Blake Shelton joined Christina Aguilera and Adam Levine in stepping out from behind judges/coaches chairs to perform on NBC’s The Voice this week.

And it’s not a contest, but if it was—as it was for Entertainment Weekly critic Ken Tucker—Blake blew ’em out of the water. Blake got an A- to Christine’s C+ and Adam’s B-, according to Tucker’s scorecard. Blake “has been a joy to behold,” Tucker wrote.

Beyond that, Tucker said, “Shelton’s relaxed command, his lack of showiness, is in keeping with country tradition. But it’s more than that: Like all first-rate pop singers, country or otherwise, he knows that the best way to impress an audience is by making something difficult look easy.

“In a sense, his performance also fit right in with the mission of The Voice, because just watching him, the contestants got a lesson in how to comport yourself on-stage, and, perhaps, in life.”