Honestly, if you missed The Voice Season 28 Episode 10, you missed the exact moment the "polite" part of the competition died. This was the night the show officially transitioned from the feel-good Blind Auditions into the meat-grinder of the Knockout Rounds. It aired on November 3, 2025, and the vibe in the room changed the second Carson Daly stepped onto that stage.
We've all seen the Blinds. They’re hopeful. But Episode 10 is where the coaches—Michael Bublé, Snoop Dogg, Niall Horan, and Reba McEntire—had to start acting like executioners.
Why Episode 10 Changed the Stakes for Team Snoop
Snoop Dogg came into this season with a lot to prove. He hadn't won yet, and by the time we hit the tenth episode, his "Uncle Snoop" persona had a bit of an edge to it. He wasn't just there to give out chains and vibes anymore. He was looking for a killer.
In this specific episode, the pairings were brutal. You've got these artists who have spent weeks bonding in the back, only to be told they’re going head-to-head for a single spot. The format for Season 28 kept the "Mega Mentor" tradition alive, and seeing these legends walk in to help the artists refine their sets added a layer of pressure that some of the younger singers clearly weren't ready for.
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It's funny, people always think the Battles are the hardest part. They're wrong. In the Battles, you're sharing the stage. In The Voice Season 28 Episode 10, you're standing out there alone. You sing your song, then you stand there like a statue while your "teammate" tries to out-sing you. It's awkward. It's tense. And in this episode, it led to some of the most lopsided decisions we've seen all year.
The Pairings That Broke the Internet
One of the standout moments involved Team Bublé. Michael has this reputation for being the "nice guy" coach, but his pairing in the tenth episode was strategic. He’s looking for technical perfection, and he didn't hold back when critiquing breath control and pitch. You could see the heartbreak on the faces of the artists who thought they’d sailed through on personality alone.
Then you have Niall Horan. Niall is the reigning king of this show, having won his first two seasons. By Episode 10, he was already molding Aiden Ross—the guy who would eventually go on to win the whole thing—into a frontrunner. While Aiden wasn't the focal point of every segment this night, the way Niall was managing his roster during the start of the Knockouts showed exactly why he’s a three-time champion now.
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What Most People Get Wrong About the Knockouts
A lot of fans think the coaches have a "favorite" they'll protect no matter what. While that's partially true, The Voice Season 28 Episode 10 proved that a bad song choice can end anyone's journey. We saw a couple of four-chair turns from the Blinds absolutely crumble because they tried to do too much with a ballad that didn't fit their range.
- Song Choice is Everything: If you pick a song that's too big (looking at you, anyone trying Whitney or Mariah), you're basically handing the win to your opponent.
- The Steal Factor: Coaches only have one steal in this round. By the middle of Episode 10, the "Save" and "Steal" buttons were being looked at like precious gold.
- The Mega Mentor Influence: Their advice usually sounds like generic "believe in yourself" fluff in the edits, but the artists who actually listened to the technical tweaks were the ones who moved on.
Reba McEntire, as usual, was the emotional anchor of the night. She has this way of letting people down easy that makes it hurt even more. She kept talking about "the story" of the song, and it’s a reminder that this show isn't just about who can hit a high C. It’s about who can make Snoop Dogg cry. (And let's be real, Snoop wears his heart on his sleeve, so it’s not that hard, but still.)
The Technical "Hiccups"
There were some whispers online about technical issues during the taping of these Knockouts. If you watch closely during the transition between performances in the second half of the episode, you can see the coaches look genuinely exhausted. Taping these rounds takes hours. What we see in a two-hour broadcast is a highly polished version of a very long, very draining day for everyone involved.
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How to Apply These Lessons to Your Own Performance
If you’re a singer or even just a fan of the "process," there's a lot to learn from how the Season 28 contestants handled the pressure of the tenth episode.
- Don't over-sing. The winners of the night were the ones who stayed in their lane.
- Watch the coach's body language. In Episode 10, you could tell who Bublé was going to pick five seconds into the song just by how he was leaning forward.
- The "Carson Callback" is a myth. Okay, it's not a myth, but by this point in the season, even the second-chance artists are on thin ice.
The reality is that The Voice Season 28 Episode 10 served as the filter. It separated the people who were "good for TV" from the people who could actually win a recording contract. It’s the episode where the "Aiden Ross hype train" really started to pick up steam, even if we didn't know he'd be the one standing at the end with the trophy.
If you’re looking to catch up, you can still find the individual performances on the official YouTube channel, though the full context of the coach banter is best viewed on Peacock. Seeing the interplay between Niall and Snoop as they fought over the "cool factor" of their respective teams was easily the highlight of the night.
Next Steps for Fans:
Go back and re-watch the Team Niall performances from this episode. Knowing now that Aiden Ross wins the season, you can see the specific critiques Niall gave that shaped his final trajectory. Also, pay attention to the "one-chair turns" that survived this round; they often have the most interesting growth arcs as the show moves into the Playoffs and the Live Finale.