Gwen Stefani Likely Quitting ‘The Voice’ After Envisioning ‘Next Chapter’ With Blake Shelton, Source Says
NBC’s The Voice Season 26 has ended, and Michael Bublé took home a win for his rookie season. While Blake Shelton has no plans to rejoin as a coach, his famous wife, No Doubt frontwoman Gwen Stefani, gave it her best in season 26. Now, an insider says Stefani is considering quitting coaching after an emotional season to stay home in Oklahoma with her husband.
Gwen Stefani is likely quitting ‘The Voice’ after season 26, an insider says
Gwen Stefani loves coaching up-and-coming singers on The Voice. She competed alongside Michael Bublé, Snoop Dogg, and Reba McEntire to make season 26 an unforgettable season. While she has many other seasons of coaching under her belt (seasons 7, 9, 12, 17, 19, 22, and 24), she might be ready to throw in the towel alongside her husband, Blake Shelton.
A source told The U.S. Sun that Stefani was “crying a lot this season” and had a lot of emotions throughout season 26. “She has said several times while filming that she’s even more of an ‘emotional wreck’ this season than she ever has been,” the insider alleged. “It was nonstop emotions, crying throughout this entire journey, but you can tell it’s mostly rooted in joy and deep pride for the work she’s done.”
The insider added that Stefani hasn’t announced her departure from the show. However, “it seems like she’s quitting.”
“Gwen wants to spend more time with her family now that Blake is off the show,” the source continued. “She really found a second home in Oklahoma, and seeing Blake walk away from the show and prioritize his own music and their family life I think made her realize what her next chapter can look like.”
The insider also noted that Stefani seemed noticeably nervous when performing a duet with The Voice Season 26 finalist Sydney Sterlace. The duo took multiple takes of the song. “She looked really, really nervous before performing which most likely led to the mistake,” the source explained. “She was able to recover well, though.”
Gwen Stefani said Blake Shelton quitting ‘The Voice’ was a ‘huge family choice’
Blake Shelton was a staple on The Voice for years, and fans were shocked when he decided to step away as a coach ahead of season 24. Gwen Stefani told People that she viewed Shelton’s decision as a “huge family choice,” as it gave him more time with her and her kids in Oklahoma.
“I am happy for him because he has space to do all these other hobbies and things he wants to do,” Stefani added.
In another interview with Extra, Stefani explained that Shelton doing The Voice twice a year was a lot of “time away from the family.”
“I don’t know that people realize, if he’s doing two seasons a year, right?” she explained. “In between that, he’s touring. So, he actually has two teams at the same time at a certain point, so they overlap. So, it’s a lot of brain power, it’s a lot of time away from the family, those kinds of things.”
The country star joked that his wife coached on the show just for the money
Blake Shelton has talked a lot about leaving The Voice. In 2023, he discussed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! how the public questioned why he quit when Gwen Stefani was willing to head back on the show. Shelton joked that “money talks,” and someone has to pay the bills.
“I think I’d actually put out there to the press, too, because everybody wants to know, ‘Why are you quitting? Why are you walking away from the show?’ And it’s like, ‘Well, for the family, for more family time,’” Shelton said. “And then the very next announcement was, ‘Gwen’s coming back!’ Maybe she doesn’t want too much family time, I don’t know. Money talks, OK? Money talks in this industry.”
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