Voice Australia viewers have called out the show’s grand finale over a very ‘disappointing’ detail.
The 2024 finals aired on Sunday evening, with LeAnn Rimes’ act Reuben De Melo crowned the winner of the singing competition.
The father of three appeared shocked when host Sonia Kruger told him he had won $100,000 in prize money and an artist development package with Studios 301.
However, disgruntled fans complained that the finale was pre-recorded, as they pointed out that Reuben’s reaction seemed somewhat disappointing.
While previous series of The Voice have had live finals, in recent years the singing competition has been pre-recorded, with four alternative endings included.
The final contestants will only find out the result when the show airs on Channel Seven after the public vote, with many viewers complaining that Reuben’s reaction looked ‘fake’.
One fan said on social media: ‘I wish it was actually live so we didn’t have pre-recorded fake reactions.’
Another wondered: ‘Can they bring back live results comments?! His response seemed so disappointing.”
Voice Australia viewers have called out the show’s grand finale over a very ‘disappointing’ detail after Reuben De Melo (pictured) was crowned the 2024 winner
A third commented: ‘I can’t get around pre-recording the result. It takes the emotion out of the result. Ruben seemed completely impressed.
“His family seemed so happy and tearful, but we know they were acting, so it takes the joy out of watching it.”
While another raged: ‘Why was the Finale pre-recorded? Have a live final or don’t bother, ridiculous to end it like this, did you record every winning artist? What the hell happened to Australian TV? Even happier: congratulations Ruben!’
Another added: ‘He seems like the nicest person. This was not a criticism of him, but the process of pre-recording. No one had won at that point, so the reactions were all fake. Congratulations to him, he’s incredible.’
A friend of Reuben also responded to The Voice winner’s Instagram reveal post, insisting that the singer’s reaction was much more heartfelt when the show aired on TV.
‘Reuben is one of my good friends. We had a watch party and believe me, he was not impressed when we all heard the news!’ they wrote.
‘I’m sure he’ll share it on his socials. It was an amazing moment and couldn’t have been won by anyone who deserved it more!’
The winner of the 2021 show, Bella Taylor Smith, previously complained that having to record four separate final results in one day was a “weird” experience.
After his win, disgruntled fans complained that the final was pre-recorded, pointing out that Reuben’s reaction seemed ‘fake’ (he is pictured with coach LeAnn Rimes)
“The night of the grand finale was busy because we had to film not only the four alternate endings, but also the four singles that played at the end,” she told Yahoo Lifestyle.
“And that night we also did our duets with the coaches and our solo performances, and then at the end you had to clean up the confetti and do all that stuff.”
In Sunday night’s final, Reuben admitted he never thought he would make it to the end of the competition when he was crowned the 2024 winner.
“I never thought I would get this far, this is crazy,” he said in the pre-recorded segment after his win.
Elsewhere, celebrity coach LeAnn was quick to offer kind words for her mentee following his triumphant win.
“I’m so proud,” the Can’t Fight The Moonlight singer raved.
“You deserve every bit of this moment and I am so honored to be on this journey with you. You’re incredible.’
Reuben competed in the Grand Finals alongside Team Adam’s Annie Jones, Team Kate’s Jaedyn Randell and Team Guy’s SKŸE.
Reuben won $100,000 in prize money plus a music masterclass and industrial recording development package with Alexandria-based Studios 301.
It was the first year that the winner was not offered an automatic recording contract with Universal Music Australia or EMI Music Australia.
It was claimed that the controversial move could actually be a good thing for the 2024 winner and break the ‘terrible cycle’ of talents not benefiting from their wins.
Judge Kate defended the change as she argued that being ‘chained’ to a major label early in your career can be a curse rather than a blessing.
“In the past, some of these artists have signed with major labels before they even really understand who they are as artists,” she told TV Tonight.
Reuben competed in the Grand Finals alongside Annie Jones (center) of Team Adam, Jaedyn Randell (left) of Team Kate and SKŸE (right) of Team Guy
‘As an artist you need time to hone your craft. I think the risk, when you’re so young or inexperienced, of being tied to a major label right away is too early.”
In a breathtaking final solo performance of The Animals’ House Of The Rising Sun, Rueben left all four coaches in awe, with Kate-Miller Heidke praising it as ‘exceptional’.
‘I can’t stop smiling. You just gave it everything. That was just crazy,” added LeAnn, who also joined Reuben on stage for a heartfelt duet of Coldplay’s Fix You.
Reuben captivated Australian audiences – and show judges Adam Lambert, Guy Sebastian, Kate and LeAnn – with his first-ever Blind Audition.
Eager to grab him, LeAnn used her Ultimate Block to guarantee he would be on her team.
‘I knew it as soon as he opened his mouth and I heard him sing. There was just so much feeling in it,” she said at the time.
“There was no way I was letting any of the other coaches get to him before I did.”
