The Voice is nearing the end of both Season 23 and the reign of its longest-term coach, Blake Shelton. The competition is pulling out all the stops for the country hit-maker’s last episode, including bringing former coach/Shelton’s frenemy, Adam Levine, back, but it turns out that the “Nobody But You” singer’s wife (herself a multiple season coaching veteran), Gwen Stefani, had one big worry about him ending his time on the popular series.
What Was Gwen Stefani’s Worry About Blake Shelton Leaving The Voice?
The “Hollaback Girl” songstress, as noted, has coached several up and coming singers herself on the show, having already appeared on six seasons (winning in Season 19), and will also return for Season 24. According to Shelton’s recent interview with People, however, before she got the call to appear on the upcoming episodes, it sounds like she was quite worried about her status with the singing competition. He said:
When I finally came to the conclusion that I was going to call it a day last year, you know, she even said, 'Well, I guess they probably won't have me back ever again.' And I go, 'What are you talking? They invited you to be a coach for seasons before you and I were ever thing.' And she goes, 'Oh, yeah, that's right. They did do that.' I go, 'Yeah, I'm pretty sure they're still going to want Gwen Stefani to be a coach.' Then sure enough, you know, she's already gonna be back and she was excited to get the call.
Awww! She thought that The Voice wouldn’t want her anymore! Honestly, I don’t get why she would have jumped to such a conclusion. As her husband noted, she was invited to sit in one of the show’s big red chairs before she even knew who he was, and the Stefani/Shelton relationship timeline only began after they met on set and had worked together for several months. Plus, people love her, so it really doesn’t make any sense that producers wouldn’t want her around anymore, just because her equally tuneful hubby decided to leave his time there behind.
It’s completely understandable that the series would want her back soon (she last coached in Season 22), as Stefani has always been not just a positive presence who’s enjoyable to watch, but she’s also just really good at helping the show’s singers become more polished so that they can eventually achieve their goals, whether they win the competition or not. As Shelton said of her coaching skills:
She just really comes at coaching in a way that I don't think anybody else has done still, and there's been a lot of coaches…she's such a visionary, and that comes through with her artists. You can see these kids come on the show... by the end they actually look like stars, and that's the Gwen Stefani effect.
Again, AWWWWW! The “Happy Anywhere” singer’s last episode comes with the Season 23 finale, on May 23. There’s no word yet on whether or not Stefani will join the parade of past coaches and special guests who return by the end of this season, but at least fans know we’ll be able to see her back on set in just a few months time.
