Alabama singer dazzles Kelly Clarkson in ‘Voice’ finals: ‘You are so crazy talented’

Alabama singer dazzles Kelly Clarkson in ‘Voice’ finals: ‘You are so crazy talented’

Will D.Smooth triumph on Season 23 of “The Voice”? The singer from Birmingham had some tough competition on Monday’s episode of the NBC reality series, which featured performances by the top five finalists.

Viewer votes will determine who wears the “Voice” crown, and the winner will be announced on Tuesday’s season finale. One thing is certain, however: D.Smooth has major star quality.

That’s what Kelly Clarkson said, after watching D.Smooth perform Johnny Gill’s “My My My” on Monday’s episode. Clarkson, D.Smooth’s coach, beamed with pride as she tossed verbal bouquets to her protege on the live broadcast.

“Man, I’m so proud of you,” Clarkson said. “You know the coolest part of working with you, man, is you are already a star. … You walk on stage, you do it right. You say “hey” to everybody in the band, the crew, you talk to everybody there. You’re such as star, inside and out. And your performance, it was like it was your audience.”

Chance the Rapper also gave kudos to D.Smooth, calling his cover of Gill’s 1990 hit “crazy” and “insane.”

“That was probably one of my favorite performances on the whole show this whole season,” Chance said. “I love the choreography, I love the ad-libbing and improvisation that you did, and that long note that you held down in the second verse that just, like, blew me away. So great job, man.”

(Watch D. Smooth’s performance of “My, My, My” in the video below.)

D.Smooth performed twice on the two-hour episode, appearing again to sing “What You Won’t Do For Love,” a 1978 hit by Bobby Caldwell. When asked for her opinion of D.Smooth’s cover, Clarkson was quick to offer high praise.

“D.Smooth, you are so cool,” Clarkson said. “How you switched up that song, how it was your idea to do that, the whole thing. Your dynamics are so key, and you do it so effortlessly. No pun intended, it’s so smooth. Like, you are so smooth. I am so glad that I got to even witness being around you. You are so creative. You’re a producer, you’re a writer, you’re all of these things. And I think it’s just amazing, having this artist to work with to inspire me. I’m 41; you’re 25, and you’re inspiring me. It’s incredible. You are so crazy talented.”

(Watch D. Smooth’s performance of “What You Won’t Do For Love” in the video below.)

D.Smooth said he was in it to win it on “The Voice.”

“I’ve come a long way from … working different jobs,” D.Smooth said on the show. “And music was always, like the second drive to me. But ever since I came on ‘The Voice,’ and now I’m this far in the competition, it’s go time.”

D.Smooth, whose offstage name is David Mitchell, graduated from Minor High School and studied at Faulkner University, according to his Facebook profile. He has performed at venues such as Eighty Eight and Encore Theatre and Gallery in Birmingham, and B.B. King’s Blues Club in Montgomery. A Facebook video posted by Rickey Smiley in 2021 shows D. Smooth singing Jodeci’s “Come & Talk To Me” at the Comedy Club Stardome, during one of Smiley’s Karaoke Nights at the venue in Hoover.

“I just love to have a good time on stage,” D.Smooth said on Monday, as he looked back on his performances on “The Voice.”

D.Smooth, a singer from Birmingham, Alabama, covered Johnny Gill’s “My My My” in the Season 23 finals of “The Voice.” (Trae Patton/NBC)Trae Patton/NBC

Four other singers performed in the Season 23 finals: Grace West and NOIVAS (both on Blake Shelton’s team), Gina Miles (Niall Horan’s team) and Sorelle (Chance the Rapper’s team). They’ll find out their fates on Tuesday’s two-hour results episode. Guest stars for the finale are CeeLo Green, Maroon 5, Toosii, Diplo and Lily Rose.

D.Smooth is the only singer from Alabama to make it to finals this season, but Ryley Tate Wilson, a teen from Montgomery, went as far as the top eight before he was eliminated. Two more singers from the state, Jerome Godwin III and JB Somers, were eliminated in earlier rounds of the show.

Alabama’s never had a winner on “The Voice,” but three singers from the state have made it to the finals during previous seasons: Dexter Roberts, who took third place on Season 16; Kirk Jay, who placed third on Season 15; and Red Marlow, who came in fourth during Season 13. Other “Voice” contestants from the state have included Berritt Haynes, Emma Caroline Warren, Levi Watkins, Cam Spinks, Josie Jones and Worth the Wait.

READ MORE: 5 Alabama singers who excelled on ‘The Voice’ (and why we loved them)

If you watch:The Voice” Season 23 finale airs live on Tuesday, May 23, at 8 p.m. CT on NBC.

MORE ON D.SMOOTH:

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