Last week, Britton Buchanan sang a love song to Sanford, North Carolina. This week, it was to a girl.
Britton’s performance on the Top 11 of The Voice was chosen by his fans — “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran, his second Sheeran song on the show (he sang “Thinking Out Loud” in a duet back in the battle ronds). The 18-year-old Lee County High School senior dedicated the song this week to his girlfriend, former Voice contenstant and Team Alicia teammate Livia Faith.
Those of you who attended Britton’s sign-and-greet appearance at Karma in Downtown Sanford in March might remember seeing her by the young man’s side. He flew her to Los Angelese from her hometown in Kentucky to watch him battle for a spot in the Top 10.
We are still kids, but we’re so in love
Fighting against all odds
I know we’ll be alright this time
Darling, just hold my hand
Be my girl, I’ll be your man
I see my future in your eyes
“Perfect” is a song about young love. A “heavy” song when you’re dedicating it to your girl in front of millions on national TV. But Britton was up to the task — he set the guitar to the side (literally, it remained on a stand behind him as he sang) and performed without it for the first time since appearing on the show.
He had a tough act to follow. Fellow North Carolina native Rayshun Lamar brought the house down with a little Otis Redding. But Britton — a fan favorite since Day 1 and earner of the second-most votes during the Top 12 show last week — held his own. His performance was genuine and soulful … it didn’t need the big note at the end to have an impact.
“This is no joke. It’s not a game,” Alicia Keys said moments later. “No bells. No whistles. No flashy lights. It was just you, your voice, your music, your passion and your power. In your quietness, you’re more powerful than anything else. Congratulations, you murdered it tonight.”
Our guess is that Britton will be safe again and move on to the Top 10, based on last week’s vote totals. But nothing’s guaranteed. The contestants will learn their fates Tuesday night in the one-hour elimination show.
Random Thoughts
- Yes, that was Lee County High School featured prominently in the “hometown fans” clips shown tonight. The school held its own #TeamBritton watch party last week, attended by a few hundred students and fans. Britton found the irony in “never being invited to a party” to suddenly having his school throw a party in his honor.
Here’s Livia Faith hanging out with Britton (pictured right) at Karma during his appearance in Sanford a few weeks back. He talked about his love interest in a recent article in Parade Magazine.- Britton said on the show tonight that he asked Livia out during the blind auditions and presented her with a box of chocolate-covered strawberries to win her over. “I was very happy she said yes,” he said, “and she was very happy with the strawberries.”
- “If you’re not in love with Britton, you’re about to fall head over heels for him,” Alicia said before his performance.
From social media
You know you’ve hit the big time when the fake Twitter profiles start popping up:
Britton from earlier in the week, reading some of his favorite tweets about himself while also enjoying some heavy eyeliner and shade:
Now tweets from other people: