Blake Shelton reignites old ‘The Voice’ feud: ‘This would be some Adam Levine-level failure’

Trae Patton/NBC

For the first 16 seasons of “The Voice,” Blake Shelton and Adam Levine fully embraced their “frenemy” relationship as they frequently made fun of each other. Even though Adam left NBC’s reality TV series years ago, Blake still occasionally finds a reason to throw the pop singer under the bus. Case in point, during the April 4 episode of Season 23, Blake reignited the old feud when his artist Neil Salsich had to perform solo because his duet partner Alex Whalen withdrew from the competition.

“I told Neil before he came out here, I said, ‘Man, if you lose this battle it will be the worst fail in history. I mean, this would be some Adam Levine level failure stuff,’” Blake explained to fellow coaches Kelly Clarkson, Chance the Rapper and Niall Horan. For the record, all of the panelists thought Neil’s rendition of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” was amazing, with Blake raving, “You absolutely nailed it.”

Blake later walked over to Kelly’s position at the other end of the stage and declared, “That’s the chair [Adam] used to sit in.”

“Oh my gosh!” she yelled back. “The only reason why I’m in this chair is to separate us.”

Blake later heaped more praises upon his 34-year-old artist from St. Louis, Missouri, noting, “Neil’s performance was completely comfortable. I mean, the guy really did own the moment. He blew the coaches away and I just think America is gonna fall in love with this guy.”

Adam’s departure from “The Voice” in 2019 caught everyone off-guard as he was expected to return to the judging panel the following season. Many viewers suspected his decision to leave was influenced by the Season 15 controversy in which he infamously instructed people at home to vote for one of his artists (Reagan Strange) instead of the other (DeAndre Nico). In a statement, Levine said at the time, “For me, it was time to move on … What an amazing ride.”

The Season 23 blind auditions and battles are behind us, with the knockouts beginning on April 17, 2023. That’s when country superstar Reba McEntire will serve as the mega mentor for all four coaches’ teams. She previously appeared as the mega mentor in Season 8, and before that, as an advisor to Team Blake in Season 1.