‘The Four Battle For Stardom’ Crowns Its First Champion
After weeks of intense competition and shocking eliminations, it was time for The Four to face off against each other.
Notably absent this week was former panelist Charlie Walk, who was forced to vacate the competition after sexual misconduct allegations.
The four artists that competed against each other were newcomers Vincint Cannady and Evvie McKinney and comeback artists Zhavia and Candice Boyd.
Before The Four took their seats, the artists delivered one final group performance of the season, Lady Gaga's "The Edge of Glory."
Round One: Candice Boyd's Performance
Boyd made her debut in the second week of the competition but was eliminated the following week. Last week, Boyd won her seat back against cocky rapper Nick Harrison. She hoped that she could showcase her versatility this fateful night. She tackled No Doubt's "Don't Speak." Fans would not have expected the song choice, but she delivered a memorable performance. Expert panelist Meghan Trainor loved her creativity as an artist, while Diddy praised her vocal range.
Round Two: Evvie McKinney's Performance
Last week, McKinney made a bombastic debut with a compelling Aretha Franklin cover. Diddy advised her to consider all of her song choices. She tackled Tina Turner's "Proud Mary," and the newcomer brought sass and fire into her performance. McKinney also got all three panelists off of their seats. Trainor even called McKinney's performance the best of the season, while DJ Khaled hit his air horn with pride.
Round Three: Vincint Cannady's Performance
Cannady took down Jason Warrior during the previous chapter of the show and he still had a lot to prove. He tackled Radiohead's "Creep" and delivered a fiery vocal that showcased his velvet vocals and received a standing ovation from all of the three panelists. Diddy called him the sleeper and he gave Diddy goosebumps for the first time this season.
Round Four: Zhavia's Performance
For the past several weeks, Zhavia commanded the show throughout numerous times in the competition. She was the first artist to challenge a founding member of The Four and took their seat. However, she was controversially eliminated during the fourth week of competition. During the show's comeback round, Zhavia redeemed herself and won back her seat.
For the first round of competition, Zhavia performed Drake's "One Dance." It was an interesting performance and Trainor stated that it was not one of her favorite performances. Diddy was brutally honest with his critique and he stated that Zhavia needed to go back to square one for the next round.
It was up to the audience to decide, who would receive the power to pick who goes head-to-head in the next segment of the show. The audience decided that McKinney gave the best performance during the first part of the night.
Round Five: Evvie McKinney vs. Zhavia
McKinney decided to challenge Zhavia because she figured that Zhavia would be her biggest challenge to her victory. Zhavia went barefoot and performed Rihanna's "Man Down." She took the panelists' advice and delivered an addicting vocal that infused reggae music. Zhavia redeemed herself in the panel's eyes.
McKinney countered the performance with Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine." McKinney's powerful growls and showmanship carried her to victory. After much deliberation, Diddy declared that McKinney won her battle against Zhavia. Diddy vowed that Zhavia would be big one day.
Round Six: Vincint Cannady Versus Candice Boyd
Cannady sang Bruno Mars' "Locked Out of Heaven," and he delivered a soulful take on the song that would have made the Grammy winner proud. Meanwhile, Boyd performed Whitney Houston's incomparable "I Have Nothing." She received her second standing ovation of the night from the panel. After a long debate between the panelists, they decided to send Boyd to the final round of the season.
The Final Battle: Evvie McKinney Versus Candice Boyd
McKinney's final song of the season was Common and John Legend's "Glory." She showcased her powerful vocal range that contained elegant long notes, which lead to a standing ovation from the panel.
Boyd's last song of the season was Rihanna and Mikky Ekko's "Stay." Boyd was a born storyteller and delivered a compelling vocal performance that sealed her fate as a future superstar.
Trainor, Diddy, and DJ Khaled took their time with their final deliberation of the season. After bickering back and forth, the panel picked a winner.
The winner of the first season, a Republic Records recording contract, and being named one of iHeartMedia's Artists on the Verge was Evvie McKinney!
The Four: Battle of Stardom will return for season two this summer.
