NBC
NBC’s singing competition The Voice is coming back for season 18 with stakes that are higher than they’ve ever been. The Voice premieres in a two-episode event on Monday, February 24 and Tuesday, February 25.
This season, the show will be featuring some old faces and one prominent new face as judges for the competition. The red chairs will be swiveling again as auditions take place.
In the auditions, the judges will be able to hear a contestant sing, but they won’t be able to turn around and see who the contestant is unless they push the button to indicate they want the artist on their team. There are usually six episodes of these blind auditions, which will be three weeks of episodes before the rest of the competition begins.
Read on for more information about season 18 of The Voice.
Nick Jonas Joins the Judging Panel
Nick Jonas took the place of the previous judge Gwen Stefani for the upcoming season. He is the youngest judge they have ever had on the show.
The other judges for the season are Kelly Clarkson, who has won the show three times during her four seasons, John Legend, who has won once, and Blake Shelton, who has won six times over his 17 seasons as a judge.
Jonas is the youngest judge to be on the show. That doesn’t bother executive producer Audrey Morrissey, though. She told Parade.com that she hadn’t even consciously considered his age.
“The funny thing with Nick, as with all those Jonas Brothers, they’ve been doing it forever—especially with Nick. With his early start on Broadway and everything, he’s obviously a triple threat. He’s a pro.”
Joining the cast as mentors this season are Dua Lipa, who will serve as a mentor with Clarkson, Bebe Rexha, who will serve as a mentor with Shelton, Kevin and Joe Jonas, who will both work with their brother for the season, and Ella Mai, who will join Legend as his team mentor.
Nick Jonas posted a video on Twitter announcing his role on the upcoming season with the caption “Big news is here…” In the video, he warned the judges to watch out for him because he is planning on winning the season.
“While I’m excited to work with you guys, I’m coming for you,” he said. “It’s going to be a fun time.”
What’s New This Season of The Voice?
There are a few new rules for this season of The Voice that should be considered while watching auditions. For the first time ever, the show will only have three weeks of live shows as opposed to having six in previous seasons. That means that each week, more than one contestant will get sent home.
The second change was made to the Battle rounds. Previously, there have been two steals, but this season there will be a steal and a save. The save won’t necessarily mean a contestant will join that judge’s team, though.
All four “Saves” will go into a knockout round where they will compete against one another. Viewers will vote on who makes it through that round, and the winner will be revealed in the first week of live shows.
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