
Snoop Dogg picks Mass. native Mary McAvoy to advance on ‘The Voice’
The former New England wedding singer won her “Battle” on Monday night’s episode — and will now also get help from Sting.

There were likely quite a few New England couples pointing at the screen like the Leo meme in disbelief last night.
Walpole native/East Providence, R.I. resident Mary McAvoy — a former New England wedding band singer — was crowned the winner of a singing battle on “The Voice” by Snoop Dogg.
The University of New Hampshire alum now moves on to the next round.
McAvoy, 35, was drafted by Coach Dogg in an earlier episode of NBC’s Emmy-winning reality singing competition show.
In Monday night’s episode, called the Battles, teammates battled each other: one moves on, one goes home. The decision is up to the coach.
Coach Snoop Dogg paired McAvoy with Texan Michael Alexandersson to duet on “I Only Have Eyes for You” by The Flamingos.
Afterward, Coach Reba McEntire weighed in: “Mary, your vocals are incredible. Boy, you’ve got a heck of a range there, girl,” she said. “Snoop, if I had to choose one, I think I’d go with Mary, because of her vocal range.”
Gwen Stefani added, “Mary, your voice is shockingly beautiful.” Michael Buble liked the Texan.
Then came time for Coach Snoop to cut someone from his team.
Host Carson Daly walked on stage and stood in the middle of the two dueters. “Snoop, you got a tough one coming up here, buddy. Give us some thoughts on that battle first.”
“First of all, I’d like to tell you to get out the way and let them keep holding hands like they were doing. ‘Cuz they had a little something going on,” Snoop quipped.
He told the teammates: “The way you took the notes and brought them to life, eye contact, y’all felt like a couple … This is the hard part because I think they both did exactly what I expected them to do. It’s all about what I think is needed for the remainder of the team, for me,” Snoop said.
Coach Snoop then raised his face skyward, held up his hands, and convulsed his head, as if he were being moved by spirits: “I gotta check in with the gangster Holy Ghost.” (Snoop, don’t ever change.)
When his trance broke he announced: “Mary McAvoy.”
“When Snoop picked me I was thrilled. But, honestly it is tough to see your friend go home,” McAvoy told Boston.com after the show aired. “It was bittersweet because I had become quite close with my battle partner, Michael. So when I realized he wouldn’t be continuing on the show with me, I was sad. Of course, I was honored to be chosen by Snoop.”
The Walpole High School alum now moves on to the next round — with help from Sting. The show announced last night that two Mega Mentors, Sting and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson, would work with the teams going forward. Sting will work with Team Snoop.
Catch McAvoy in a future episode. Read more of our interview with Mary here.
Lauren Daley is a freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected]. She tweets @laurendaley1, and Instagrams at @laurendaley1. Read more stories on Facebook here.
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