Blake Shelton is returning to reality TV.
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NBC has announced Shelton will serve as a musician coach on The Voice, the new American Idol-like singing competition the network will premiere Tuesday, April 26 at 9PM ET/PT.
The country music star and former Nashville Star judge will join previously announced coaches Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green and Adam Levine on The Voice's four-person coaching panel.
"I'm not sure The Voice knows what they signed on for by bringing me on the show," Shelton joked. "I know this for sure; Christina, Cee Lo, Adam and I are going to have a blast and I am extremely excited to be part of a show that recognizes true vocal talent."
According to NBC reality chief Paul Telegdy, Shelton is the perfect addition due to his country roots, outgoing personality, and ability to guide and work well with new performers.
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"We couldn't have a panel that represented the hottest American music without a strong country presence, and Blake is at the top of his game right now," Telegdy said. "Not only is he incredibly charismatic, but his passion for collaborating with and bringing the best out of other talented artists makes him the perfect choice to round out this 'Dream Team' of musician coaches."
Hosted by Carson Daly, The Voice will feature three phases of competition. During the "blind auditions" phase, the coaches will select singers and form their own teams, basing their decisions solely on the sound of the singers' voices, as they will not have the ability to view or judge the artists' physical appearances. If more than one coach selects the same talent, the contestant will get to choose who they want to work with.
Once the four coaches' teams are established, they will -- similar to Simon Cowell's The X Factor reality competition, which Fox will premiere in America this fall -- train and mentor their singers with professional help and prepare them for the "battle" phase. During the battle rounds, the coaches will have two of their own team members face off vocally and then decide which singer will advance.
In the third phase, the remaining singers on each team will compete against each other during live performance shows, after which home viewers will get to vote to save one member of each team and each coach will have to eliminate one or more of the other members of their team. NBC has not disclosed how many "battle" and live performance rounds there will be.
Once each coach's team is narrowed to a single contestant, the four remaining singers will compete directly against each other in the finale and viewers will vote to crown one of them "The Voice," winning the singer $100,000 and a recording contract with Universal Music Group.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski