- "The Voice" returns this Saturday, at 9:05 pm on TF1 for a ninth season.
- The season 8 having been disappointing audience level, the production sought to renew the format, while relying on the fundamentals.
- The coaches Amel Bent, Lara Fabian, Marc Lavoine and Pascal Obispo are the main novelty of the program which, for the first time, will be installed in a real concert hall for bonuses. On the rules side, the “theft of talents”, among others, has been abolished.
- The first episode is promising in terms of talents and strong stories.
Season 9 of The Voice will be launched on Saturday evening on TF1 to the sound of Show Must Go On . Are the new coaches Amel Bent, Lara Fabian, Pascal Obispo and Marc Lavoine indirectly addressing their predecessors Jenifer, Soprano, Mika and Julien Clerc, singing that, even without them, "the show must go on"? Or if it is a slogan of reconquest? Last season was marked by a decline in audience levels - in one year, the telecrochet had lost 900,000 viewers on average. Admittedly, the irony of Queen's tube is probably overinterpreted in this context, but the fact remains that the first chain's tele-hook is at a turning point in its history.
Matthieu Grelier, the program director of ITV Studios, which produces the program, is fully aware of this. With his teams, he carefully thought about this new season. “We heard the messages, we are connected to what the viewers say. We wanted renewal but also a season based on its fundamentals. It is paradoxical but it is true. "
Never has a song been made so much for a blind audition of #TheVoice ✌️
His name is Anthony, he is 24 years old, and he went to blind auditions for his sister.
To present himself to the coaches, he chose a particular title: Casting of @mae_officiel pic.twitter.com/kqydlsVqr2
The obvious novelty of this ninth edition is the quartet of coaches. A unique blend in the form of a "leap into the unknown", to use the words of Matthieu Grelier. On the filming of the blind auditions, we could see dynamics taking place. Amel Bent and Pascal Obispo work in permanent teasing, Marc Lavoine embodies mischievous wisdom, Lara Fabian lets express her spontaneity. This square of strong personalities works well and gives a new dynamic to a program that had taken on a routine appearance.
New armchairs and "behind the scenes" atmosphere
The plateau has also been refreshed. A huge transparent screen is now proudly erected at the back of the stage. The four red armchairs have been changed - the previous ones will have lasted four seasons. The new ones have a more rounded shape which, it seems, allows coaches to better see themselves and communicate with each other. The production also explains that it wanted to accentuate the "backstage" atmosphere. The “Family Room”, the room where Nikos Aliagas observes the performance of a candidate in the company of his relatives, is now right next to the stage - whereas before, it was accessed after having walked through a maze of corridors. "We are going to be in a very" behind the scenes "atmosphere, very raw," warns Matthieu Grelier.
There will also be something new on the horizon at the time of the premiums. The live broadcasts will no longer be filmed in a Seine-Saint-Denis set but in a concert hall. Viewers will be the only ones to have a say in the semi-finals: they will choose the four finalists from among all the candidates still in the running. It may well be that one coach has two talents in the final and another has none.
A “tight season”
The return to basics is also reflected in the desire to rediscover the simplicity of the first seasons. No more complicated rules, theft of talent, second chances and other "red zones". Also finished are the candidates who leave the set without further ceremony when none of the coaches have turned their seats around on their performance. As was the case before season 5, the four jurors will face the rejected talent and explain to him why they were not convinced. "We give our coaches time to speak so that they can do pedagogy," notes the director of programs at ITV Studios.
Season 9 will be "tightened". There will be fewer episodes, so as not to tire the audience over the length. As a result, coaches will only be able to select 14 candidates from their team - compared to 18 last year. “We want to return to something pure, simple, fluid. We have a cast of vocal beasts, very big voices, we don't need fifty artifices around that ”, summarizes Matthieu Grelier. The first episode, which 20 Minutes was able to watch, tends to confirm this assertion. It serves a cocktail of varied talents, charismatic and strong history. If the TF1 telecrochet was hoarse last year, it seems to have found the right track.
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