I think it's been known for a while that The Voice kind of solicits or invites people to audition on the show and AI is probably doing it now, or maybe they did it even when it was on Fox. As others have said, I believe the only criteria for any of the shows is that you don't have an active recording deal. The Voice has actually had a few contestants that I know of for sure that were active recording artists with labels at one point and then got dropped from their labels so they were technically eligible (Billy Gilman, Meghan Linsey, Julie Roberts). To me that is worse than someone like Gabby who at least has never had an actual previous mainstream career. Even Carrie had a development deal that fell through and some early albums, although she didn't have the internet, Youtube, and iTunes to get her music out to the masses like some of these others do now.
I guess with these shows, all is fair. I would hate to think that someone like Carrie could have been eliminated from the show because she had released albums herself or had a development deal at one point. I'm not sure that Carrie ever did, but it is certainly possible that someone like her would have opened for a bigger named artist at a local music festival or state fair. Without AI, Gabby may have never gotten the right kind of exposure to break into the music industry beyond local gigs. I can see where it looks shady that she may have known Luke prior to the show and it wasn't disclosed, but meeting with his team two years ago doesn't necessarily mean they had much of a prior relationship. It may mean he encouraged her to audition for AI or told the producers to check her out, but any of the judges could have done the same thing. We don't know for sure that they stayed in contact regularly over the last two years.
As for Gabby pursuing country, I agree with others that say you don't have to have an accent to sing country music and I don't think her being from Pittsburgh is a reason she can't be country. It seems like she comes from a hardworking family and has a dad that has worked hard to provide for his family and to help make her dreams come true - those seem like true "country" values to me. Plus even though she clearly enjoys and can sing other genres like R&B, it seems like country is where her heart is. Maybe something will come along to change my mind about her country street cred, so to speak, but until then I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt. I contrast her with TS, also from Pennsylvania, in this manner, because TS went to Britney Spears camp and her family has always had lots of money and could pretty much buy her a record deal. I think TS truly went to Nashville because it was easier to break into the biz there as a songwriter and I truly feel she used country as a stepping stone to pop stardom. I never felt she genuinely honored the country music history in any way at all, but just used the genre and any homage she paid to those that came before her was just lip service. As of right now, I don't get that vibe from Gabby. She may be a fan of pop country rather than older country artists, but she's young so that is to be expected. If she truly feels she belongs in country music, I'm not going to begrudge her that, and hopefully she has gains some mentors that can help give her a deeper education on the history of country music so she can honor that as she moves forward.
Honestly, if I had to pick one of the two to hear on my radio, I would pick Gabby over Caleb hands down. I guess I just feel like there are enough guys in country music and I don't see that Caleb brings anything different to the table at all. Guys like him are a dime a dozen in country. Even with his genuine voice, there are still others that are just as good as him, IMHO. Gabby could definitely fit into a female country with an R&B flair niche - bringing in the female side to artists like Thomas Rhett and Sam Hunt. Maren Morris brings in a little bit of R&B, but I've kind of given up on her, because I honestly don't think Maren honors the country genre much. Gabby seems more genuinely country than Maren, to me. I think Kelsea is trying to fill the TS hole, but I think she actually cares about country music and I don't think she'll leave it for pop. Carly is probably the most genuinely country of the new ladies that are having some radio success. Lauren is probably the most like Carrie and I could see her trying to follow Carrie's path. I guess I think there's room for Gabby, although she might encroach on Maren or Kelsea's space a bit.
Anyway, just my two cents about everything since I haven't commented in a while. I suppose a lot of the conversation is centered on Gabby because win or lose, she is probably going to pursue a career in country music, which some people seem to have strong opinions about. Anything regarding the competition itself is pretty much water under the bridge at this point. Now it's just time to see if any of them take this exposure and are able to turn it into a successful music career.
