With Adam Levine not on season 17 of The Voice, Blake Shelton is the ONLY original coach to still be on the show — and he’s only letting it go to his head a little bit. “I’ve got the most wins, I’ve got the most finale appearances under my belt,” Blake says in an EXCLUSIVE digital preview at the upcoming season. “I mean, if it wasn’t for Carson [Daly], I would be the most experienced dude in the music industry on this show!” Of course, Blake is being quite cheeky, as he’s seated next to some of the LITERAL biggest stars in music this season: John Legend, Kelly Clarkson and Gwen Stefani.
Blake’s three competitors are not ready to just hand him over another win, though. “It’s interesting, Blake has won the show six times out of 16,” John says in the clip. “I’ve won the show one time of one! So I still don’t know why he’s bragging so much.” It’s true: John is the reigning champ, as he took home the season 16 title during his very first time as a coach. Still, Blake is confident that he’ll be the one taking it home. “I’m back to win again,” he concludes, jokingly adding, “And I think some of these people around here need a lesson in respecting their elders!”
Blake’s last win was during season 13 with Chloe Kohanski. Before that, he was champion of season 11 (Sundance Head), season 7 (Craig Wayne Boyd), Season 4 (Danielle Bradbery), Season 3 (Cassadee Pope) and Season 2 (Jermaine Paul).
While the competition looks like it will be better than ever this season, there’s also something else to look forward to — seeing lovebirds Blake and Gwen together on our television screens once again! This is Gwen’s first time as a coach on The Voice since season 12, and she and Blake have now been together for FOUR years, so their relationship has definitely developed quite a bit since then. Season 17 of The Voice premieres on Sept. 23 at 8:00 p.m. on NBC.