‘The Voice’ Coaches Through the Years: Looking Back at Who Left and Why

Credit: Trae Patton/NBC (2)

'The Voice' Coaches Through the Years: Looking Back at Who Left and Why

Taking a look back. When The Voice debuted on NBC in 2011, no one knew what to expect from yet another singing competition show. However, it quickly became a success, with Carson Daly as host and a group of successful, entertaining coaches ready to find the next superstar. Kicking off the first season, Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, CeeLo Green and Adam Levine filled the coaches' chairs, each bringing their different expertise to the table. Though the Maroon 5 frontman was the first to win season 1 with singer Javier Colon, the country superstar then went on to win the following three seasons in a row with Jermaine Paul, Cassadee Pope and Danielle Bradbery. Each winner was awarded $100,000 and a record deal with Universal Music Group. Aguilera and Green both took season 4 off and were temporarily replaced by Shakira and Usher. The original judges returned for their chairs in season 5 before leaving again in season 6. [jwplayer jGgFKWPI-zhNYySv2] The "Genie in a Bottle" singer briefly appeared as a part-time adviser on season 7 before returning as a coach twice more — for seasons 8 and 10, officially exiting in 2016 and later referring to the show as an "energy sucker" in her life. "It became something that I didn’t feel was what I had signed up for in season 1. … You realize it’s not about music. It’s about making good TV moments and massaging a story,” she told Billboard magazine in 2018. “I didn’t get into this business to be a television show host and to be given all these [rules]. ... Especially as a female: 'You can’t wear this, can’t say that.' I would find myself on that show desperately trying to express myself through clothing or makeup or hair. It was my only kind of outlet." Fans were shocked at her admission. Through the years, multiple other coaches have come and gone, but only one other had a similar impact. At the end of season 16, Levine announced that he would not be returning following a suspicious performance with the other judges at an Upfront presentation in New York City. At the time, he appeared lackadaisical, something both press and advertisers noticed. In a 2019 Instagram post, he hinted that there was no bad blood, adding he would "be back to say hi very very soon." However, in 2020, he wrote "no thank you" when a fan asked whether he'd return. Scroll through the gallery below for all the coaches through the years and why they left the show. [podcast_block]

Credit: Trae Patton/NBC

Blake Shelton

Status: Coached for seasons 1-23

Reason for exit: Shelton announced his plans to leave The Voice after more than a decade as a coach. “I’ve been wrestling with this for a while and I’ve decided that it’s time for me to step away from The Voice after season 23,” he wrote in an October 2022 statement. “This show has changed my life in every way for the better and it will always feel like home to me. It’s been a hell of a ride over these 12 years of chair turns and I want to thank everyone at The Voice from NBC, every producer, the writers, musicians, crew and catering people, you are the best.”

The country star’s final episode aired in May 2023.

Credit: Trae Patton/NBC

Christina Aguilera

Status: Coached for seasons 1-3, 5, 8 and 10

Reason for exit: Aguilera left for seasons 6 and 7 to spend time with her family. Following her permanent exit, the five-time Grammy winner told Billboard that she was "longing for freedom" after spending five years on the show. "[After filming,] I would just take everything off — the makeup, all of it — and would blast hip-hop, or Nirvana, ‘Creep,’ Slayer. Anything like that to get me out of that zone, that TV mode," she told the magazine in 2018.

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Cee Lo Green

Status: Coached for seasons 1-3 and 5

Reason for exit: Despite rumors that the Gnarls Barkley singer quit to avoid being fired, Green told Us Weekly in 2014 he left the show on good terms, simply because it "quickly became a job" more than anything else. "Very, very obligating, taxing and tiring," he shared with Us. "I still tip my hat to Adam and Blake and those guys who continuously do it, but I think I ran my course there just naturally."

Credit: Trae Patton/NBC

Adam Levine

Status: Coached for seasons 1-16

Reason for exit: A source told Us exclusively in 2019 that leaving wasn't an easy decision. "Things have been very tense between the judges," the insider said in 2019. "It was his choice to go but no one was begging him to stay."

That same year, the father of two told Ellen DeGeneres that he was happy to "be able to stop in this moment to spend time with my new young family and just have the greatest time ever."

The longtime coach will return to perform on the season 20 finale in May 2021.

Credit: Trae Patton/NBC

Shakira

Status: Coached for seasons 4 and 6

Reason for exit: In 2013, after her first season coaching, the "Hips Don't Lie" singer told Access Hollywood she was "really struggling with the fact that I had to leave my nest with my little baby." At the time, her son Milan was only 5 months old. After her second season on the show — and welcoming a second child — she decided again it was too tough to be away from her children.

Credit: Mark Seliger/NBC

Usher

Status: Coached for seasons 4 and 6

Reason for exit: The artist never spoke out about the reason for his exit but has said that he'd love to return if the opportunity arose.

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Gwen Stefani

Status: Coached for seasons 7, 9, 12, 17 and 19, returning for season 22

After four seasons off, the No Doubt singer returned for season 17, taking Levine's chair. She returned in season 19 and will make her latest comeback during season 22, marking her first time in the red chairs since she married Shelton.

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Pharrell Williams

Status: Coached for seasons 7-10

Reason for exit: "Honestly, I have to work. I got so much work to do. It was so much fun and while I was doing it, helping other people was like a drug for me," he told the Today Show of why he was leaving in 2017. "I couldn't get enough of helping them, but I have work to do, music to make and so many records."

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Miley Cyrus

Status: Coached for seasons 11 and 13

Reason for exit: Ahead of season 14, Cyrus revealed she didn't have plans to return but added on The Howard Stern Show in 2017, "This is not my last season maybe forever!"

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Alicia Keys

Status: Coached for seasons 11, 12 and 14

Reason for exit: Keys left the show to focus on recording her own music, explaining to Entertainment Tonight in 2018 that it was "time" for a new album.

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Jennifer Hudson

Status: Coached for seasons 13 and 15

Reason for exit: Hudson has never spoken out about why she chose to leave the reality show.

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Kelly Clarkson

Coached for seasons 14-21 and returned for season 23, still on the show

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John Legend

Status: Coached for seasons 16-21

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Nick Jonas

Status: Coached for seasons 18 and 20

Reason for Exit: Though Jonas hasn’t offered a reason for leaving the show after season 20, it’s not the first time he’s decided to take a break. After replacing Gwen Stefani as a coach for season 18 of The Voice, the youngest Jonas Brothers member took a hiatus for season 19. Though he returned the next season, it was announced in March 2021 that Ariana Grande would take his spot for the 21st competition.

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Ariana Grande

Status: Coached for season 21

Reason for exit: Neither the REM Beauty entrepreneur nor the Voice production team has explained the reason behind her show departure. However, Grande is gearing up to film Jon Chu’s two-part Wicked movie musical opposite Cynthia Erivo.

Credit: Tyler Golden/NBC

Camila Cabello

Status: Coached for the first time in season 22

Reason for exit: The “Señorita” singer did not disclose her The Voice exit after one season, but she will be replaced by Clarkson, Niall Horan and Chance the Rapper.

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Niall Horan

Status: Coached for season 23, still on the show

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Chance the Rapper

Status: Coached for season 23, still on the show

Credit: Greg Gayne/NBC

Reba McEntire

Status: Joining for season 24