The very first night of Battles nearly broke Coach Snoop Dogg‘s heart! After the Blind Auditions, and for the first time ever, Artists were asked to pair themselves up for competitive duets, and belter Yoshihanaa and pitch-perfect Natalia Albertini chose each other. For their Battle, Snoop assigned them “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” written by Carole King and made famous by Aretha Franklin.
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Both women loved the song and had their own take during the performance. With her years of experience singing in a wedding band and training at the Berklee School of Music, Albertini was polished and professional, while Yoshihanaa needed some coaxing from Battle Advisor Lizzo to push herself and not rely on her (incredible) organic talent to carry her through.
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By the end of their rehearsal session, both Snoop and Lizzo were so excited that they began literally throwing things. Lizzo took off a shoe and chucked it across the room, and Snoop started tossing pillows around. “When two divas come together and just diva out, I live,” said the “Good as Hell” singer. “My left eye won’t stop crying, but it’s tears of joy,” added the “Drop It Like It’s Hot” rapper.
“I’m torn between Yoshihanaa and Natalia for sure because Yoshihanaa is God-given, natural born talent…Natalia, it was oozing out of her, and she’s so rehearsed and so trained,” Lizzo said later, characterizing the two women as “maximum effort” versus “effortless” and asking Snoop, “Which one do you pick?” In typical Snoop fashion, he answered, “The Gangster Holy Ghost will help me make my decision.”
Yoshihanaa and Natalia Albertini had a “proper old school Voice battle”
After they absolutely slayed their duet, competing for every note and hitting all the right ones, Coach Niall Horan couldn’t contain his excitement.
“That was a proper old school Voice Battle. That’s why we watch this show. Natalia, when you go up against a powerhouse, a lot of people shy away from that. You gave it and — this guy, look, he’s crying,” Horan said, referring to Snoop, who was indeed tearing up.
“Yoshihanaa, completely flawless, so natural. It comes out of you without you even trying. Do I have to pick?” Horan asked. Fortunately for him, no.
“Natalia, your range is incredible, the huskiness in your voice, I absolutely love. Yoshihanaa, I thought you were Aretha Franklin standing up there. I would go with Yoshihanaa,” said Coach Reba McEntire.
For his feedback, Coach Michael Bublé said, “Yoshihanaa, you made it yours and it seemed effortless. Natalia, I felt like you were very disciplined. You are standing in the middle of a boxing ring, and you’re supposed to deliver a knockout punch, but your vocal quality is good enough [so] you don’t have to do that. And for that reason, today’s Battle, for me, would have been won by Natalia.”
Removing his sunglasses to dab a tear, Snoop admitted, “Y’all made me shed a tear. I’m just thinking about [how] Lizzo gave y’all so much information and y’all used it. But I was crying because I can only keep one of you, and my heart is broke.” After a quick prayer to the Holy Ghost, he gave the win to Yoshihanaa.
Why Snoop Dogg used his Save on Natalia Albertini
Calling it “the decision I didn’t want to make but I had to make,” Snoop said he “chose Yoshihanaa due to the fact that she had the most powerful performance tonight. I feel like she’s got a lot of room to grow, and at the same time she’s a seasoned vet.”
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But that didn’t mean he was done with Albertini. He used his only Battles Save of the season to keep her on his team! “The reason why I saved Natalia is that performance was so strong and so heartfelt,” he explained, calling her, “too good to be on somebody else’s team and too good to go home.”