Spoiler alert! This story contains minor spoilers about The Voice Season 22 Top 10 Performances that aired November 28.
The Voice has proven over the years that it can roll with the punches when it comes to live television. Season 21 saw a scary moment when contestant Wendy Moten badly injured herself after she tripped over a speaker on stage. In 2020 during the pandemic, the production somehow set the coaches and remaining contestants up with home studios to power through an awkward Season 18. And Carson Daly has been dominating the live TV game since his TRL days in the late ‘90s. So it should come as no surprise that when Gwen Stefani’s team member Kique tested positive for COVID, they found a way for the show to go on.
During the Top 10 performances on Monday night, Carson Daly announced that Kique was not able to be there in person due to his illness, and his performance had been pre-recorded at another location. His rendition of the Weeknd’s “Call Out My Name” was shown, and then the singer appeared live on the screen from his remote location. Before hearing the coaches’ feedback, the 18-year-old from Miami gave an update on his condition:
Yeah, I’m not feeling too great, man. Unfortunately I tested positive for COVID, but I’m glad that I can still be a part of this, and that America can still vote. So woo!
The coaches were, unsurprisingly, complimentary of the singer’s efforts. John Legend said he was continually impressed with the inventive arrangements that Kique always comes up with that allow him to show off his personality. His coach Gwen Stefani said she was “unbelievably proud” to have him on her team, and he gave a “flawless performance.”
As the number of contestants gets smaller every week, a flawless performance was definitely what Kique needed, after he had to rely on the Instant Save last week when he fell into the bottom four of the Top 13. It did seem like the fans appreciated his effort, though, as Twitter users acknowledged how good he sounded in spite of being sick. One fan said:
reminder that kique was able to sing and perform that well even while having covid#TheVoiceNovember 29, 2022
Another said there’s no way they would have been able to pull off what Kique did, based on their own experience with the virus:
@NBCTheVoice I’m just saying I couldn’t even talk to my momma on the phone when I had Covid and Kique really just handed us that vocal! #TheVoiceNovember 29, 2022
A number of fans – along with everyone on The Voice – was sure to wish Kique a speedy recovery, and should he make it through the Tuesday eliminations, perhaps we’ll see him in person for the semifinals. Take a look at his pre-recorded version of “Call Out My Name”:
.@Kique_gomez_ only produces full-on bops xx pic.twitter.com/MPToTUcPGDNovember 29, 2022
While The Voice has shown it can pivot at the last minute, things haven’t always gone perfectly. Back in Season 15, Adam Levine’s team member Reagan Strange was under the weather and unable to perform her Instant Save song after falling into the bottom three. Her coach controversially lobbied for America to save her anyway, throwing another member of his team under the bus. Hopefully Gwen Stefani won’t be put into a similar situation with her two remaining team members.
Tune in to The Voice at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday, November 29, to see if Kique’s pre-recorded COVID performance was enough to get him through to the semifinals, and check out our 2023 TV schedule to see what shows are premiering in the new year.
