What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1494073
T4 WHATS UP! March 5 - 11, 2023 REAL TV BY RAYE SMITH TV Media Belting out the best: Back for its 23rd season of no-holds- barred talent, NBC's hit singing competition "The Voice" re- turns to prime time Monday, March 6. New episodes air on NBC Mondays and Tuesdays and are available to stream on Peacock the following day. A series that puts all the focus on the talent of the singers, tal- ented hopefuls perform in a blind audition (where the panel of four celebrity judges all have their backs turned), so that the only aspect of their performance being analyzed is the sound of their singing voice — a choice designed to remove consider- ations like looks and stage pres- ence from the decision-making process. If the judges like what they hear, they'll commit to their choice to have that singer on their team by hitting a button that swivels their chair toward the stage. However, even then, the choice goes to the singer; if more than one coach wants them, it's up to the performer to choose which team they'll work with. From there, the singers work through a series of performanc- es and challenges, facing off against the show's tense battle rounds, saves, steals, knockouts and instant saves to make it to the finale and claim the grand prize. Hosted once again by Carson Daly, who has been with the show since its first season, this season also marks the swan song of judge and country singer Blake Shelton ("God's Coun- try"), the longest-tenured (and winningest) coach, who has ap- peared in every season of the show so far. "I've decided that it's time for me to step away from 'The Voice' after Season 23," Shelton said in a statement. "This show has changed my life in every way for the better and it will always feel like home to me. It's been a hell of a ride over these 12 years of chair turns, and I want to thank everyone at 'The Voice,' from NBC, every producer, the writers, musicians, crew and ca- tering people. You are the best. It takes a lot of work, passion and adult beverages (Ha!) to pull off a live show twice a week." Filling up the other three chairs this season are returning coach, first-ever American Idol winner and Grammy-winning singer Kelly Clarkson ("Since U Been Gone"), singer-songwriter and former One Direction band member Niall Horan ("This Town") and Grammy-winning hip-hop artist Chance the Rap- per ("Sunday Candy"). Tune in to find out whose pipes ring above the rest when Season 23 of "The Voice" pre- mieres Monday, March 6, on NBC. Queen Sweep: Nineties nos- talgia takes center stage in the new six-part limited series "SWV & XSCAPE: The Queens of R&B," premiering Sunday, March 5, on Bravo. Bravo is bringing the music and the drama to the forefront in "The Queens of R&B," as two of the best-selling girl groups of all time, SWV (Sisters With Voices) — including members Cheryl "Coko" Gamble, Tamara "Taj" Johnson and Leanne "Lelee" Ly- ons — and XSCAPE — made up of Kandi Burruss, Tameka "Tiny" Harris, LaTocha Bivens and Tamika Scott — as they give fans "a VIP front-row seat and backstage access" to the groups' "personal and professional lives as they prepare to hit the stage together" in a special, one-night- only concert (per Bravo). Following their hit perfor- mance on Timbaland and Swizz Beatz' web series "Verzuz," the queens reunite once again as they prepare for a fiery perfor- mance, all while balancing band relationships and their own per- sonal and professional lives. "Each episode will capture the highs and lows of their journey as they race against a ticking clock to create a career-reignit- ing concert. But can these strong-willed songstresses ever reach an accord? Not before sharing their most vulnerable moments and venturing beyond business to try healing the per- sonal hurts that stand in the way of their futures," the show's offi- cial news release notes. Catch the performance of a lifetime when "SWV & XS- CAPE: The Queens of R&B," premieres Sunday, March 5, on Bravo. We're jammin': "The To- night Show" host Jimmy Fallon is bringing his unique brand of celebrity fun back to the screen with the Season 2 premiere of the musical variety game show "That's My Jam," airing Tuesday, March 7, on NBC. A spinoff series that features fan-favorite game segments in- troduced by Fallon of "The To- night Show," "That's My Jam" features four new celebrity guests in each episode, working in teams of two, as they compete in games including Turn the Beat Around, More Than a Feel- ing, Undercover Covers, Wheel of Impossible Karaoke and Doombox, among others (per NBC). As they sing and play their way to the top, each team competes for a cash prize that goes to the charity of their choice. This new season features a stacked lineup of celebrities, in- cluding musicians Chloe & Hal- le Bailey ("Do It"), Kelsea Bal- lerini ("Miss Me More"), Big Boi ("The Way You Move"), Chance The Rapper ("Work Out"), Jason DeRulo ("Talk Dirty"), Kesha ("Timber"), Patti LaBelle ("Lady Marmalade"), Adam Lambert ("Runnin'"), Julia Michaels ("If The World Was Ending"), French Montana ("Unforgetta- ble"), Nicole Scherzinger ("The Masked Singer"), Quavo ("Bad and Boujee"), Will.I.Am ("I Got- ta Feeling") and Saweetie ("My Type"); actors Quinta Brunson ("Abbott Elementary"), Jabari Banks ("Bel-Air"), Darren Criss ("American Crime Story"), Jen- na Dewan ("Step Up," 2006), Re- nee Elise Goldsberry ("Altered Carbon"), Taraji P. Henson ("Empire"), Sarah Hyland ("Modern Family"), Simu Liu ("Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," 2021), Joel McHale ("Community"), Keke Palmer ("Nope," 2022), Billy Porter ("Pose"), Diallo Riddle ("South Side"), Craig Robinson ("Killing It"), Bashir Salahuddin ("Top Gun: Maverick," 2022) and John Stamos ("Fuller House"); professional wrestlers Alexa Bliss and Mike "The Miz"; comedians Nikki Glaser ("Nikki Glaser: Good Clean Filth," 2022), Jay Pharoah ("Saturday Night Live") and Kenan Thompson ("Kenan"); and TV personality JoJo Siwa ("The J Team," 2021). Keep the jams going with a new season of "That's My Jam," airing Tuesday, March 7, on NBC. Blake Shelton as seen in "The Voice"