NBC’s, ‘The Voice’ (and America) have a race problem
A pattern of white finalists beating out finalists of color has emerged in recent years
December 16, 2020
“The Voice” crowned its 19th winner last night — 15-year-old Carter Rubin of Team Gwen. While the night was historic because Rubin became the youngest male to ever win the show, it was also predictable. Of the 19 “Voice” champions, Rubin is one of 15 white champions.
This would make sense if there were no finalists of color in the running. However, there were two finalists of color — Desz from Team Kelly and John Holiday from Team Legend. These two singers came in fourth and fifth respectively.
One could try to justify this by saying that Rubin was just more talented. I would accept that argument if it wasn’t the case that in Season 18, both the runner-up, third and fourth place Black finalists lost to a white singer. I would call both of these instances a fluke if not for the fact that in Season 17, the fourth place finalist was Black and in Season 15, both the third and fourth finalists were Black.
A person of color has not won “The Voice” since Chris Blue in Season 12. And Blue was the first person of color to win since Season 5 which aired in 2013.
What is going on?
First, it’s important to note who chooses the finalists. While leading up to the finale, the coaches on the show have a chance to save singers and decide who advances to the finale, ultimately, the viewers vote for the winner of “The Voice.” The viewers are able to cast votes on “The Voice” app and on the website. So while coaches are regularly picking singers of color to advance to the finale, time and time again, the voters are not sending them to victory.
One possible reason could be that on “The Voice,” there has been very rarely more than one coach of color at a time. For example, in Season 19 that just wrapped up, John Legend was the only coach of color. The other three were white. This was the same in all of the seasons except for about five seasons when combinations of Shakira, Jennifer Hudson, Usher and Pharell Williams lined up.
The lack of consistent coaches of color may have deterred some people of color from tuning into the show and voting for more diverse winners.
Another possibility is simply the loyalty of the country music viewers on the show. Blake Shelton, a country singer, is the only coach to be on the show for all 19 seasons, and he has won seven times — more than any other coach.
The show’s focus on country music, a genre which has ties to the antebellum south, may also deter Black viewers who yearn to listen to music that is a better representation of them.
Either way, I am deeply disappointed by this pattern of Americans electing white people as the winner of “The Voice.” The fact that only one woman of color has won “The Voice” in 19 seasons is very sad and scary. The fact that this happened in 2013 is even scarier. The last seven winners of the show have been white. This is just unreasonable given the number of people of color that made the finale.
Last night, I cast my vote for Holiday, the fifth place winner. Holiday is a professionally trained opera singer and voice teacher at a university, but he is not a textbook singer and doesn’t just stick to opera. He sang a breathtaking version of Beyoncé’s “Halo” for the finale show that should have motivated America to vote for him.
On top of Holiday being a Black man on the one Black coaches’ team, he is openly gay. Did that play a role in why he came in fifth — last of the finalists? I do not know. What I do know is that the American people that shy away from female presidents and have only elected one Black president despite our population being nearly 50% people of color are the same American people electing “The Voice” champion.
What is my recommendation? Since NBC can’t singlehandedly cure racism, if “The Voice” wants to diversify viewership and the winners, it needs to bring on a more diverse coaching staff. I love Shelton, but he’s been there forever. Let’s bring in Jimmie Allen, a young Black country singer who is breaking barriers in the genre. How about Lizzo? Megan Thee Stallion? There are a multitude of brilliant artists of color to choose from.
I am writing this article not because I have all the answers or because I think Rubin doesn’t have a great voice. He does.
I am writing this article because deep down I feel that the reason singers like Holiday lost has something more to do with their skin color than their singing voices. And that’s just not OK.
Nic • Nov 30, 2021 at 7:56 pm
If you don’t believe racism exists, just read half of these comments…
Rick • Nov 23, 2021 at 7:49 pm
Just the comments from the racists on this comment board pretty much verifies the writer’s concerns.
J. Meyer • Nov 16, 2021 at 8:52 pm
I think Emily DiSalvo needs to stop trying to create problems where there are none. 14% of Americans are Black, and 21% of Voice winners are Black. Where is the problem?? Get a life, Emily!
Nic • Nov 30, 2021 at 9:46 pm
Nope. You are, much like the other racists in these comments, inaccurate. It’s clear you’re uneducated, so allow me to school you in why you’re wrong: the graphic with the numbers you are referencing clearly states “people of color” which is not limited to solely the black community. You’re trying to match that up with black census numbers, and in turn create a lie to appear right when anyone with a brain can tell you why you’re wrong. Non-White US Population = 42%+…Non-White Voice Winners = 21.1%. So it seems like you, J. Meyer, are the one that needs to get the life. While the people around you are finally starting to wake up and acknowledge the problems that have been growing for centuries, your refusal to see and accept them doesn’t make them not exist. You’re the problem. Please don’t procreate.
I'm Tired of This • Nov 11, 2021 at 12:06 am
What percentage of America is black?? What percentage of The Voice winners have been black? It appears the winners have been black twice as much as they are present in the population. You are right, the show appears to be racist IN FAVOR of black people.
Nic • Nov 30, 2021 at 9:37 pm
You’re tired of what, exactly? Society around you finally waking up and acknowledging racism? Also, your idiotic argument is completely inaccurate, invalid, and moronic…much like you. Over 42% of the US population are people of color, yet only 21.1% of the winners of this show have been people of color. So if you ever passed a math class you would be able to deduce that the winner ratio here is half…not double. It’s quite clear that obvious racists like you are the exact problem.
Letsgo Brandon • Nov 9, 2021 at 7:20 pm
How can I say shut the F up? The voice actively promotes minorities regardless of talent! Same with American idol! If you click a diversity box you will move forward. If you are gay, African American, Latino etc you will be promoted by the coaches/judges to keep America tuned in
Linda Ann Howard • Oct 12, 2021 at 7:26 pm
I think not enough black people watch this show to vote for the black singers and so that being said white people vote for white people. For me as a black woman the voice is about the voice the singer and that’s who I vote for whether it be black or white but of course everyone who watches the voice, doesn’t feel that way. As far as racism, I think Kelly always get rid of her black singers first. Does that make her racist? I have watched this show every season. She is the only one that I see gets rid of her black singers first.
Madi • Sep 27, 2021 at 8:54 pm
Almost every black contestant (unless blocked) chooses John Legend and he chooses the black contestants, rarely does he choose a white one, if at all. That’s not racist? Has it occurred to you that perhaps John Legend isn’t a great coach? Or that white people are phenomenal singers just as much and even more than some black singers? That everyone has different taste in voices, music, stage presence and other considerations? Do you realize it’s people like you who perpetuate racism? Just because the person YOU wanted to win didn’t, you’re going to pull the race card. In your opinion there can be no other reason for a white person to win and a black person to lose? STOP voicing your opinion when you’re trying to poison the mind of others. You should be ashamed.
Nic • Nov 30, 2021 at 7:55 pm
This is completely factually untrue. You’re a clear racist and it makes me sick to share the same air as you.
Ray smith • Sep 23, 2021 at 5:51 am
I think this is one of the biggest problems with the country now a days. Well the runner ups are black in multiple seasons but a white person won so it must be rigged. This is one of those traps you see people like you set all the time when a contest doesn’t have 50% or more black winners. Well it must be racist right? You disregard everything else except for skin color. You disregard hard work, talents, wardrobe, song selection and many other factors but because you are upset there is more poc champions. Okay so what do you want done then? You and people like want to artificially get your out come you want 50% or more black winners so instead. To many country artists on the show? well get rid of Blake Shelton then. You are the division in our country you don’t want equal you want quotas. Stop injecting race into everything. Are you upset that so many other things are black dominated like the nfl,nba,rappers and many other thing? When you come out with and article saying how to fix those so that it is more equal for white people and other races then I with take you seriously. But I know you won’t you don’t want equality just privileges and forced out comes.
B • Nov 30, 2021 at 9:50 pm
I was going to reply to this comment but judging by the absurd amount of grammatical errors it seems to be written by a poorly educated 6 year old and I don’t want to offend a small unfortunate child.
Malcolm Buran • Sep 20, 2021 at 8:16 pm
It is disappointing to read an article that suggests that the voice is racist. I think you make some valid points, but you lose credibility immediately when you claim that it is due to racism. Every issue that doesn’t seem fair is not because of racism. People have played the racist card so often that it just doesn’t mean anything anymore. I think the vast majority of people that listen are probably country music’s fans because country music performers tend to do well. That is probably the reason plus several others that African-American performers don’t win more often. It is also true of white non-country performers. They don’t win as often as they probably should. Something to think about. Is it racist that 94% of African-Americans voted for President Obama? By your standard, we would say that that is racist. Can’t have it both ways. No one said anything about 94% of African-Americans voting for an African-American president. But win 56% of white Americans voted for Trump, there was an African-American leader on television that said it was a white lash. It is time to come together and stop this nonsense.
Marcia Smith • May 25, 2021 at 8:11 pm
I forgot to mention one other thought. Do you ever notice that in the blinds, if it is a black contestant and John Legend turns around, 90% of the time that black contestsnt will choose John Legend. What’s up with that?
Marcia Smith • May 25, 2021 at 8:08 pm
There are talented people of all colors who do not win The Voice. I have been disappointed multiple times because the person I really liked did not advance. Never once did I think it was because of color. Only one person can win.
To really look at this you would have to work on percentages, which maybe i will do just for S&Gs.
I’m really tiring of the mindset that just because a person doesn’t win it’s because they’re a person of color. That is absolutely ridiculous. Lots of white people also do not advance on the show.
Is the NFL racist? What about the NBA? There are so few white players on those teams . Is that racist? Or do you hold that to a different standard? What about the leadership of the city of Chicago? In that City, the chief of police, the chief of the fire department, the mayor, and tons and tons of other leadership positions, including Alderman, are predominantly people of color. It is so racial focused there, that the Mayor won’t even take questions from white reporters. Do you look at that as racist? Are you concerned about that? Or do some high in that to make sense in your brain? I’m so sick of this rhetoric. We’re all here together. We all win. We all lose. Get over it.
B • Nov 30, 2021 at 10:12 pm
That’s the thing though Marcia…we’re not all here together. We don’t all win. The level of access and opportunity that is afforded to white people simply is not present in anywhere near the same levels to people of color. So maybe you should start getting on top of it instead of “getting over it”, or keep your trap shut about things you apparently know nothing of.
Darius • May 25, 2021 at 12:51 am
If the voting on this show is not racially motivated it certainly seems so. It might demographic where older white folks prefer to hear country and also younger black voters do not tune in because it’s not hip-hop. Older black voters have become disalusioned due to disappointed….year after year. American Idol also seems to reflect bias. Above all, I Don’t think America should vote for the best singer/performers….let’s leave it to the judges and or recorder industry pros. America is too divided since 2912 (Obama years).
Craig • May 24, 2021 at 8:25 pm
Why is the racial majority of the U.S. winning a singing show the majority of the time shocker? It seems Americans want to find racism in everything.
Leanora Bing • May 24, 2021 at 7:34 pm
If a person of color does not win the voice 2021 I will no longer support this show. This years black male finalist are by far the best this show has ever had. If either doesn’t win, I know it’s no point in supporting this show. This will be my last season. I love you John, but I can’t take it.
roger Blosinski • Oct 18, 2021 at 8:56 pm
Hurry up and stop watching
Letsgobrandon • Nov 9, 2021 at 7:50 pm
Leonora is an idiot. Has a Biden flag in front yard and thinks AOC is what’s right for America. Won’t watch because a white person won? Now THAT is racist.
Nic • Nov 30, 2021 at 9:53 pm
Considering your guy lost the election I’d say you’re in the minority of Americans here buddy.
Janet Graige • May 18, 2021 at 9:00 pm
The facts are we live in a racist country where racism has thrived for those in power for centuries. Black artists, especially black women artists have to be 10 times better than a white male country singer to do well on a show like the Voice. I, too, think it is time to boycott & continue to support as we can the amazing talented women of color from this season. It is demographics of who watches the show and who loves Blake, so Blake should say something to the fans. I mean, it is time to tell the truth America. Maybe the coaches should all choose only black artists…during the knockouts or the place where they can choose, that would say something & I just might watch that one. It seems that is perhaps what John Legend has tried to do with his team, and maybe even Blake with Cam this year. We all cry for justice, on the Voice, at the ballot box, in the streets, the courts, the workplace. America makes me so, so tired. Maybe we need a genre based The Voice… Three women of color went home tonight, some of the most talented singers of the 9. Will America ever Be? I am saying goodnight to the Voice.
Letsgobrandon • Nov 9, 2021 at 7:52 pm
OMG! Does being so “woke” make you feel better among your friends? You.are.an.idiot.
CC CC • May 15, 2021 at 6:10 pm
I like all music. This show offer’s exposure. Whether you’re chosen or not, you get national attention. It’s plenty people win but are not relevant after they win. I’m a black woman. Take advantage of the experience. We all have talent. My friends used to make fun of me because Michael McDonald is one of my favorite artist when I was in my 20’s. I bought all his music and still play his music. Talent is not about color. I’m really sick of hearing color, color all the time. Everyone is not racist. I love people!!!
Anonymous • Apr 7, 2021 at 9:12 pm
How do you explain John Legend having a team that is ‘almost’ completely made up of people of color? One could fairly infer he is racist as he only wants people of color on his team.
B • Nov 30, 2021 at 9:54 pm
Are you seriously crying reverse-racism here? Please…read a book.
CHERYL GONZALEZ • Apr 6, 2021 at 10:05 pm
So now 2021 is obviously bias toward black contestants. It should not matter what nationality!!
Lorenzo Jugo • Mar 29, 2021 at 8:20 pm
I wonder why it’s always a competition between black music and white music. I would like yo see more latino music.
Lorenzo • Mar 29, 2021 at 8:17 pm
I wonder why it’s always a competion between black and white. I would like to see more latino genres.
Penny Campbell • Mar 25, 2021 at 12:37 am
Please… just stop. You are part of the problem. Is it also racist that just this season John Legend picked only one white person to be on his team. And don’t tell me about it being a blind audition… most people, especially, John Legend, can hear the singing inflections of a black person. Wow! Grab the remote. Change the channel!!!! Oh, by the way, I’m black.
John S. • Mar 22, 2021 at 9:00 pm
Can we stop trying to find racism under every rock? There is plenty of REAL racism. The Voice is a voter driven competition. Is it just this simple- the majority of the Voice viewers fit a certain demographic- country music- that they vote predictably for a county artist, and there is rarely a black country artist?
Is anyone really going to say that if Darius Rucker was on the Voice he wouldn’t win? If that happened- racism. Plain and simple. But instead, the artists who sing the genre that the majority of viewers of this show follow win, and it must be racism.
If you skinny jeans in a country town- you go out of business. Sell work jeans- you make money. That simple.
This is not racism people. Stop finding racism where it doesn’t exist. By doing so, you give people who want to say racism is not real a hall pass. If you want more black singers to win the Voice, find a way to increase the Black viewing audience who vote for a genre of music they favor, whatever that may be. Otherwise, country fans will vote for mostly white country artists. Until Darius Rucker decides to sing on the Voice, which would be amazing!
Madi • Mar 22, 2021 at 7:17 pm
Everyone has different taste. Just because the article’s author prefers a black singer doesn’t mean most of the voters thought he was the best. You can always think of reasons to justify why you feel something is racist, but that doesn’t make it so. STOP making everything about RACISM! There are PLENTY of white singers who are fantastic in their own right. Why should they lose because people want a black person to win? IS that any more right than racism? There are other shows you can watch.
Jessica McDonough • Mar 22, 2021 at 12:31 am
Why do we listen to your pathetic whining on it has to be because their black so it is a racist show. Maybe the public just do not like the blacks singers as much as you would like to believe. I am a white person who grew up in the oldies but goodies era. Every night I go to sleep listening to the the music channel (oldies but goodies). You talk about white favoritisms well let me tell you something that era I lived in we liked the black singers better but we did not look at them for their singing as to what color of skin they had. All this race card issues make me sick and for the way you are acting today I will not watch TV shows or your singing until you start acting with some dignity.
Seriously • Mar 9, 2021 at 9:01 pm
Seriously? People voted for who they thought was best just because your opinion doesn’t line up. I guess you think it was rigged to?
Susana Fernández • Mar 2, 2021 at 12:50 pm
The winner of the voice is chosen by the people watching the show so if you think that black people are being discriminated then don’t let them vote and have your own pane of judges
Also black people have the tendency of sounding the same and that is not likeable or commercially successful
That is my opinion
And also it is 2021 and I have noticed many more black singers now than ever, and if you are gay you make a point of saying it and you are appraised even more
Tired of the nonsense
Carol • Jan 9, 2021 at 2:48 pm
It’s really incredibly sad the kind of bias against black singers on this show. Nbc needs to do better. Black singers start off very well, most are even four chair turns and when they get to finale, they stumble, not because they are not good enough but because America feels for some reason they don’t deserve their vote. It’s sad and no longer funny, you can’t tell me the network doesn’t notice or isn’t aware of this bias. Imagine John Holiday coming in 5th place, that’s almost laughable. Season 18 was worse when neither Toneisha Harris or Thunderstorm Artis, two of the most talented singers lost to pastor Todd. C’mon America, you can do better if you really want to!
Tyrell Johnson • Jan 9, 2021 at 7:03 am
GCuring racism isn’t fixed by expecting special treatment. In my option as a black male this is the type of attitude that keeps racism alive. I know its shocking but maybe the white winners are genuinely just better singers!
Althea • Dec 26, 2020 at 8:01 pm
I’d like to add to what was said. The judges aren’t always keen on picking black artist that sing amazing. They are fully aware of the biases. They would much prefer picking an artist that is country over a black artist who can sing. I saw it play out this year there was a female artists who was black and could sing and she wasn’t picked by any of the judges (I think John legend was the only judge who still had a spot left on his team). I can’t remember her name but she was phenomenal. Shortly after that he chose a country singer who in my opinion was mediocre. The reality is these judges are getting paid millions for being on the show. The show is making millions from advertisement. I’m sure the judges get a bonus if they win. The ratings are good so why would they make any changes. The judges are widely popular. The only way things will change is if their are more black judges and artist, less country artist or if enough people voice their opinion about voting biases. I don’t know why they just don’t change the show to Voice Country And have another Voice competition where the judges are the face of RB and it’s racially mixed. As long as Americans remains divided and racists, great black artist don’t have a chance of winning. I think I’ll skip The Voice next year
Lauren Pyne • Dec 18, 2020 at 11:56 pm
I thought Desz was a lock to win. I was flabbergasted when she finished fourth! Not that Ian, Carter and Jim Ranger don’t have great voices but I anticipated a show named “The Voice” to have an audience who judged talent on singing ability alone. This clearly was not the case!
In whole-hearted agreement!
Roger Bruce • Dec 18, 2020 at 4:05 pm
I agree the voice is supposed to be about selecting the most talented singer. In my opinion the two most talented finalists were John Holliday and Dez. Rubin Carter in my opinion should not have even been a finalist as his talent level was average. Other more talented singers were eliminated. In addition his ability as a performer was not that impressive either. It irritated me to see him as a finalist. But Kelley Clarkson not advancing Heather Greene last year was more of the same. I would like to see Alicia Keyes instead of Gwen Stefano.
Michelle Courtney Berry • Dec 17, 2020 at 11:20 pm
Thank you.,
Michelle Berry • Dec 17, 2020 at 11:18 pm
Thank you.
John Thompson • Dec 17, 2020 at 11:09 am
I appreciate this post because it reflected my thoughts when watching the finale. I couldn’t believe John Holiday came in last. I would like to add a few thoughts:
The show’s problem seems first and foremost to be a ‘black’ problem. So many of the final contestants as you note have been black. There is a long history of African-American genres performed by black artists on this show, with these contestants having minimal success.
I don’t agree with your generalizing about ‘country’ music. I wouldn’t connect country music with the “Antebellum South.” Much of country music developed from Appalachian folk, which is a far cry from the uppity Antebellum culture of the plantation south. While the genre has become a way of connecting white people across the “New South” to a concept of southern heritage, I wouldn’t generalize and say the genre itself turns black people away from the show. Black people can enjoy whatever genre they want to, and many do enjoy country music. Many black artists have contributed to country music.
By the same token, these days plenty of white people listen to black music from diverse genres. The worry is that in addition to supporting country music above all else, these white viewers just do not want to vote for a black artist. I think it would take a black country artist to figure that out for sure though.
It is demoralizing to see black artists time and time again lose on this show. At least we know winning ‘The Voice’ isn’t the end-all be-all representation of someone’s artistry and merit. It seems like the show has accrued a certain demographic of viewer and I wouldn’t count on it getting better any time soon. Maybe hiring more black judges as you say would be a good step. If the show were to resist this because it doesn’t want to jeopardize losing the white demographic who views the show, that would be incredibly unfortunate. After all though, it is a business like any other mass television program.
Michelle Manfred • Dec 17, 2020 at 8:14 am
I was also disappointed by the season results. I really don’t think the child – Carter Rubin was even close to being the most talented person on the stage. I also think that the whole voting thing might be rigged. In the last episodes of the show, Carson Daly continued to say Gwen could win it with the youngest contestant almost as if he knew something in advance. And Gwen Stefani is NOT the most talented coach on the panel. Far from it with her monotone songs. She doesn’t even try to show her range making me think she is incapable. I think she is on the show because of her boyfriend Blake Shelton and because she is nice eye candy for the old men that watch the show. I will be boycotting the show until they make some changes.
Amanda Menendez • Dec 16, 2020 at 11:37 pm
Thank you for writing this article. I completely agree. I love the show and love the coaches but at the end of every season I feel this pit in my stomach about how racist America is…it’s blatant as the people of color that have made it to the finales are unbelievably talented stars. I believe that the coaches, Kelly, Gwen, John and Blake are all good humans but I think it’s time for them to step up and fight for the format to change. They have to see what’s happening season after season and they should no longer be implicit in reinforcing white-centrism. America shouldn’t get to vote to determine the winner. It’s that simple. And Desz and John, if you end up reading this, you two were an amazing gift to watch on the show this season. Your talent blew me away.