What happened to Barry Jean Fontenot on The Voice season 27 'The Battles'? Shocking steal and save moment explored

Barry Jean Fontenot experienced a significant moment in his career during The Voice Season 27's Battle Round, which aired on March 17, 2025. Fontenot, who previously worked as a substitute teacher at a trade school, was paired with Kaiya Hamilton to perform Cry to Me by Solomon Burke.

Despite facing challenges during rehearsals, Fontenot received guidance from his coach, Michael Bublé, and Battle Advisor Cynthia Erivo. After his The Voice performance, Bublé selected Hamilton as the winner. However, Fontenot was saved from elimination through a Steal from Kelsea Ballerini and a Save from Bublé. Ultimately, Fontenot chose to remain on Team Bublé.

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Barry Jean Fontenot's Steal and Save performance on The Voice Season 27 Battle Round

Barry Jean Fontenot’s performance and coaching

Before the Battle Round, Fontenot also collaborated with Bublé and Erivo to polish his vocal performance. Erivo instructed him to keep his "head voice" instead of falsetto during The Voice rehearsals, telling him how crucial it was to produce the sound forward through his mouth. She further taught him that opening his mouth while singing would improve his vocal clarity and control.

When Fontenot and Hamilton took the stage for their duet, they delivered a performance that drew strong reactions from all four coaches. John Legend highlighted Fontenot's vocal ability, telling him,

"Barry, your range is really remarkable...Your voice sounded really powerful."

Adam Levine commented on Fontenot’s presence on stage, explaining that he had a welcoming and engaging energy. He noted that Fontenot’s vocal tone stood out as a strong asset during the performance. Levine also observed a moment when Fontenot unintentionally blocked Hamilton’s movement on stage but quickly adjusted to give her space, describing his quick reaction as "the sweetest thing."

Despite his vocal strengths, some coaches expressed concerns about Fontenot’s confidence. Levine stated that he wanted to "unlock Barry," while Ballerini told him,

"Your soul comes through when you sing [but] you have to buy into it."

These comments indicated that while Fontenot demonstrated strong vocal potential, he needed to build more self-assurance in his performances.

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The Steal and Save moment

After receiving feedback from The Voice coaches, Bublé made his decision and selected Hamilton as the winner of the battle. This left Fontenot in danger of elimination. However, just as he was about to exit the stage, Ballerini pressed her Steal button. Moments later, Bublé activated his Save, leading to an unexpected moment of tension. Host Carson Daly addressed the situation by telling Fontenot,

"You are not going anywhere, young man."

Ballerini went on to say that she wanted to assist Fontenot in honing his distinctive singing voice and his stage confidence. She pointed out that his voice contained emotional depth but required further polish, and she explained that she felt she could help him open up to his full potential on stage. Bublé, on the contrary, had a shorter pitch, saying,

"I hope that in the time we’ve spent together I’ve shown you who I am. And that’s it."

After weighing his options, Fontenot ultimately chose to stay with Team Bublé on The Voice. Following this decision, Bublé noted that Fontenot reminded him of the legendary Sam Cooke.

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Fontenot's journey on The Voice season 27 continues as he moves forward in the competition. Viewers can watch new episodes on Mondays at 8 PM ET on NBC, with episodes available for streaming the next day on Peacock.