The Voice fans enrage ‘doomed’ Dan + Shay finalist Karen Waldrup as she sounds ‘out of tune’ in ‘disappointing’ performance

Viewers claimed that Dan + Shay may have set their only contestant up for failure with their first performance on The Voice’s live finale.

Karen Waldrup, the only remaining contestant on Team Dan + Shay, sang her own version of Rascal Flatts’ hit What Hurts the Most.

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Karen is one of the five remaining finalists on season 25 of The Voice, along with Bryan Olesen, Nathan Chester, Josh Sanders and Asher HaVon.

The country-pop duo raved about Karen’s first song of the night, with coach Dan even commenting: “The performance there is what’s going to win The Voice for you.”

Many viewers, however, thought she should have made an arrangement that better suited her voice.

“The Dan + Shay deal doomed Karen. I loved them, but it was a bad decision,” one person commented on Instagram.

Others took to X to share their thoughts, with one writing: “I expected a lot more… extremely out of tune.”

“I like Karen, but she seemed to be singing at full volume the whole time. I just prefer a more dynamic, melodic voice than a full-time belter,” she said for a second.

“Karen, Dan and Shay should have tried changing the arrangement of this song for Karen or finding better ways to let her breathe,” a third added.

“The thing is, Karen has an incredible voice and range with the right music,” noted a fourth.

“This song isn’t doing Karen any favors, I’m afraid. A huge step down from her performance last week,” tweeted another.

Despite some negative reactions from fans, Karen received a standing ovation from each of the coaches for her performance.

Before taking the stage, she was seen chatting with Dan + Shay and host Carson Daly, 50, about her journey so far this season.

The pair thanked Karen for taking them to the final, while Carson mentioned how fellow coach Reba McEntire, 69, was blocked from choosing the singer.

Reba has two competitors left in the competition: Josh Sanders and Asher HaVon.

There are also two finalists left on Team Legend – Nathan Chester and Bryan Olesen – while coach Chance the Rapper is out of contention.

The Voice winners

The Voice is an American television series broadcast on NBC.

American vocalists work alongside a panel of celebrity judges to compete for a $100,000 prize and a recording contract with Universal Music Group. Previous winners are as follows:

• Season 1: Javier Colón
• Season 2: Jermaine Paul
• Season 3: Papa Cassadee
• Season 4: Danielle Bradbery
• Season 5: Tessanne Chin
• Season 6: Josh Kaufman
• Season 7: Craig Wayne Boyd
• Season 8: Sawyer Fredericks
• Season 9: Jordan Smith
• Season 10: Alisan Porter
• Season 11: Sundance Head
• Season 12: Chris Blue
• Season 13: Chloe Kohanski
• Season 14: Brynn Cartelli
• Season 15: Chevel Shepherd
• Season 16: Maelyn Jarmon
• Season 17: Jake Hoot
• Season 18: Todd Tilghman
• Season 19: Carter Rubin
• Season 20: Cam Anthony
• Season 21: Girl Named Tom
• Season 22: Bryce Leatherwood
• Season 23: Gina Miles
• Season 24: Michael Huntley

HAS LEFT?

Last week, Dan + Shay addressed their departure from the show after the season 26 coaching lineup was revealed.

Although the duo just entered season 25, they will not be participating in the upcoming season of the NBC series.

The two talked about their departure and suggested a possible return in a recent interview with Entertainment tonight.

“I think it’s absolutely a possibility,” Shay said when asked about someday returning to the reality competition.

He clarified that the return should take place at some point in the future due to the busy schedule.

“We’ve been touring a lot this year, which we’re really excited about, but obviously it doesn’t allow us to go back.

“I think it would be amazing if they accepted us, we would definitely love to see what it would be like,” he continued.

Dan + Shay were then asked if they had any advice for newcomers Michael Bublé and Snoop Dogg.

“These guys are seasoned professionals,” said Dan. “They’re at the top of their game, they don’t need our advice, but they’re going to have a lot of fun. They’re going to kill it.”

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