NBC
NBC’s The Voice has been going strong for 19 seasons, but the show was once supposed to look much different, a country star revealed in a new interview.
On an episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, country music legend Reba McEntire opened up about why she turned down an offer to be a coach on The Voice 19 seasons ago.
“It was a very popular show in Holland, I’m pretty sure, and I watched the tape, and I said, ‘No, I’m going to pass on that’ because I don’t think I could ever be able to tell somebody that they’re terrible or go find another job or hope you like your nighttime job,” she said. “I couldn’t do that day in and day out. I just couldn’t do it, so I passed on it.”
McEntire Believes Blake Shelton Was the Right Choice for the Job
While she said she turned down the show, McEntire did have some words about the coaches the show did end up getting.
“Blake was the perfect choice,” she said. “He’s done a wonderful job.”
She also feels as though she may have missed out on the opportunity of being on the show, now that it’s grown to the level that hit has and the fact that it’s lasted for 19 seasons so far.
“Oh sure,” she said when asked if she regrets turning down the fofer. “I mean, after you see a very successful show that’s been running, what, 15 years? Uh, yeah! I’m like, ‘Shoot, I should have done that.'”
Shelton was the first one that mentioned McEntire was first in line to be the coach at the start of the show, according to Taste of Country.
“If I’m not mistaken, they wanted Reba to be a coach on The Voice first,” he said. “They knew they wanted a country artist to be a coach on The Voice to fill that lane. For whatever reason, she couldn’t do it, or they just decided it wasn’t the thing for her at the time.
Blake Shelton is the Only Original Coach Left on the Show
The show has gone through a number of coaches since the beginning of the show including superstars like Christina Aguilera, Adam Levine, Usher and Pharrell Williams. The original coaches on the show were Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton, CeeLo Green and Adam Levine.
After Levine left the show, Shelton jokingly said “Adam’s not on the show and I want him to know that he can still kiss my (expletive) wherever he is right now.”
Levine told Ellen recently that he misses the show and would love to return, despite the fact that he loves doing little more than sitting around the house way more than getting a reported $30 million paycheck.
Since Adam Levine left the show, Shelton is the only original coach left. He’s now joined by coaches Kelly Clarkson, John Legend and his now-fiance Gwen Stefani. Shelton leads in the number of times winning the show and has crowned himself ‘King of The Voice.’
The Voice airs on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.
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Country Music Legend Turned Down ‘The Voice’ for Coaching Job