Season 26 of The Voice introduced a polarizing new twist: the Coach Replay button. The new rule allows coaches Snoop Dogg, Michael Bublé, Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani to correct themselves if they believe they made a mistake by not turning their chair. With the Blind Auditions nearly over, only one Replay button remained going into Monday’s (Oct. 14) episode. And thanks to the brand-new twist, Mark Shiiba’s dreams are still in play.
Michael Bublé Keeps Mark Shiiba’s Dreams Alive on ‘The Voice’
Mark Shiiba has been pursuing music full time since his stint in the U.S. Navy ended a year ago. The Swarthmore, Pennsylvania resident has even released a full-length album called Bones.
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Taking the stage during The Voice Blind Auditions, Shiiba brought a unique, folksy flair to Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.” Unfortunately, none of the coaches turned their chair during his performance—much to the bemusement of social media. “Mark Shiiba deserved a chair,” one viewer wrote on X/Twitter.
Once Shiiba had finished singing, Gwen Stefani urged him not to feel discouraged by the lack of chair turns. “I have to say, I was so on the fence the entire time,” said the former No Doubt frontwoman. “Your voice is such a character voice, which is what we love.”
Next, Michael Bublé compared Shiiba’s “distinct, unique” flair to that of jazz legends Louis Prima and Louis Armstrong.
“From the second you entered my ear hole, I was loving every second of that,” the “Feeling Good” crooner said. “I was thinking to myself, ‘This guy might be a star. Like, this could be one of those unique Americana stars.’
He continued, “Man, I’m listening to you and I’m back there thinking, ‘How cool is it, on this season of The Voice, that we have something called the Coach Replay?’ so that I can do this.” Then the Grammy-winning artist smashed his Replay button.
The Coach’s Replay Twist Is Over
Bublé’s decision ends the Coach’s Replay twist, as each coach had only one button during the Blind Auditions process. Going into Monday’s (Oct. 14) episode of The Voice, the “Home” singer was the only coach who had yet to utilize it.
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“I knew that I had made a mistake before the chair ever turned around, because I think this guy’s a star,” Bublé said. “He was literally the most unique artist we’ve seen so far.”
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