The Voice UK series 7

The Voice UK is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. The seventh series began airing on 6 January 2018 and concluded on 7 April 2018. It was presented by Emma Willis on ITV. will.i.am, Jennifer Hudson and Sir Tom Jones return for their seventh, second and sixth series, respectively, with Olly Murs replacing Gavin Rossdale as a new coach for the series. Previous runner-up Jamie Miller replaced Cel Spellman as the presenter of companion show, The V Room, broadcast through the ITV Hub.

The Voice UK
Series 7
Hosted by	Emma Willis Jamie Miller (ITV Hub) Vick Hope (ITV Hub)
Coaches	will.i.am Jennifer Hudson Sir Tom Jones Olly Murs
Winner	Ruti Olajugbagbe
Winning mentor	Sir Tom Jones
Runner-up	Donel Mangena
Release
Original network	ITV ITV Hub (The V Room)
Original release	6 January (2018-01-06) – 7 April 2018 (2018-04-07)
Series chronology

Coaches

Coaches for series 7 of The Voice UK

will.i.am

Jennifer Hudson

Sir Tom Jones

Olly Murs

On 6 March 2017, it was announced that will.i.am would be returning as a coach on the show for his seventh series, with ITV stating that they were in "all parties" to have Sir Tom Jones to return as a coach as well.^[1] After much speculation regarding his future on the programme, on 6 August 2017, Gavin Rossdale announced his departure from the programme, after just one series as a coach. Following this announcement, Danny Jones became the favourite to replace Rossdale,^[2] after impressing show producers in his performance on the junior spin-off programme The Voice UK, though former coach Ricky Wilson was also in the running, as he previously stated that the door would be left open for him to return to the show after his first departure in 2016.^[3] On 11 October 2017, Olly Murs was confirmed as Rossdale's replacement, after being linked with the position for many weeks,^[4] along with the news that Jennifer Hudson would be returning for her second series as a coach.^[5] Emma Willis will return for her second series as solo presenter, her fifth overall, with Jamie Miller replacing Cel Spellman as the presenter of companion show The V Room.^[6]

On 8 February 2018, it was announced that the coaches will have Guest Mentors to help them choose their acts in the Knockout stages and they are as follows:^[7] Craig David will help Olly Murs, Apl.de.ap and Taboo will help will.i.am, Kylie Minogue will help Sir Tom Jones and Mo Adeniran and Leona Lewis will help Jennifer Hudson.

It was announced on 12 March 2018, Vick Hope would be replacing Jamie Miller as the backstage presenter.

Promotion

The first teaser trailer for the seventh series was released in December 2017, featuring coaches will.i.am, Hudson, Jones and Murs.^[8] The coaches were also interviewed by The V Room presenter Miller, at the red carpet for the blind auditions.^[6]

Teams

Colour key:

•   Winner
•   Runner-up
•   Third place
•   Fourth place
•   Eliminated in the Semi-Final
•   Eliminated in the Knockouts
•   Artist was stolen by another coach at the Battles
•   Eliminated in the Battles

Coach	Top 40 Artists
will.i.am
	Donel Mangena	Tai	Mark Asari	Saskia Eng	Paige Young	Anna Willison Holt
	Chantelle Nandi	Rhianna Abrey	Kade Smith	Loaded Sista	Wesu Wallace
Jennifer Hudson
	Belle Voci	Gayatri Nair	Rhianna Abrey	Jason Nicholson-Porter	Jake Benson	Ross Anderson
	Ant & Ox	Tesni Jones	Harri Oakland	Jilly Riley	Scarlett Quigley
Sir Tom Jones
	Ruti Olajugbagbe	Lucy Milburn	Chantelle Nandi	Wayne Ellington	Kalon Rae	Eliza Gutteridge
	Saskia Eng	Jade Williams	Chloe Jones	Simon Davies	Courtney O'Neil
Olly Murs
	Lauren Bannon	Jamie Grey	Kirby Frost	Shane McCormack	Holly Ellison	Kade Smith
	Ivy Paige	Debbie Aramide	Bailey Nelsen	RYT	Chris James

Blind auditions

On 14 December 2017, it was announced by ITV that the seventh series would begin broadcasting on 6 January 2018.^[9]

Colour key

✔	Coach hit his/her "I WANT YOU" button
	Artist defaulted to this coach's team
	Artist elected to join this coach's team
	Artist eliminated with no coach pressing his or her "I WANT YOU" button
	Artist Received an "All Turn"

Episode 1 (6 January)

The series premiere aired from 8.00pm until 9.35pm.

• Group performance: The Voice UK coaches – "Feeling Good"

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Jake Benson	1	26	"Issues"	—	✔	✔	✔
Chloe Jones	2	22	"Like a Star"	✔	—	✔	✔
Lauren Bannon	3	27	"Lean On"	✔	✔	✔	✔
Niall Donnelly	4	35	"Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)"	—	—	—	—
Jimmy Balito	5	22	"Concrete"	—	—	—	—
Jason Nicholson-Porter	6	33	"Amazing Grace"	—	✔	—	—
RYT	7	24–30	"JCB"	—	✔	✔	✔
Donel Mangena	8	16	"Cold Water"	✔	✔	✔	✔

Episode 2 (13 January)

This episode aired from 8.00pm until 9.30pm.

• Performance: between Sir Tom Jones & Jennifer Hudson – "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On"

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Kade Smith	1	16	"(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"	✔	✔	✔	✔
Belle Voci	2	25–26	"Flower Duet"	—	✔	—	—
Ivy Paige	3	37	"Why Don't You Do Right?"	—	—	—	✔
Jade Williams	4	32	"Secret Smile"	—	—	✔	—
Jacob Simpson	5	21	"Over"	—	—	—	—
Jamie Grey	6	29	"Rise Up"	—	—	✔	✔
Benn Helm	7	43	"Always on the Run"	—	—	—	—
Lucy Milburn	8	20	"Colorblind"	✔	✔	✔	✔

Episode 3 (20 January)

This episode aired from 8.00pm until 9.30pm.

• Performance: from Olly Murs – "Dance with Me Tonight"

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Chris James	1	28	"Prince Ali"	—	—	—	✔
Tai	2	18	"Move On Up"	✔	—	✔	—
Gemma Kalmakrian	3	34	"Born to Be Wild"	—	—	—	—
Ruti Olajugbagbe	4	18	"Budapest"	—	—	✔	—
Ant & Ox	5	21	"Sunday Morning"	—	✔	✔	✔
Micky Cohen	6	24	"Despacito"	—	—	—	—
Janel Antoneshia	7	24	"Magic"	—	—	—	—
Mark Asari	8	28	"Walking Away”	✔	—	✔	—
Simon Davies	9	30	"Sign of the Times”	✔	✔	✔	✔

Episode 4 (27 January)

This episode aired from 8.00pm until 9.30pm.

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
H Boss	1	28	"Don't Mind"/ "Antenna"	—	—	—	—
Kirby Frost	2	17	"Ciao Adios"	✔	—	✔	✔
Loaded Sista	3	30–34	"Black Widow"	✔	—	✔	✔
Anna Willison Holt	4	17	"Never Forget You"	✔	—	—	—
Eliza Gutteridge	5	16	"Wild Horses"	—	—	✔	—
Jordan James	6	25	"Don't Go"	—	—	—	—
Zak Archer	7	17	"Handbags and Gladrags"	—	—	—	—
Holly Ellison	8	23	"Sorry Not Sorry”	✔	—	—	✔
Gayatri Nair	9	16	"Powerful”	✔	✔	✔	—

Episode 5 (3 February)

This episode aired from 8.00pm until 9.30pm.

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Saskia Eng	1	16	"Strong"	—	—	✔	—
Faith	2	21	"Hold On"	—	—	—	—
Paige Young	3	25	"Crying in the Club"	✔	—	—	—
Shane McCormack	4	21	"Moondance"	—	—	—	✔
Rhianna Abrey	5	20	"Ghost"	✔	—	—	—
Ross Anderson	6	17	"Drag Me Down"	—	✔	—	—
Wendi Harriot	7	41	"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"	—	—	—	—
Ellis Bridgewater	8	25	"Big White Room”	—	—	—	—
Wayne Ellington	9	46	"We Were Raised Under Grey Skies”	—	✔	✔	—

Episode 6 (10 February)

This episode aired from 8.15pm until 9.45pm.

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Michael Harrison	1	30	"Last Request"	—	—	—	—
Bailey Nelsen	2	18	"There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back"	—	—	—	✔
Wesu Wallace	3	36	"I'm Not the Only One"	✔	—	—	—
Courtney O'Neil	4	21	"When You Say Nothing at All"	—	—	✔	—
Keilah Miller	5		"What's Up?"	—	—	—	—
Jilly Riley	6	35	"All Right Now"	—	✔	—	—
Jodie Knight	7	18	"Iris"	—	—	—	—
Jess Herring	8	20	"(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”	—	—	—	—
Tesni Jones	9	32	"Highway to Hell”	—	✔	✔	—

Episode 7 (17 February)

This episode aired from 8.00pm until 9.30pm.

Artist	Order	Age	Song	Coaches and artists choices
				will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Scarlett Quigley	1	20	"Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again"	✔	✔	✔	—
Maria Le Belle	2	34	"Ghetto Story"/ "Get Busy"	—	—	—	—
Chantelle Nandi	3	29	"Kiss Me"	✔	—	—	—
Sand & Stone	4	21–25	"I Will Wait"	Team full	—	—	—
Harri Oakland	5	19	"Say You Won't Let Go"		✔	—	—
Kalon Rae	6	30	"Only You"		Team full	✔	—
Lekenah Eccles	7	27	"No Scrubs"			Team full	—
Sammi J	8	29	"Fever”				—
Navi Chahal	9	20	"Frozen”				—
Aimee Fitzpatrick	10	22	"Wrecking Ball”				—
Debbie Aramide	11	29	"Love Is a Losing Game”				✔

Battle rounds

Filming for the battles began in December 2017 at dock10, MediaCityUK, following the taping of the blind auditions. Each coach has only one steal. The first part of the battle rounds will be broadcast on 24 February 2018.

Colour key

✔	Coach hit his/her "I WANT YOU" button
	Artist won the Battle and advanced to the Knockouts
	Artist lost the Battle but was stolen by another coach and advances to the Knockouts
	Artist lost the Battle and was eliminated

Episode	Coach	Order	Winner	Song	Loser	'Steal' result
						will.i.am	JHud	Tom	Olly
Episode 1 (24 February)	Olly Murs	1	Holly Ellison	"I'd Do Anything for Love"	Chris James	—	—	—	—
	Tom Jones	2	Eliza Gutteridge	"Fight Song"	Courtney O'Neil	—	—	—	—
	will.i.am	3	Mark Asari	"Don't Let Go (Love)"	Loaded Sista	—	—	—	—
		4	Tai	"Stand by Me"	Kade Smith	—	✔	✔	✔
	Jennifer Hudson	5	Belle Voci	"Smells Like Teen Spirit"	Scarlett Quigley	—	—	—	Team full
	Tom Jones	6	Lucy Milburn	"Too Good at Goodbyes"	Simon Davies	—	—	—
	will.i.am	7	Donel Mangena	"Rain"	Rhianna Abrey	—	✔	✔
Episode 2 (3 March)	will.i.am	1	Anna Willison Holt	"Teardrops"	Chantelle Nandi	—	Team full	✔	Team full
	Olly Murs	2	Jamie Grey	"Falling Slowly"	RYT	—		Team full
	Jennifer Hudson	3	Jake Benson	"Every Breath You Take"	Jilly Riley	—
		4	Ross Anderson	"September Song"	Harri Oakland	—
	Tom Jones	5	Kalon Rae	"Vincent"	Chloe Jones	—
	Olly Murs	6	Kirby Frost	"Friends"	Bailey Nelsen	—
	Jennifer Hudson	7	Jason Nicholson-Porter	"Let It Be"	Tesni Jones	—
Episode 3 (10 March)	Tom Jones	1	Ruti Olajugbagbe	"Dog Days Are Over"	Saskia Eng	✔	Team full	Team full	Team full
	Olly Murs	2	Lauren Bannon	"Praise You"	Debbie Aramide	Team full
	Jennifer Hudson	3	Gayatri Nair	"Skin"	Ant & Ox
	Olly Murs	4	Shane McCormack	"Sway"	Ivy Paige
	will.i.am	5	Paige Young	"Faith"	Wesu Wallace
	Tom Jones	6	Wayne Ellington	"What About Us"	Jade Williams

Knockouts

Filming for the show was on 10–11 March 2018 at Elstree Studios (Shenley Road). The first part of the battle rounds was broadcast on 17 March 2018. In this round the mentors helped at the piano rehearsals.

Colour key:

	Artist won the Knockouts and advanced to the Live shows
	Artist lost the Knockouts and was eliminated

Episode	Coach	Order	Song	Artists		Song
				Winner	Losers
Episode 1 (17 March)	Olly Murs	1	"Believer"	Lauren Bannon	Kade Smith	"Express Yourself"
					Holly Ellison	"Perfect"
	will.i.am	2	"Jolene"	Tai	Paige Young	"Power"
					Anna Willison Holt	"Master Blaster (Jammin')"
	Jennifer Hudson	3	"This Is Me"	Gayatri Nair	Jake Benson	"Sun Comes Up"
					Ross Anderson	"Torn"
	Tom Jones	4	"Gravity"	Lucy Milburn	Kalon Rae	"California Dreamin'"
					Eliza Gutteridge	"Don't Kill My Vibe"
Episode 2 (24 March)	will.i.am	1	"Finesse"	Donel Mangena	Saskia Eng	"Came Here for Love"
					Mark Asari	"Don't Dream It's Over"
	Tom Jones	2	"Dreams"	Ruti Olajugbagbe	Chantelle Nandi	"Sing It Back"
					Wayne Ellington	"Man in the Mirror"
	Jennifer Hudson	3	"Nella Fantasia"	Belle Voci	Rhianna Abrey	"Anywhere"
					Jason Nicholson-Porter	"When You Believe"
	Olly Murs	4	"Faith"	Jamie Grey	Kirby Frost	"Crazy"
					Shane McCormack	"City of Stars"

Live shows

The live shows began on 31 March 2018.

Results summary

Team's colour key

  Team Will

  Team JHud

  Team Tom

  Team Olly

Result's colour key

  Artist received the fewest votes and was eliminated

  Artist won the competition

Weekly results per artist

Contestant		Week 1	Week 2
			Round 1	Round 2
	Ruti Olajugbagbe	2nd 22.91%	2nd 29.41%	Winner 58.34%
	Donel Mangena	1st 27.25%	1st 29.58%	Runner-up 41.66%
	Belle Voci	3rd 14.95%	3rd 24.27%	Eliminated (Week 2)
	Lauren Bannon	4th 11.65%	4th 16.73%
	Jamie Grey	5th 8.79%	Eliminated (Week 1)
	Gayatri Nair	6th 6.67%
	Lucy Milburn	7th 5.27%
	Tai	8th 2.49%

Week 1: Semi-final (31 March)

This episode aired from 8.30pm to 10:00pm.

• Musical guest: Mo Jamil ("That Feeling")

Order	Coach	Artist	Song	Result
1	Olly Murs	Jamie Grey	"Say Something"	Eliminated
2	Tom Jones	Lucy Milburn	"One Last Time"
3	will.i.am	Tai	"When Doves Cry"
4	Jennifer Hudson	Gayatri Nair	"Alive"
5		Belle Voci	"Skyfall"	Advanced
6	Tom Jones	Ruti Olajugbagbe	"Waiting for a Star to Fall"
7	will.i.am	Donel Mangena	"Happy"
8	Olly Murs	Lauren Bannon	"In the Air Tonight"

Week 2: Final (7 April)

This episode will air from 8:30pm to 10:10pm.

Group performance: The Voice UK coaches – "Come Together"

Order	Coach	Artist	First song	Order	Duet (with Coach)	Order	Winners single	Result
1	will.i.am	Donel Mangena	"Let Me Love You"	7	"OMG"	9	"Cold Water"	Runner-up
2	Jennifer Hudson	Belle Voci	"O Fortuna"	5	"My Heart Will Go On"	N/A	N/A (already eliminated)	3rd Place
3	Tom Jones	Ruti Olajugbagbe	"If You're Not the One"	8	"What a Wonderful World"	10	"Dreams"	Winner
4	Olly Murs	Lauren Bannon	"Stay"	6	"Ain't No Mountain High Enough"	N/A	N/A (already eliminated)	4th Place

Reception

Ratings

Official ratings are taken from BARB.^[10]

Episode	Date	Official ratings[10]	ITV weekly rank[10]
Blind auditions 1	6 January	6.50	16
Blind auditions 2	13 January	6.60	15
Blind auditions 3	20 January	6.76	15
Blind auditions 4	27 January	6.24	15
Blind auditions 5	3 February	6.20	14
Blind auditions 6	10 February	6.37	14
Blind auditions 7	17 February	5.87	17
Battle rounds 1	24 February	6.56	13
Battle rounds 2	3 March	6.08	14
Battle rounds 3	10 March	5.71	16
Knockout rounds 1	17 March	5.70	16
Knockout rounds 2	24 March	4.76	16
Live Semi-Final	31 March	5.40	17
Live Final	7 April	5.87	14