Reba McEntire proved she’s still full of surprises during the October 22 episode of The Voice, when she made a last-minute steal during the Battle Rounds. The country legend snatched contestant Frankie Torres from Team Gwen Stefani, adding another powerhouse vocalist to her squad.
Torres had just delivered a memorable duet of “Never Tear Us Apart” by INXS alongside fellow Team Gwen contestant Gabrielle Zabosky. When it came time for Stefani, 55, to make her choice, she ultimately picked Zabosky, leaving Torres available for a steal.
As Torres was thanking the coaches and preparing to leave, McEntire, 69, made her move, hitting her steal button at the perfect moment. “I did a little play there,” McEntire confessed to Stefani. “I did say Gabrielle so you’d go with Gabrielle [and] I could have Frankie.”
Stefani’s reaction was pure shock, responding with a stunned “Wow” as McEntire explained her love for Torres’s performance. “Either way, I was gonna steal because I love your performance, your singing, everything about it,” McEntire added.
McEntire, who recently joined The Voice as a coach, elaborated in an interview after the moment, praising Torres’s “tone,” “stage presence,” and “voice.” Torres herself was equally thrilled, sharing her excitement about working with McEntire. She even revealed that Reba was one of her first concerts: “Her and Kelly Clarkson. I went for Kelly and I stayed for Reba and it was amazing.”
In a behind-the-scenes clip, fellow coach Michael Bublé complimented McEntire’s well-timed move, saying, “That was some last-minute stuff right there.” McEntire, ever the strategist, responded with a grin: “Really tricky.”
As The Voice continues its Battle Rounds, McEntire’s clever steal shows that she’s more than ready to compete with her fellow coaches for the best talent. Fans can catch new episodes of The Voice on NBC every Monday and Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET, with episodes available to stream on Peacock the following day.
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