Davina Henry, Staff Reporter
With the entire season at stake, Tessanne Chin had one last opportunity to prove that she was indeed The Voice.
After months of intense preparation and incredible performances and with only Will Champlin and Jacquie Lee standing in the way of her victory, Tessanne dominated the final live performance show last night.
For last night’s show, Team Christina Aguilera and Team Adam Levine’s remaining acts sang one new song, a duet with their coach, and reprised the blind audition song they previously sang that gave them a true moment in the competition.
Her performance of Try was gorgeously done and may even have been better this time around. Coach Adam Levine opined that Tessanne nailed it once again and that she was one of the biggest singers not only on the show, but overall and quite deserving of winning the competition.
“Everything you do just draws me in. Your ability is extraordinary and I revel in it all the time. I think the talent you have is exceedingly rare. You are one of the most genuine and loving people I have ever met,” Levine stated.
There was also a light moment as a fan tweeted to Adam if he had picked up the Jamaican accent from spending time with Tessanne. “No mon” he jokingly replied.
The seductive duet with Adam created a social media firestorm. Both clad in black and white, the duo delivered an emotional rendition of The Beatles Let It Be. Adam sprinkled nothing but soul with the guitar he used during the performance. The duo also added a reggae vibe to the song much to the delight of fans.
“Tessanne you and Adam won The Voice beautiful duet hands down.”, “Such a beautiful spirit, I loved it.”, “U got my vote”, “Adam and Tessanne’s duet was the best of all three.” and “Tessanne is the most talented” were just some of the tweets making the social media rounds.
Even British journalist Piers Morgan joined in with a Jamaicanised tweet of “Beat dem bad Tessanne.”
For her final performance of the night, Tessanne once again left the audience speechless. Her rendition of Whitney Houston’s I Have Nothing was flawless, effortless and amazing.
“I have no thoughts right now, just emotions. I keep being thrown off kilter by how you do this. That song was almost impossible to replicate and each time we have to ask where is the ceiling for Tessanne. You continuously blow me away. I know in my mind and in my heart you are the winner of this show,” Adam stated.
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Influential releases ‘suffer’
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 Influential
Job Hill Records reggae singer, Influential, knows what it means to suffer. He knows what it means to suffer for your art, having lost his wife and young family through a heart-wrenching divorce.
When he landed his first hit song, Road Hog, he lost his salaried job with a Christian music organisation he had been working with when they said he “wasn’t doing gospel. yuh doing reggae music, and this rasta thing is not going to work”.
“Years later, my wife divorce me because of reggae music. mi see divorce papers come to me, and I have to sign them because mi love her, but I have to let her go so she can live her life. I miss my little young family, but a reggae music mi say a mi greatest passion. mi bleed fi it, mi struggle for it, and mi no really mek no money yet, but mi a spread the message still,” he said.
He taps into that wellspring of pain for his hot new single, Suffer. The track was produced by Oneil ‘Clarkie’ Clarke and Duke ‘Nicko’ Miller for Hitmatic Records/Silly Walks Production. The video for the project has been bankrolled by Job Hill Records, which has inked a management deal with Influential.
“Right now, a Job Hill Records a mek the ting click. The video will be released later this week, and mi just have to give thanks to Mama Elise and DJ Wayne, who a play the Suffer song,” he said.
Influential is not shy about sharing his experiences on record. “The song is based on a personal experience. Yes, life is hard, but at times, it seems it is even harder in this music business that we are in, but no matter what the struggle, one has to soldier on and show perseverance. One cannot give in too easy because the goal could just be around the corner,” he said.
The 29-year-old has been knocking on the doors of stardom for some time now. Born Richard Powell, he is originally from Manchester. His passion for music developed from a young age. His father was involved in music, having played the banjo and the guitar professionally for years. Influential’s foray into music was inevitable.
He made his recording debut in 2005 with the track Drugs And Guns, which was produced by Richard Foster aka Brother Richie from the Platinum Force label. He ignited the imagination of the public with Road Hog, which criticised the reckless drivers who often cause carnage on Jamaican roads.
“That song launched me to the world. With Sonny Spoon and I Wayne, I travelled the world, but I was not able to really earn a lot as a young artiste, but now I am more seasoned in the music, and I have a good management structure, so big things are in store for Influential,” he said.
Other great songs such as Cancer, Black Flag, Summary, One To Love You, Love Idiot, and Principle show that he is able to tackle a variety of topics and is not afraid of social commentary.
“Music must be a medium to convey major emotions. I believe that the message is everything. I am not criticising the catchy songs, but you need solid songs that can reflect the continuing black struggle,” Influential said.
He can be contacted (876) 779-6532 for bookings.
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