Heavy
Ahead of original coach Blake Shelton’s final episode of “The Voice,” NBC has announced country music legend Reba McEntire is replacing Shelton for the upcoming 24th season.
Here’s what you need to know:
Reba McEntire is Going From Mega Mentor to Full-On Coach
At the 2023 Upfronts presentation in New York, where networks showcase their upcoming development slate to advertisers, NBC revealed that country music superstar Reba McEntire is graduating from mega mentor to full-on coach.
The press release reads:
Fresh off her role as season 23 mega mentor, multi-media entertainment mogul and Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Reba McEntire claims her red chair alongside veteran coach John Legend and returning coaches Niall Horan and Gwen Stefani.
In announcing the full coaches lineup, the press release also revealed that John Legend and Gwen Stefani are returning after taking season 23 off, and Kelly Clarkson will not be a part of season 24. New coach Niall Horan is sticking around, but Chance the Rapper is not.
Reba McEntire Has Appeared on ‘The Voice’ Several Times Over the Years
Starting way back in the first season, McEntire has appeared on “The Voice” as a mentor several times. She was Team Shelton’s advisor in season 1 and was the general advisor to the Top 12 in season 8.
Then in February 2023, the show announced she would return as the Mega Mentor for season 23, trumpeting her incredible music career in the press release:
With a career that spans across music, television, film and theater, Reba has celebrated unprecedented success with 35 career #1 singles and more than 58 million albums sold worldwide. She recently earned her 60th Top 10 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, extending her record for the most Top 10 hits among female artists. With a plethora of accolades under her belt – 16 ACM Awards, 15 American Music Awards, 9 People’s Choice Awards, 6 CMA Awards, 3 Grammy Awards, and a GMA Dove Award – Reba is also a 2018 Kennedy Center Honors recipient. The Oklahoma native and Golden Globe-nominated actress has 11 movie credits to her name, held a lead role on Broadway in Irving Berlin’s “Annie Get Your Gun,” and starred in the six-season television sitcom “Reba.”
In her first appearance on the show in season 23, the coaches and contestants were gushing over McEntire’s guidance.
‘The mega mentor this season is Reba McEntire. This is the raddest mega mentor we’ve ever had. So I love working with Reba. I love doing it in this capacity because she’s helped me tons musically as an artist. So it’s cool to watch her be able to do that for other people as well,” said Clarkson, who was formerly married to McEntire’s stepson Brandon Blackstock.
“I am so proud of Kelly,” said McEntire. “She has grown as an artist, as a teacher from when we first met in 2002 way back. So that’s how long we’ve known each other. She was a baby [and] she just matured into this wonderful woman that I am just so proud of and I love you with all my heart. That’s my truth.”
She added, “Blake and I have been friends for a long time and every time we get back together it’s just like we haven’t been apart.”
“Having Reba here… It’s just familiar territory for me because we’ve worked together a lot over the years,” said Shelton, adding, “Not to mention, you were my first mentor ever here on this show. Right? And you’re going to be my last mentor.”
Horan praised McEntire as an “absolute queen” and Chance the Rapper called her a “legend.”
“It’s so much fun to be back on The Voice again. It’s always a lot of fun to give advice because I study people when they perform and I want to be touched when they’re singing to me,” said McEntire.
“The Voice” airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific times on NBC.