The Voice UK is back for a new season with a fresh crop of contestants hoping to win the attention of returning coaches Jennifer Hudson, Olly Murs, Sir Tom Jones and Will.i.am.
As we’ve come to expect from the blind auditions, the hopefuls have just 90 seconds to impress the judging panel and prompt them to turn their chairs around.
If they’re especially luckily, they’ll persuade multiple judges into turning round, allowing them to choose which team they end up on.
Here are the must-see acts from episode two:
Bukky Oronti
Sixteen-year-old Oronti hails from Upminster and has honed her astounding vocals by performing for the congregation at her local church.
The teen’s beautiful rendition of Say Something by A Great Big World prompted Will.i.am to turn around after just a few bars. Hudson followed him soon after, whispering to her fellow judges that she’d previously thought two people were singing not one, so powerful was the performance.
Faced with a choice of two eager judges, she eventually opted to joined Hudson’s team, though Murs voiced his disappointment that he’d failed to spin around for a fellow Essex resident.
Dean Mac
Manchester-based professional singer Mac described himself as a “triple threat,” boasting that he had the look, stage presence and vocal talent required to become a star.
Though the audience went wild for Mac’s somewhat unorthodox choice of Pony by Ginuwine (and Murs and Will.i.am even tried to dance along) the judges weren’t quite so convinced and his smooth moves weren’t enough to land him a place on a team.
Connie Lamb
Seventeen-year-old musical theatre student Lamb was joined by her adoring grandparents at her Voice audition.
Though she shared her fear that she wouldn’t quite hit the high note with her rendition of Demi Lovato’s Skyscraper beforehand, Lamb managed to pull it off perfectly, prompting both Murs and Jones to press their buzzers and turn around.
After the two judges made their cases, the teen eventually opted to stick with Murs for his past experience as an X Factor contestant.
Cedric Neal
A musical theatre performer who hails from Dallas, Texas, 43-year-old Neal now has an idyllic existence in a windmill in Brighton with his husband and dog.
The singer’s explosive rendition of Stevie Wonder’s High Ground prompted Jones and Hudson to spin their chairs around in a matter of moments, with Murs and Will.i.am following suit not long after.
After scoring the first full house of the episode (with Hudson even throwing her shoes onto the stage as a sign of her approval) Neal decided to pledge his allegiance to Team Tom.
Grace Latchford
Though she has written her own music since she was just 11, the 17-year-old student said she’d never performed outside of her own bedroom, as she felt nervous even singing in front of family and friends. A huge fan of The Voice, she revealed she often watches with her mum and tries to recreate the blind auditions by turning around for her favourite acts.
Despite her worries, Latchford’s performance of her original track Love Says was strong enough to land her a spot on Jones’ team.
Emmanuel Smith
The 29-year-old Londoner revealed that his musical instincts have been influenced by his African heritage.
He took to the stage to perform an emotive version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, and soon won over all four judges with his haunting vocals and an explosive finale.
The choice was then in Smith’s hands, and though all four judges made a convincing case, he eventually decided to stick with Team Will "because of what I've been through and where I want to go."
