Niall Horanjust made a Directioner’s dream come true.On Monday night’s episode ofThe Voice, contestantNini Iris captivated all four judgeswith her powerful pipes — and revealed just how much Horan’s former boy bandOne Directionimpacted her as a teenager.The 27-year-old singer, who’s originally from the Eastern European country Georgia and is now based in Brooklyn, performed Texas rock duo Everybody Loves an Outlaw’s “I See Red” and got judges Horan, 30,Gwen Stefani,John LegendandReba McEntireto turn around almost instantly. Iris blew them away with her bewitching, rockstar-like vocals, and continued to impress them as she gave an enigmatic, confident performance, while strutting about the stage.Each of the coaches sang their praises of the aspiring star, but Horan was particularly impressed — standing up at one point to encourage the audience to applaud even louder.Nini Iris and Niall Horan on ‘The Voice’.The Voice/Youtube; Tyler Golden/NBC“That was the best vocal of the day without a shadow of a doubt,” the “Slow Hands” singer said. “The pop-rock singer in you really came to fruition. It was so strong, powerful, commanding — the whole room was with you all the way.”He continued, “I think we’re looking at a potential winner right here.”After saying that he was glad to see her perform “no matter what happens,” the Irish star collapsed over his buzzer pleading, “Please, please, please," in an attempt to get her on his team.It turns out, he didn’t have to work so hard. After Stefani, 54, called Iris’ audition “a Grammys performance” and asked who she listened to growing up, she admitted she listened to some of the coaches.“You,” Iris told Stefani sweetly. “But I got to say that I was a big One Direction fan, too. I’m not ashamed to say that I wrote maybe a few fan fictions when I was a teenager.”That piquedThe Voiceteam’s interest, leading Legend, 44, to ask, “What are the contours of a One Direction fan fiction?”She responded, “When you’re young and you love somebody, you just want them so bad. So, you write about your dreams of meeting them.”The judges had some fun with her answer. Legend joked, “You know what’s sad? When reality doesn’t live up to the dreams that we’ve had,” to which Horan quipped, “You know what’s really sad? I met John Legend.”Horan got down on one knee to ask Iris to join his team, which inevitably she did.The Voicecontestant later shared how excited she was to work with one of the members of her favorite boy bandon Instagram, posting a series of images of her holding up the “Team Niall” crewneck.“Team Niall slay for ever and ever and ever ♾️🤍,” she wrote in the caption.Just last week, another fan of the “What Makes You Beautiful” group,contestant Laura Williams, stunned the judges but wound up on Horan’s team.Legend joked of the heartthrob’s influence, “It reminds me of whenNick Jonaswas on the show. He had a certain pull with a certain generation of girls.“The reality competition series kicked off its 24th season on Sept. 25, with new episodes airing every Monday on NBC.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.This season, McEntire, 68,replacedformer judgeBlake Shelton, whoannounced he was retiringfrom the series after 12 years in October 2022.PEOPLE recentlycaught up with all four judgesin September ahead of the premiere, and Stefani shared how she intends to eye the country hopefuls this season.“I was really nervous about it because I used to watch Blake [Shelton]… if a country artist was on there and Blake presses, I’m gonna press. Because he knows and I don’t,” the pop star shared of her husband. “But over the years, I feel like I have learned what I think is good and it’s been really interesting.”She continued, “But this season I was like, ‘OMG it’s Reba.’ That’s another level. It’s been fun.”
Niall Horanjust made a Directioner’s dream come true.
On Monday night’s episode ofThe Voice, contestantNini Iris captivated all four judgeswith her powerful pipes — and revealed just how much Horan’s former boy bandOne Directionimpacted her as a teenager.
The 27-year-old singer, who’s originally from the Eastern European country Georgia and is now based in Brooklyn, performed Texas rock duo Everybody Loves an Outlaw’s “I See Red” and got judges Horan, 30,Gwen Stefani,John LegendandReba McEntireto turn around almost instantly. Iris blew them away with her bewitching, rockstar-like vocals, and continued to impress them as she gave an enigmatic, confident performance, while strutting about the stage.
Each of the coaches sang their praises of the aspiring star, but Horan was particularly impressed — standing up at one point to encourage the audience to applaud even louder.
Nini Iris and Niall Horan on ‘The Voice’.The Voice/Youtube; Tyler Golden/NBC
The Voice/Youtube; Tyler Golden/NBC
“That was the best vocal of the day without a shadow of a doubt,” the “Slow Hands” singer said. “The pop-rock singer in you really came to fruition. It was so strong, powerful, commanding — the whole room was with you all the way.”
He continued, “I think we’re looking at a potential winner right here.”
After saying that he was glad to see her perform “no matter what happens,” the Irish star collapsed over his buzzer pleading, “Please, please, please,” in an attempt to get her on his team.
It turns out, he didn’t have to work so hard. After Stefani, 54, called Iris’ audition “a Grammys performance” and asked who she listened to growing up, she admitted she listened to some of the coaches.
“You,” Iris told Stefani sweetly. “But I got to say that I was a big One Direction fan, too. I’m not ashamed to say that I wrote maybe a few fan fictions when I was a teenager.”
That piquedThe Voiceteam’s interest, leading Legend, 44, to ask, “What are the contours of a One Direction fan fiction?”
She responded, “When you’re young and you love somebody, you just want them so bad. So, you write about your dreams of meeting them.”
The judges had some fun with her answer. Legend joked, “You know what’s sad? When reality doesn’t live up to the dreams that we’ve had,” to which Horan quipped, “You know what’s really sad? I met John Legend.”
Horan got down on one knee to ask Iris to join his team, which inevitably she did.
The Voicecontestant later shared how excited she was to work with one of the members of her favorite boy bandon Instagram, posting a series of images of her holding up the “Team Niall” crewneck.
“Team Niall slay for ever and ever and ever ♾️🤍,” she wrote in the caption.
Just last week, another fan of the “What Makes You Beautiful” group,contestant Laura Williams, stunned the judges but wound up on Horan’s team.
Legend joked of the heartthrob’s influence, “It reminds me of whenNick Jonaswas on the show. He had a certain pull with a certain generation of girls."
The reality competition series kicked off its 24th season on Sept. 25, with new episodes airing every Monday on NBC.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
This season, McEntire, 68,replacedformer judgeBlake Shelton, whoannounced he was retiringfrom the series after 12 years in October 2022.
PEOPLE recentlycaught up with all four judgesin September ahead of the premiere, and Stefani shared how she intends to eye the country hopefuls this season.
“I was really nervous about it because I used to watch Blake [Shelton]… if a country artist was on there and Blake presses, I’m gonna press. Because he knows and I don’t,” the pop star shared of her husband. “But over the years, I feel like I have learned what I think is good and it’s been really interesting.”
She continued, “But this season I was like, ‘OMG it’s Reba.’ That’s another level. It’s been fun.”
source: people.com
