Producers At 'The Voice' May Replace Blake Shelton After Ariana Grande Brings A 'Fresh' Energy To The Show
After 21 seasons on the hit NBC show, producers have reportedly been looking to replace Blake Shelton with a younger musician on The Voice after pop superstar Ariana Grade signed on as a judge.
A source revealed to Radar, "After a decade on the show, producers are quietly looking to replace Blake with someone younger and more current. Blake is great but he is not in Ariana’s league."
The "God's Country" singer, who met his now wife Gwen Stefani while they were both judges on the panel, first joined the show during it's premiere season in April 2011.
“Current top ten artists like Justin Bieber, Lil Nas X, Billie Elish, Olivia Rodrigo, and The Weeknd, were all hesitant about starring on a competition show before Ariana Grande signed on,” the insider dished.
However, with the competition show gaining traction with a whole new audience, creatives are looking to capitalize on the younger crowd. "Now she [Ariana] has changed everything and opened the flood gates to future relevant talent which isn’t good news for Blake Shelton. Sure, he is a star and people love him, but he doesn’t exactly burn up the charts anymore," the source went on to say.
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A Hollywood agent commented to the outlet, "It is time for a shake-up. The only way the show remains fresh is by constantly evolving. Huge stars that wouldn’t even consider joining the show a few months ago are now thinking again, thanks to Ariana."
If Shelton is out at the primetime show, the 45-year-old may have another gig already lined up. As OK! exclusively reported, he and his other half, Stefani, are considering kicking off a joint tour together.
"By touring together, their work schedules would be aligned. They want to be a team both off stage," a source said.
The "Sweet Escape" singer and Shelton are looking to form their tour just like Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood or Faith Hill and Tim McGraw. The insider continued, "These duos have made millions hitting the road together, and Shelton and Stefani believe the formula can work for them too."
