Season 9 of NBC’s award-winning reality show The Voice is back, and coaches Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, Pharrell Williams, and returning coach, Gwen Stefani are hungry for a victory. In order to be crowned victor, the coaches must build their teams of twelve singers through the blind auditions, a time in which the coaches will be unable to see the performer, so they can only choose singers based on voice alone. This unprejudiced system appeals to viewers. On Sept 21, the first night of the blind auditions began, and teams started to form.

The most fitting way to begin the blinds was with the season 1 champion himself, Adam Levine. The first artist that Levine picked up was Keith Semple, a natural born rocker hailing from Northern Ireland. Singing “I’ll Be There for You” by Bon Jovi, Semple caught the eye of both Levine and Stefani. While Shelton attempted to steer Semple away from his fellow coach, it came to no avail, and Semple became the first member of Team Adam. Levine then picked up soul artist, Jordan Smith. It only took a line of Sia’s “Chandelier” to turn all four of our coaches’ chairs. Smith’s inspirational story of triumph sincerely moved the coaches, prompting Adam to tell the young man: “You’re the most important person that’s ever been on this show.” This show of great sincerity made Jordan the second member of team Adam.

Season 8 winner, Pharrell Williams, kicked off the season in style by picking up the very first performance of the night, pop singer Mark Hood. For his blind audition, Hood sang a jazzed up version of Bill Wither’s “Use Me.” His undeniable creativity and raw talent earned him the first 4-chair turn of the season, but he ultimately chose Team Pharrell. The next artist to win over the ever-so-picky coach, was Siahna Im, a 15-year-old “old soul” from Auburn, Washington. For her audition, Im took on Peggy Lee’s “Fever.” Within seconds, Gwen, Pharrell, and Blake all fell in love with the young artist’s creative and unique sounding tone. The coaches fought hard, but Im’s passion for soul music led her to Team Pharrell.

4-time champion Blake Shelton got off to a bit of a slow start this season, but quickly upped the stakes when his first artist was, in fact, not a country artist. Nadjah Nicole, a R&B soul singer, sang “Tightrope” by Janelle Monae. Both Shelton and Levine turned and bickered like an old married couple, but Nicole shocked the world when she became the first artist on Team Blake. Shelton then snagged the show stealer of the night, Barrett Baber. Singing “Angel Eyes” by the Jeff Healey Band, Baber became the final 4 chair turn of the night. All the coaches fought hard, but none as hard as the country king himself.

Returning to the Voice stage is none other than Gwen Stefani, and she returned with a vengeance. Her first artist, Kota Wade, was a shocker for all coaches. The self-proclaimed rocker sang “Bring it on Home to Me” by Sam Cooke, a technical country song. Blake, Pharrell, and Gwen turned for her, but the partnership with Gwen was meant to be. Stefani’s last artist was Braiden Sunshine (yes, his real name is Sunshine.) For his audition, Sunshine took on Blues Traveler’s “The Mountains Win Again.” Pharrell and Gwen both turned, but Gwen’s mother bear pitch was unbearable.

That concluded night one of the blind auditions. The second night of the blinds brought a whole new genre to the mix, country. In the 1st night, there was a lone country artist, The Voice made sure that there was an over abundance for Team Blake in the 2nd night.

Blake Shelton kicked off the night by adding the very first artist, Blind Joe from Fargo North Dakota, to his team. Blind Joe is, you guessed it, blind. For his audition, Joe sang “If it Hadn’t been for Love” by the Steeldrivers, earning him a 4-chair turn. The country artist had no trouble at all picking Team Blake. Blake’s second artist of the night hailed from Marietta, Georgia. 16-year-old, Zach Seabaugh is another country hopeful trying to make it big in Nashville. He hoped that his rendition of Sam Hunt’s “Take Your Time” would catch the country heartthrob’s attention, and it did. It caught all but Gwen’s attention. Unfortunately, the country roots tied him down to Team Blake all the way. Blake’s last artist of the night was Emily Ann Roberts, a 16-year-old country singer from Knoxville, Tennessee. The artist sang Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance,” turning both Blake and Adam. Blake won over another country artist, leading Adam to his vow of stealing a country artist from Blake.

Team Pharrell kicked off night two by picking up returning artist, Ivonne Acero. Acero made her first attempt at The Voice in season 8, where she failed to turn a chair. She returned this season, sang a remastered version of Taylor Swift’s single “Style,” and turned both Stefani and Williams. Acebo ultimately opted for the artist who persuaded her to return and became the first member of Team Pharrell. Williams’ last artist of the night was 20-year-old rocker, Evan McKeel. Mckeel had made a living singing at Alzheimer’s facilities, but he thrived for something more. He auditioned with “Typical” by Mutemath, but after he turned four chairs, Pharrell Williams asked him to perform “Overjoyed” by Stevie Wonder. The second performance wooed all coaches, but Mckeel was won over by Team Pharrell.

Team Adam began night two of the blinds by snagging Christian-soul singer, Regina Love. Love took on Aretha Franklin’s “Rock Steady,” and turned both Blake and Adam. With such a powerful rock presence, Love picked Team Adam, but that didn’t stop Blake from getting in a few cheap shots before we broke to commercial. Next up was James Dupre, a hard country artist from Bayou Chicot, Louisiana. Dupre sang Hootie and the Blowfish’s “Let Her Cry,” turning all 4 chairs. The fight was really left to Adam and Blake, where Adam was not letting James go without a fight. To everyone’s shock and amazement, James opted for Team Adam. Even Adam couldn’t comprehend the turn of events.

Last but not least was Team Gwen. Stefani began by picking up Elli Lawrence, a 26 year old alternative rocker. She won the hearts of Gwen, Adam, and Pharrell with her rendition of “We Don’t Have to Take our Clothes Off” by Ella Erye. The choice was obvious, Elli belonged with Team Gwen. Stefani also snagged three more artists whose auditions did not make the air: Noah Jackson, Tim Atlas, and Hanna Ashbrook.

With night two of the blinds over, nights three, four, and five were packed full of what the coaches call “filler artists.” These are artists that seem to be dark horses, but don’t necessarily show the potential of a show winner; however, there were some standouts. One of which was Manny Cabo, a 45 year old freelance fashion photographer from Elizabeth, New Jersey. He undeniably stole the show with his performance of Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again,” turning all 4 chairs and even making Adam give a standing ovation from the top of his chair. The competition was steep, but Cabo chose Team Adam. Another standout in the final blinds was Sydney Rhame from Atlanta. With all the other teams full, Pharrell was Rhame’s only chance. Singing “Photograph” by Ed Sheeran, Sydney was the last artist to make a team, concluding the blind auditions.

Fans of The Voice are crazy excited for this season. Coming from the coaches themselves, this season is going to be one of the biggest yet. The amount of untapped talent is unbelievable. We’d love to hear your predictions! Who do you see in the finals?