With “The Voice” season 30 coach lineup set in stone — featuring returning coaches Kelly Clarkson and Adam Levine with new coaches Riley Green and Queen Latifah — insiders are now saying that the original plan was to have Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani make an epic return to the show, according to reporting from the U.S. Sun published on May 13, 2026.
That would have been an almost-certain ratings juggernaut for NBC, given how much fans miss Shelton, who coached for 23 seasons until stepping away from the show in May 2023, and how much they love seeing his rapport with Stefani, whom he married in July 2021. But according to the new report, their comeback plans fell through at the last minute.
Blake Shelton & Gwen Stefani Left Their Calendars Open, With Time to Film ‘The Voice’
NBCAccording to a source who spoke with the U.S. Sun, NBC pulled out all the stops to get Shelton and Stefani to coach alongside Levine and Clarkson for season 30.
“The network made generous offers,” the insider said. “Blake and Gwen even made sure their Summer tours carved out enough time in late Summer so they were able to make the filming schedule work.”
But in the end, the source said, “Something on Blake and Gwen’s side derailed all of that and they decided not to return to the show. It was not NBC’s decision, they wanted Blake and Gwen back and would still welcome them with open arms.”
Both stars currently have Las Vegas residency concert dates through early summer. In May, Stefani, 56, launched 18 dates at Sphere with her band No Doubt, while Shelton, 49, extended his residency up the street at Caesars Palace’s Colosseum.
Their concert schedules would have allowed them time to film in August and September, when Blind Auditions are usually taped. So it’s not clear what caused the couple to change course or if they’ll return at another time.
Blake Shelton & Gwen Stefani Met as Coaches on ‘The Voice’
GettyShelton and Stefani met on the set of “The Voice” a dozen years ago, as both were in the throes of separating from their famous spouses. Shelton was married to fellow country star Miranda Lambert, and Stefani was married to rocker Gavin Rossdale.
Stefani admitted to NBC Insider in 2022, “I’m gonna be brutally honest. When I first came on ‘The Voice,’ I didn’t know that Blake even existed really in the world. But then I did my homework and I could see that he was an amazing songwriter, and then I could see everybody falling in love with him.”
When she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2024, Shelton told the crowd, “The first time that I ever met Gwen was in 2014. She wasn’t like any other famous person that I had ever met before. She drove herself to work in a black minivan with car seats in it. She didn’t roll in with security. She came in with a baby and two little boys, which at the time worked like security because nobody was going near — it was chaos.”
Shelton has since become a bonus dad to Stefani and Rossdale’s boys — Kingston, 19, Zuma, 16, and Apollo, 11.
After their 2021 marriage, Shelton told KFROG’s “The Ride with Kimo & Heather” that he loved his new role, explaining, “I have a stepfather in my life who’s one of my heroes. I love my stepfather, and I look up to him… so I have good inspiration in my life for how to do this and the kind of stepdad I want to be.”
Shelton and Stefani juggled their music careers and appearances on “The Voice” for several years after their wedding. Although Shelton left the show after season 23, Stefani returned to coach on seasons 24 and 26.
