Sunday night’s episode of ‘Icons: Divas Edition’ saw an emotional and unexpected exit of two groups from the competition. When host, Benny Blanco announced that two groups would be leaving after announcing the ‘Bottom 3’ groups as Chilli, Breeze and Keshi 3, it sent a chilly echo oh shock across the auditorium.
The surviving groups were left in doubt as they congratulated each other backstage with some tears; while the judges were left with the difficult task of saving one group from the ‘bottom 3’.
Gena West saved Keshi 3, saying she believed that was the group that could do well on the world stage because they are good singers with a good personality. Stephanie Benson agreed with Gena and Quantos made it unanimous although he believed that all three groups had learnt and improved along with time. Keshi 3 joined the other groups backstage in tears. When Benny tried to get final comments from Breeze, they broke down in tears and couldn’t give any comment apart from the initial murmuring of shock. Chilli on the other hand was more composed as they thanked the coaches, judges and production crew for the wonderful experiences in the reality TV show.
The theme for last weekend’s performance show was ‘Greatest Love Songs’. Kyses opened the show with their rendition of ‘Turn Your Lights Down Low’ by Lauryn Hill. They had some pretty cool melodies and got the rapping bridge on point. I think they showed the right attitude for the song although it was a bit slow. Stephanie commented that the girls brought sex appeal on stage and she particularly liked their movements and eye contact with the crowd. Quantos described the performance as adequate because at this stage of the competition, he expected them to take their performance a notch further. Gena liked their stage presentation and enjoyed Ernestina’s rap.
Kolors took on Stevie Wonder’s ‘Signed Sealed Delivered’ and ran away with it. Their vocals and melodies were on point. I also liked their phrasing and stage presence. They completely owned the song and their performance was my favourite so far on the show. Quantos said the girls had taken up the challenge and delivered. Gena was wowed and commented that they had signed, sealed and delivered. Stephanie on behalf of everyone gave them a standing ovation.
Before coming on stage to perform, Benny met up with Keshi 3 backstage to find out how they were feeling. They said they were grateful to God and the judges for saving them from the ‘bottom 3’ and called on their fans to vote for them. They performed ‘Ain’t No Body’ by Chaka Khan and seemed a little shaken up by their near-eviction. Their phrasing could have been better. Stephanie said that she loved the song but expected a lot more, adding that they had bad timing and diction in the beginning. She wasn’t blown away but thinks they deserved to be in the competition. Quantos agreed with Stephanie and said they have to come out to prove that they are in it to win it. Gena said they looked nervous and could have made it a bit sexy.
R&M did ‘My Guy’ by Mary Wells and also showed very good phrasing and diction. Their harmonies were on point and their movements were almost impeccable. Quantos commented that the girls were truly working as a group, adding that they had shown another side of them. Gena said they showed incredible versatility and she loved it. Stephanie said they looked soft, sassy, and were spot on with the performance.
The evicted groups, Breeze and Chilli closed the show with some uplifting performances as well. They now join Diamonds and Eboni, who were evicted in the previous shows. The competition is expected to get keener with only four groups remaining. To vote for your favourite group, text their names to 1737 on all networks.
Credit: Ameyaw Debrah
