Spoiler alert! This story reveals the winner of The Voice Season 24. Proceed with caution.
In case you’d forgotten, Season 24 of The Voice marked the first time Blake Shelton was not on the coaching panel, and when the cowboy previously talked about passing the torch to Niall Horan, his newfound “son,” we all kind of thought it was a joke. However, it seems The Voice might actually have found its next super coach, as the One Direction alum notched his second win during Tuesday night’s finale, with Huntley being named the Season 24 champion.
Huntley blew the roof off the place in Monday’s performance finale, particularly with his episode-ending rendition of Creed’s “Higher,” and in the eyes of the voters, that was enough to put him past teammate Mara Justine; Reba McEntire’s Jacquie Roar and Ruby Leigh; and John Legend’s Lila Forde. Just before the winner was announced, Niall Horan had some final words for his artist, as he recalled all four coaches turning for Huntley in the Blind Auditions. Horan said:
Huntley, my man, it’s been an absolute pleasure since Day 1. We all spun around, we couldn’t wait to turn around to see you. Meeting your daughter Stella, her picking me — I don’t know if you would [have] but she did — and we became a great partnership, the two of us. We’ve had a great laugh along the way, and we’ve picked some great songs, you’ve had some magic moments.
Win or lose, the coach said, they were headed for a beer after the finale. With Huntley’s win, Niall Horan becomes the second of The Voice coaches (after Kelly Clarkson) to win their first two seasons, and he’s just the fourth mentor overall to notch multiple wins on The Voice, along with Blake Shelton, Clarkson and Adam Levine.
With none of those three likely to make a return to The Voice anytime soon, if ever, has the former boy-bander set himself up to be the next juggernaut coach? Only time will tell, and we won’t get that answer right away anyway, with Horan sitting out Season 25.
The big announcement came after a night of wild performances that included a Barbie-inspired group number from the Top 12 and duets from each of the finalists with their coaches. Huntley and Niall Horan’s voices complemented each other perfectly on their cover of “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” before Jacquie Roar and Reba McEntire honored this season’s Mega Mentor Wynonna Judd with a rendition of “No One Else on Earth.”
Mara Justine chose her mother’s favorite song, “Wasted Time” by the Eagles to sing with Niall Horan. Lila Forde and John Legend provided a jazzy, festive duet of “Sleigh Ride,” and Ruby Leigh closed things out with the queen of country, singing “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” where McEntire proved that even icons forget the lyrics sometimes.
The Season 24 finale also included performances from icons like Earth, Wind & Fire, who boogied to a medley of their greatest hits. Keith Urban crooned his hit song “Blue Ain’t Your Color,” while Teddy Swims sang his single “Lose Control.”
Just as The Voice’s Top 5 represented artists of different genres, so too did the music superstars who performed Tuesday night, with R&B sensation Tyla singing “Water,” rockers AJR performing a medley of “Bang!” and “Yes I’m a Mess,” and pop-country duo Dan + Shay taking the stage with “Bigger Houses.”
Dan + Shay made an appearance on this season of The Voice, filling in for Niall Horan when his tour schedule conflicted with the show. The singers will return as the series’ first coaching duo in Season 25, and I can’t wait to see how that’s going to work. We even got a first look during the finale of the double red chair that will be placed alongside Reba McEntire, John Legend and Chance the Rapper when the show returns in 2024.
Our congratulations go out to Huntley, and if you want to relive any of The Voice Season 24’s greatest moments, all episodes can be streamed with a Peacock subscription. Be sure to keep an eye on the 2024 TV schedule for the Season 25 premiere date, as well as all of the other shows heading our way in the new year.