The Voice, one of my favorite competition shows, is premiering on the 2025 TV schedule next week, and it’s bringing back an original coach. That’s right, Adam Levine is back in one of those massive swivel chairs, and while Blake Shelton won’t be back with him, of course he talked about his longtime adversary and great friend on the show.
Ahead of the NBC series coming back this Monday, Adam Levine was asked about how it feels to return to the show over five years after saying goodbye. Here’s how Blake’s name came up:
The best part about being back with The Voice Family is that I don’t have to deal with Blake Shelton. I just don’t like him. So, it’s been great not having to be around him. He’s a bad friend…
Did anyone else see this a mile away? It feels like you just can’t have Adam Levine without Blake Shelton. And while Season 27 will in fact prove that Adam Levine can coach without his beloved frenemy, he couldn’t help but poke fun at the country star once again. As he continued to People:
I’m just kidding. Of course, I love Blake. And I had to open with a Blake joke because he’s not on the show anymore, yet they still continue.
It’s a solid approach. Now that Adam Levine is on the show sans Blake, he has the mic, and Blake Shelton can’t defend himself or quip back. Of course, Adam and Blake’s jokes between one another have always been playful and built on their amazing chemistry, so honestly, it’s going to be weird at first to have the Maroon 5 singer without his biggest competition.
Adam Levine will be a coach alongside Kelsea Ballerini, Michael Bublé, and John Legend. It was announced over the summer that Levine would return for Season 27. The upcoming season is Ballerini’s first season as coach, Bublé’s second, and John Legend’s ninth season. (They even have a group chat together already!) Legend’s first season was actually Levine’s last before Season 27 – so the pair have been coaches at the same time before.
When Levine spoke further about his return to The Voice, he shared that it’s already “really great to be back” after he had a much needed break. Levine had been on the show for sixteen seasons over eight years when he left and he’s enjoyed spending more time with his family, going on tour, and making music.
Levine has said that he doesn’t see The Voice “as a competition anymore,” but rather an “opportunity for us to share our experiences with the people on the show,” so perhaps we won’t see him as competitive as he was on prior seasons.
The singer has won three seasons, which stacks pretty well next to Legend’s sole win in Season 16 and Bublé’s sole win last season, but not at all next to Blake Shelton being The Voice champion with nine wins over the years. When Levine was asked if he’ll have another adversary this season, he said this:
There’s no replacing [Shelton]… The thing that happened with Blake and I, it was so organic, and it was based on our friendship.
Levine also called his chemistry with Shelton “unplanned” and “spontaneous”. Of course there’s rumors that Levine’s return to the show could bring back Blake Shelton, but I’m just excited to see this specific dynamic play out. I know I can’t wait to watch on Mondays or stream the next day with my Peacock subscription.