You must be an amazing vocalist to get hired as a judge on The Voice. While each of the judges on that show has demonstrated that they know what they’re talking about and how to make the human voice sound its best – they were hired to train their artists, not make political statements. Clarkson and Legend were criticized for offering criticism to “God Bless The USA,” which no one asked them for.
Coaches on The Voice are frequently vocal about their feelings. They must guide their singers through difficult times and push them to the limits in order for them to advance in their performance careers. This is something they must accomplish without allowing personal biases get in the way, and there are a lot of challenging circumstances they must address.
When Kelly Clarkson and John Legend expressed their opinions about a certain song, things became too personal with the fans. That’s why thousands of people attacked Clarkson and Legend on Twitter after they slammed singer Gyth Rigdon for her performance of “God Bless The USA.”
Gyth wanted to create a stir, given the song selection was, understandably, a polarizing one – considering how divided the nation is about politics and even the National Anthem itself. As Clarkson and Legend criticized Gyth for his performance, with completely valid concerns about voice and vocal delivery, things became heated when they also questioned the song choice. They did praise Gyth for selecting a song that meant a lot to him.
Gyth was determined to make it difficult for the judges to offer criticism, so he attempted to defend America by singing the nationalistic song on a stage covered with red, white, and blue scarves. Even Kelly Clarkson conceded that Gyth’s performance was a clever strategy, telling Country Living about his efforts.
“I feel like you can’t critique this song or you’re going to hell or something.”
Nonetheless, Clarkson was not hesitant to offer criticism that would rock. She said, “I will say, this is not my favorite vocal of you this season because I think you are a ridiculously talented vocalist.”
She continued, “The song is a lot of sustained notes, you know, because it’s all heart, it’s all of us singing together, usually in a big crowd. So, this wasn’t my favorite, but I loved that you picked it, and I love that it means something to you, and I think that it’s beautiful that it’s never been done on the show before.”
John Legend added, “I agree with Kelly that this wasn’t your greatest vocal performance, but it was very strong, and I felt the energy and the emotion.”
The general public, of course, did not share their sentiments.
