Keith Urban’s ‘The Road’: A Frontrunner Emerges Ahead of a Shocking Elimination in Episode 3

The stakes are higher than ever on the most recent episode of The Road. The Nov. 2 episode of Keith Urban and Blake Shelton’s competition series saw the remaining hopefuls perform at The Factory in Dallas, Texas.

Videos by American Songwriter

Last week, fans got to watch the first six contestants take the stage at their largest venue yet.

After those performances, Channing Wilson was declared the top performer of the night, while Jenny Tolman and Olivia Harms found themselves in the bottom two. Ultimately, Urban decided to send Harms home, giving Tolman another shot at life on the road.

The five remaining contestants—Jon Wood, Cassidy Daniels, Forrest McCurren, Briana Adams, and Billie Jo Jones—took the stage on the Nov. 2 episode.

The Road Contestants Perform in Dallas

Wood started things off by performing Toby Keith’s “Should’ve Been a Cowboy.” Amid the performance, Shelton compared Wood’s voice to that of Ronnie Dunn, while Urban praised the contestant’s song choice.

For his original of the night, Wood performed “Go Out Like That,” a song he wrote about his grandfather shortly after his death. Both Urban and tour manager Gretchen Wilson remarked on the nerves and unstable pitch that troubled Wood during the song.

A barefoot Daniels took the stage next, opting to Bonnie Rait’s “Angel from Montgomery” because her dad had a dream of her performing it on the show. Shelton marveled at Daniels’ unique voice, before she broke into her original, “Heart Shaped Necklace.” After she wowed the crowd with that number, Urban declared Daniels the one to watch.

McCurren was next up. He covered  Jim Croce’s “Bad Bad Leroy Brown” for its storytelling, but Urban was more focused on the the limitations of McCurren’s voice throughout his time on stage. For his original song, McCurren performed “Get Lucky Tonight,” charming the audience with his quirky lyrics and magnetic personality.

Next up was Adams’ cover of Conway Twitty’s “Goodbye Time.” She picked the track for its ability to show off her impressive range, but Urban wasn’t a fan of the song choice. Adams’ original song, “Honky Tonk Romance,” didn’t fare much better, as both Shelton and Urban agreed that she failed to grab the audience.

A very under the weather Jones was the last performer of the night. Jones focused on giving it her all amid her illness, especially with her grandparents in the crowd. She did just that with her cover of Reba McEntire’s “Why Haven’t I Heard from You.”

Both Urban and Shelton agreed that it was Adams’ original song that drew the audience in, though. “She Did” told Adams’ life story, which saw her drug addicted mom turn her over to her grandparents to raise. Though the crowd was taken with her story and performance, Jones was left disappointed by the state of her vocals.

The Road Sends One Artist Packing

At the end of the night, Daniels was declared the top performer. The distinction followed her top three finish at the prior show, thus cementing her as a frontrunner in the competition.

In the bottom were Wood and McCurren. Despite the latter man finding himself in the bottom two times in a row, Urban opted to keep him around and send Wood packing.

Despite his exit from the show, Wood vowed to keep working on his music, try to learn from his mistakes, and commit to being the best singer he can.

The Road airs Sundays on CBS.

Photo Lauren “Lo” Smith/CBS

Leave a Reply

More From: Latest Music News & Stories

You May Also Like