard on this show. Seriously, I'm sounding like a broken record here, but we need this woman on the show all the time.

-Menlik does a hell of a job, delivering what I think is his most vibrant performance yet. He's grooving up there, and it's really infectious. Jean is probably the better singer, but I think there's an argument to be made for putting Menlik through just on the uniqueness he offers. Nobody else in the competition is really doing what he does, and I think he could end up being pretty popular if he makes it to live voting rounds. If nothing else, he's an artist with a clear, defined identity, and that's worth a lot in a competition like this.

-I think Jean absolutely slayed Menlik with this vocal, delivering a passionate performance that was host to one of the best vocals of the Knockout Rounds. I was genuinely impressed with the tone and quality of her voice, in addition to her control. There was a lot of natural drama in this, with her haunting delivery. She offered some terrific theatricality, and I hope that's enough to carry her through. She's not as unique as Menlik, but I think she's got plenty to offer the competition.

-Gwen loved the theatricality of Jean's performance, and was impressed by Menlik's voice, since he showed some qualities she didn't even know he had. Adam notes that Jean's voice inspires deep anxiety and genuine relief in him, while noting that Menlik has the same sort of power, saying they both offer something special. Blake thought it was a close battle, but gives the edge to Menlik. Pharrell compares Jean's performance to a Broadway play onstage, while noting that Menlik was in his own world, and "Who could argue with that?" Weren't you getting on his case about that during rehearsal though? Pharrell gets annoyed with Carson for rushing his decision, but a decision needs to be made...

JEAN KELLEY ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-Pharrell states he chose Jean for how she connected emotionally with the song. Menlik thanks Pharrell for everything he taught him, saying he learned so much in his short time here. Pharrell embraces Menlik and says it was one of the toughest decisions he's ever had to make. He feels Menlik will be signed, but his journey on the show is over, since Blake holds onto his remaining steal.

WATCH: Menlik Zergabachew sings ‘Could You Be Loved’ (VIDEO) / Jean Kelley sings ‘Chandelier’ (VIDEO)

TEAM ADAM: BLESSING OFFOR VS. CHRIS JAMISON

-Blessing is excited to be working with Adam, since he now has access to a second "stream of wisdom" after being stolen during the battle rounds. And working with Taylor Swift makes this even better for him. He'll be singing "Your Body Is A Wonderland" by John Mayer because he doesn't want to be pigeonholed as a guy who can only do R&B. Taylor thought it was an incredible version of the song and gives him a hug. Adam, however, wonders if this is the right song for this round. He suggests doing some bigger things with the vocal, and I'm actually pretty interested to see how this turns out. It could be one of the most surprising performances of the Knockouts.

-Chris is singing "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay", and when I initially saw the song spoilers, I thought they accidentally mixed up who was singing what. But I love that about this show. The R&B guy is singing a John Mayer song, while his opponent is singing an Otis Redding classic. Super unexpected. However, Adam warns Chris about spending too much time in his falsetto, while Taylor suggests he needs to "make it travel" more, as opposed to remaining so rigid. Should be a good vocal.

-Chris has a wonderfully smooth, breezy voice with a lot of soul. He hits some really terrific runs here, and his falsetto makes him even more valuable to Team Adam, since not many male singers in this competition have that quality. I didn't think this was a blowaway, necessarily, but I think it illustrated that Chris has a lot of potential.

-Blessing is up, and I ADORED this. I haven't been entirely sold on Blessing just yet, thinking he's a good singer but one with an obvious ceiling. But after this? I think there are no real limits to what Blessing can do. Okay, maybe he won't do hard rock, but I could see him arranging just about any song to fit his style. He also shows more passion as an onstage performer than most of the others in this competition, especially in how he gets the crowd to clap along. Dude has serious skill.

-Blake thought Chris sang the hell out of the song, and loves Blessing's smile. Pharrell is also a big fan of Blessing, but would give it to Chris because he wasn't expecting that kind of performance from him. Gwen says she didn't recognize Blessing's song at first, and while that would have thrown her any other time, she really enjoyed it here. She also loved Chris and the nuanced vocal he delivered. Adam makes note of how most would probably expect the song choices to have been flipped. He thought they both did a great job, but he can only pick one...

CHRIS JAMISON ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-I can't really argue with this decision, although I think Blessing could probably get Adam farther in the competition than Chris. Still, I think Chris is a strong addition to Team Adam's live playoffs squad.

WATCH: Chris Jamison sings ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay’ (VIDEO) / Blessing Offor sings ‘Your Body Is A Wonderland’ (VIDEO)

TEAM ADAM: MATT MCANDREW VS. REBEKAH SAMARIN

-This is a quick montage showing us the result: Matt McAndrew defeated Rebekah Samarin, which means Rebekah's ENTIRE RUN ON THE SHOW was montaged! Poor girl. I don't even think we've seen enough of her to know whether this is even the right choice or not. That said, I do like Matt McAndrew, and think he could be one of the big surprises of this season.

MATT MCANDREW ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-I wouldn't have picked "Drops of Jupiter" for Matt, but I liked what he did with it, from what little we heard. He seemed surprisingly comfortable onstage without his guitar.

WATCH: Matt McAndrew sings ‘Drops of Jupiter’ (VIDEO)

TEAM BLAKE: GRANT GANZER VS. REAGAN JAMES

-Grant has to calm himself down after meeting Taylor Swift, in a cute little moment. Grant picked "Apologize" by OneRepublic, and Blake is surprised at what a challenging song he chose. During rehearsal, he makes note of the Cute Boy Factor to Taylor Swift, who wholeheartedly agrees. She thinks what's so adorable about him is that he loves singing so much that he gleefully gets into a song. However, she fears that he may end up missing the message of the song. She tells Grant he needs to connect with that message.

-Reagan is singing "Hit'em Up Style," otherwise known as The Official Anthem of American Idol's Hollywood Week. Seriously, I think this song is more popular on singing shows than it ever was in its own time. Taylor loves the maturity of Reagan's song choice, and says her tone is "everything". She does suggest that Reagan shows some restraint onstage, and chooses where she wants to go with the vocal, where her runs are concerned. I like Reagan and I hope she doesn't get swallowed alive by the track.

-Reagan serves up a really good performance, although she'd listened to Taylor and not have made so many back-and-forth trips across the stage, since her voice seems a bit compromised by all the movement. Still, she sounds terrific with her runs. Her upper register during the final choruses are a bit iffy, but I think she does more than enough to give Grant a run for his money. Hell, he seems pretty impressed with her while watching. Reagan is just one of those singers that could probably do any song she's given, since I'm not sure she fits into one specific genre. That could be both a blessing and a curse: on the one hand, she could sing whatever and make it work for her own style; on the other hand, it makes it hard to know what kind of artist she intends to be. It should be interesting to see her development as the competition progresses.

-Grant has such a wonderful tone, tackling this monster of a song and making it sound relatively easy. That said, it isn't really anything special. I suppose you could levy that criticism against plenty of contestants this season, but in this case, Grant didn't do anything particularly new with the song. I thought he did a good job, but I'm not sure it'll be enough to beat Reagan.

-Pharrell thought it was an interesting battle, but gives the win to Reagan. Gwen praises both singers, from Grant's long note to Reagan's ability to weave in and out of chest voice/falsetto. Adam praises Grant for working on his craft despite his nerves, and gives props to Reagan for being so skilled at such a young age. Blake isn't sure who to pick. He says Grant doesn't sound like anyone else in the world, whereas Reagan can "sprinkle a little Reagan" on any song in the world and make it her own. He makes his pick...

REAGAN JAMES ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-Grant thanks Blake, saying he went from being a 16-year-old Iowa boy singing songs in his room, to performing on The Voice. Unfortunately, Blake can't steal his own artist, so it's goodbye for Grant. I wish people who didn't make live shows could re-audition. If you want to limit it, you could say they can only re-audition as long as the coach lineup isn't EXACTLY the same as their original season (i.e., as long as there's at least one different coach). Too much good talent got the boot this season, and a lot of the people who've advanced really aren't all that memorable, even with the insane talent many of them are showing.

WATCH: Reagan James sings ‘Hit ‘Em Up Style’ (VIDEO) / Grant Ganzer sings ‘Apologize’ (VIDEO)

TEAM GWEN: ANITA ANTOINETTE VS. CRAIG WAYNE BOYD

-Anita is singing "Rude" by Magic!, because she thinks it will allow her to show her reggae roots. Taylor thinks Anita is very young and effervescent, and says her stage presence is really charming. Gwen thinks Anita should get sassier, and embrace her Jamaican accent a bit more. "The more character she gives, the more people are going to feel they know this personality," Gwen states. Anita acknowledges that to defeat Craig Wayne Boyd and remain on Team Gwen, she'll have to perform like she's never performed before.

-Craig feels this will be a special performance since his son will be in the audience. He's singing "Can't You See" by Marshall Tucker Band, since he needs to be able to draw Gwen into his "realm", considering Gwen already has common ground with Anita. Taylor thinks Craig should sing out the chorus to the audience more, and should preach at the audience more. "Be in it! Take us to church!" she tells him. Gwen wants to modernize Craig's look and make him look the way she would want him to look if she were going to makeout with him. Taylor latches onto this and says she wants to see him run through the song again without his jacket. This simple change seems to loosen him up a bit more onstage. Backstage, before the battle, we see Craig's new look, and it's pretty slick. His hair is shorter and he has less of a beard. It's more of a goatee now. It's not miles different from his original look, but it's new. And it works.

-Anita is up first, and I really dig this version of the song, which is more reggae-infused than the original. It helps that Anita has real swagger onstage. Her vocal isn't as strong as it probably could be, but she makes up the difference with some awesome stage presence, including some slick dancing towards the end. I hope she advances.

-Craig delivers a pretty good performance. Actually, looking back, this is probably his best vocal. He outsings Anita on pretty much every level, and nearly outperforms her too. This was a tremendous delivery from Craig, particularly the closing note, complete with dramatic pause. I have no idea who should win this battle, but I have no argument against either artist advancing.

-Adam notes the progress between Anita's audition in Season 3 to now, and praises her for how much she believes in what she's doing. He then says he feels like less of a man after seeing Craig's performance. Blake compares Craig performance to breaking up with a girl and then seeing her the next week looking hotter than ever. He's similarly high on Anita. Pharrell says he wishes he could have both singers on his team, and turns to Gwen and says, "I don't know what you're going to do!" Gwen thought Craig delivered a terrific performance, and tells Anita all of her runs and ad-libs were spot-on. Gwen makes her decision...

ANITA ADVANCES TO THE NEXT ROUND!

-No big surprise there. Anita is right up Gwen's alley, and I think they're the perfect pairing. Pharrell dances with Anita after Gwen's announcement, as they sing "Pass the Dutchie" to one another, in a great little moment. Craig, meanwhile, thanks Gwen for giving him the confidence to evolve. But before he can leave, BLAKE HITS HIS BUTTON and steals Craig right back!

BLAKE SHELTON STEALS CRAIG WAYNE BOYD!

-Blake celebrates: "I got my girl back!"

WATCH: Anita Antoinette sings ‘Rude’ (VIDEO) / Craig Wayne Boyd sings ‘Can’t You See’ (VIDEO)

-Aaaand that's a wrap! Here's a recap of tonight's results...

RESULTS

Team Blake:
Reagan James defeats Grant Ganzer
Taylor Brashears defeats Allison Bray

Team Adam:
Chris Jamison defeats Blessing Offor
Matt McAndrew defeats Rebekah Samarin

Team Pharrell:
Jean Kelley defeats Menlik Zergabachew

Team Gwen:
Ryan Sill defeats Beth Spangler
Anita Antoinette defeats Craig Wayne Boyd (Craig Wayne Boyd is STOLEN by Blake Shelton!)

-And now, the full teams for each coachas we head into the LIVE PLAYOFFS next week!

FULL TEAM ROSTERS

TEAM ADAM: Chris Jamison, Damien, Mia Pfirrman, Matt McAndrew and Taylor Phelan

TEAM GWEN: Anita Antoinette, Bryana Salaz, Ricky Manning, Ryan Sill and Taylor John Williams

TEAM PHARREL: DaNica Shirey, Elyjuh Rene, Jean Kelley, Luke Wade and Sugar Joans

TEAM BLAKE: James David Carter, Jessie Pitts, Reagan James, Craig Wayne Boyd and Taylor Brashears

Pharrell is the only team without a Taylor! Not that it necessarily matters, but I suppose the superstitious among us could probably argue it's a sign that either Pharrell will win or he'll be the first coach knocked out. You know, depending on how superstitious you are.

So who has the strongest team? Sound off in the comments! Tomorrow night is a recap show, but join us next week for the start of the Live Playoffs, as we narrow down the teams for the live voting shows! Thanks for hanging out tonight, everyone!

GOODNIGHT!