'The Voice' Season 18: Joanna Serenko's rendition of Bill Withers' 'Lean On Me' is what we need now, say fans
Team Blake Shelton kicked off Fan Week with contestant Joanna Serenko singing the late Bill Withers' classic, 'Lean On Me', in a moving dedication to her half-sister.
Joanna's voice has been a fan-favorite since the show began. "Wow! Joanna has a beautiful voice," tweeted one fan while another stated, "Joanna is such a believable singer. Great performance."
Many enjoyed her performance, saying, "A heartfelt performance with lots of meaning. Simple but effective." One fan shared, "This is by far my favorite performance from Joanna!!! She killed it #thevoice."
"Joanna Serenko tackling Lean On Ke with the forest behind her. This a simple yet powerful message and she seems the perfect vessel with the right amount of soul to present it. #TheVoice," tweeted one fan, adding, "These big notes ring out and the lows caress the ear. Nice."
And one fan poignantly said, "Joanna is singing a song that we all need to hear right now #TheVoice."
As ASCAP President and Chairman Paul Williams said following Withers' death, "Bill Withers’ songs are among the most treasured and profound in the American songbook — universal in the way they touch people all over the world, transcending genre and generation."
"He was a beautiful man with a stunning sense of humor and a gift for truth." Regardless of age, gender, or race, Bill Withers certainly speaks to us all. But not everyone was happy with Joanna's song choice or her performance.
"@joannaserenko has a good voice but her song choices are horrible like she always picks the most boring songs. I wish she’d pick better songs. Like 'Lean on Me' is a terrible song. I don’t care what her reason for singing it is it’s just so boring and so overdone. #TheVoice," said one fan.
Another said, "Didn’t really like Joanna’s performance but she is good #TheVoice." And some had issues with the new at-home format, tweeting, "It takes a LOT of interest away from me that they aren't performing live. I mean, I know, I know, they're doing everything they can to even get the show on the air. #TheVoice."
The coaches, however, are thoroughly enjoying the show. Nick Jonas stated that losing Joanna to Team Blake was a regret for him, but he was grateful that Joanna was still in the competition giving such "heartfelt performances."
John Legend commended her heart and honesty as well as the soul in her voice, which he says makes every performance of Joanna authentic. Blake added that her voice floated "like a butterfly", which he believes is why America saved her last week.
And now it's up to America, once again, to save Joanna.