Riley Green Breaks His Own Promise With Surprising The Voice Team Addition
Riley Green entered Season 30 of The Voice with a clear plan: build a team packed with country singers and, ultimately, put a country artist in position to win the competition.
After the first night of Blind Auditions, that strategy appeared to be working. Green landed the season’s first four-chair turn, bringing sister duo Ferryn and Brinkley from Sevierville, Tennessee, onto his team. He also added 19-year-old Joe Henley.
Then Harmony McKee walked onto the stage.
The 19-year-old Tennessee singer chose a Miranda Lambert country hit for her Blind Audition despite revealing that she had never performed a country song before. Her performance earned chair turns from both Green and Adam Levine, leaving the two coaches to compete for an artist who normally performs in a very different musical lane.
By the end of the night, McKee had joined Team Riley, giving Green an unexpected addition to the roster he had promised would be dominated by country singers.
Season 30’s second night of Blind Auditions aired Tuesday, September 22, with Green, Levine, Kelly Clarkson and Queen Latifah continuing to build their teams.
Riley Green wanted a country-heavy team
Green made his coaching debut during the Season 30 premiere on September 21, and he was upfront about what he wanted from the competition.
His early additions gave him plenty of country representation. Ferryn and Brinkley, the sister act from Sevierville, Tennessee, became the first four-chair turn of the season and chose Green as their coach. Joe Henley also joined his team.
During the premiere, Green explained that he intended to keep searching for country singers because he believed the genre had a strong chance of producing the season’s eventual winner.
That approach made his decision to pursue Harmony McKee on the following night particularly interesting.
Harmony McKee took a chance on Miranda Lambert
McKee’s audition was a departure from the music she usually performs.
The 19-year-old singer said her usual style is R&B and soul, along with what she described as bluesy rock. Before stepping onto The Voice stage, she had never performed a country song.
For the Blind Audition, however, she decided to take on Miranda Lambert’s “Gunpowder & Lead.”
McKee chose the song because she believed she could do a lot with it, and the gamble paid off. Her fiery performance prompted both Green and Levine to turn their chairs.
The moment McKee revealed that it was her first time performing a country song, the coaches were surprised. Levine was especially pleased by the revelation because it gave him another argument for why McKee should choose him rather than Green.
The audition also gave McKee an opportunity to show that she could step outside her usual R&B, soul and rock influences without losing her own identity as a singer.
Adam Levine saw an opening
Levine immediately recognized what McKee’s background meant for the coaching battle.
Because she was not a dedicated country singer, he knew Green’s original strategy might not necessarily give him an advantage. Levine embraced the fact that McKee normally works in R&B and soul, and he pushed for the opportunity to coach an artist with a different musical background.
Green, meanwhile, had his own connection with McKee.
The two bonded over their shared love of Johnny Cash, a connection they developed through their grandfathers. That common ground helped Green make his case as the audition moved toward the crucial decision.
Kelly Clarkson also encouraged McKee to consider Team Riley. Her argument was that Green did not already have another artist who sounded like McKee, which could help the young singer distinguish herself when the public eventually votes.
Harmony McKee chooses Team Riley
In the end, McKee chose Green.
The decision gave Green another promising singer, but it also meant his team was no longer made up exclusively of traditional country artists.
Green was delighted with the choice. He praised McKee for putting her own stamp on the Miranda Lambert song and for commanding the stage during the audition.
“I’m so happy I got Harmony. She really made that song her own. The way she took over the stage. She’ll definitely be a big star,” Green said.
McKee’s decision also made Team Riley more musically diverse than Green’s original plan suggested.
According to the results from the second night of Blind Auditions, Green’s team included Joe Henley, Ferryn & Brinkley, Caroline Alexis and Harmony McKee at that point in the competition.
A surprising twist for Green’s strategy
McKee’s addition is notable because Green had been so direct about wanting country singers.
She had never performed a country song before The Voice, yet her first attempt at the genre was enough to make both Green and Levine turn their chairs. Her usual R&B, soul and bluesy rock influences could now become part of Green’s team.
That makes McKee an unusual fit for the country singer’s original strategy, but the decision was ultimately hers. Green clearly saw something in her performance that convinced him she belonged on his team.
And McKee was not the only notable addition during the second night. The September 22 episode also saw Kelly Clarkson use her First-In button to secure Johnnie Kapua, while other singers continued filling out the four coaching teams. The night ended with 23-year-old Lexi Stephens receiving a four-chair turn, although viewers had to wait until the following episode to learn her coaching choice.
For Green, however, the biggest surprise was already settled: the coach who entered Season 30 determined to build around country music had willingly made room for an artist whose musical roots lie elsewhere.
Harmony McKee is now officially part of Team Riley, and her unexpected journey from R&B and soul into country music has given Green another intriguing artist to develop as Season 30 continues.