Adam Levine Is Coming Back To The Voice, And I Have An Idea For Which Coach Could Serve As His Blake Shelton-Level Adversary

Attention The Voice fans! For the first time since Blake Shelton’s exit, one of the original coaches will be returning to the NBC series! It has just been announced that Maroon 5 frontman, Adam Levine, is set to return as one of the four coaches. And, yes, the first thing that came to my mind was: Who is going to fill the competitive void left by Levine's biggest adversary Blake Shelton? I have a theory! 

After the series previously announced that Gwen Stefani is returning for Season 26 on the fall 2024 TV schedule alongside Snoop Dogg, Reba McEntire and Michael Bublé, NBC has now also revealed, per Deadline, who will front 2025’s Season 27. Adam Levine is set to return for the first time since his 2019 exit, and he will be joined by Bublé, John Legend and debut coach, Kelsea Ballerini. Let’s talk about the development! 

Adam Levine on The Voice.

(Image credit: NBC)

I Think Adam Levine's Return Is Going To Help Stir Things Up

First off, I’m excited for Adam Levine’s return for one specific reason: I think his competitive spirit is going to help make things interesting. The singer was on the show for 16 seasons (and won three of them), so he’s coming back as the most seasoned of the bunch. 

One element of his stint on the show that was always fun was how he and Blake Shelton were in constant competition with each other. But how will the dynamic be different in the first season of Levine without Shelton? No matter what I think, it’s going to help stir things up, especially because of how comfortable Levine is in the position of coach. 

john legend on season 25 of the voice

(Image credit: NBC)

John Legend Has The Makings Of Adam Levine’s Next Great Adversary 

Every The Voice Coach

Without Blake Shelton as a coach, I think Adam Levine will need a new Blake Shelton-level adversary. And, I think it will be John Legend

First of all, he’s the only other highly experienced coach on Season 27 with nine seasons under his belt and one win. He’s also the only coach Levine has worked with before and developed a pre-existing rapport with. Also, Legend won during Adam Levine’s last season – so that had to have stung a bit.

Sure, I imagine Michael Bublé will be trying to prove himself in his sophomore season, and he'll surely be popular among competitors. I also think Kelsea Ballerini will have a good season considering she is the only woman and country star in Season 27. But, after watching many seasons of The Voice with Adam Levine, I think he enjoys racking in the wins and if there’s one coach he’ll be out to (playfully) get, I think he and Legend have an especially fun dynamic on the way! 

We’ll of course have to wait and see! You can check how The Voice Season 25 recently shook out and/or stream it with a Peacock subscription, and as we get closer to Seasons 26 and 27 we'll be sure to keep you posted.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.