Gwen Stefani is back on The Voice and Blake Shelton couldn’t be more excited. However, it doesn’t seem that the country crooner expected to go head-to-head with his girlfriend.
“It’s the blondes against the bros, y’all,” coach Kelly Clarkson says in the season 17 sneak peek. She notes that she’s thrilled to be working with Stefani, who came back this season after Adam Levine’s surprise exit.
As for the No Doubt frontwoman, 49, she can’t wait to work alongside her “favorite human in the world,” a.k.a. her boyfriend.
“I didn’t know if it was gonna feel awkward to be fighting against him,” she admits to the camera. However, if it did, she got over that real quick, even pulling a steal on him.
“I’m very excited to see America’s favorite couple fight it out,” coach John Legend says.
The nine-time CMA winner, 43, turns to his girlfriend and jokes, “I thought you loved me!”
However, Stefani also uses their relationship as a bargaining chip when singers are trying to decide which team to be on. “I’m kinda country now,” she tells one artist. “You get me, you get him!”
Whenever they do butt heads, the other coaches seem to love it. “Mom and Dad are fighting,” Clarkson, 37, jokes.
The pair met on The Voice during season 7 and Us Weekly confirmed they were dating in 2015. While they have friendly banter on the show, that’s all part of the act.
“Gwen is feeling pressure to fill very big shoes with Adam Levine leaving The Voice,” an insider told Us exclusively in August. “Expect Gwen to spar a bit with Blake. Executives have encouraged her to do so.”
Following the Maroon 5 singer’s surprise departure, Stefani revealed she was shocked but happy at the same time.
“To think that he’s not going to be there, it’s bittersweet, and being between him and Blake and the amount of laughter, I mean, I would have to stop and massage my face because it would hurt,” she said on The Talk in June. “But it’s going to be fun and exciting. Blake’s my best friend. So I get to hang out with him at work.”
The Voice season 17 premieres on NBC Monday, September 23, at 8 p.m. ET.
