Blake Shelton Talks Leaving ‘The Voice’ and Wife Gwen Stefani’s Return to the Show

Country star Blake Shelton recently appeared on an episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live to talk about a myriad of topics, from his past 10 CMA wins to a pep talk from Billy Ray Cyrus, writing songs on his tractor, holding the unofficial record for the largest bar as part of his live shows, and having a pet raccoon when he was a child. Notably, he also addressed his departure from The Voice and his wife Gwen Stefani‘s return right after he left.

“I think I’d actually put it out to the press, because everybody wants to know ‘Why are you quitting, why are you walking away from the show,’” Shelton began. “And it’s like, well, for the family, you know, for more family time. And then the very next announcement was ‘Gwen’s coming back!’ So, maybe she doesn’t want too much family time, I don’t know,” he joked.

Kimmel asked if they coordinated those announcements, “Because it seems like it could have been handled better.” They laughed, and Shelton replied, “If it shows you anything, we’re like completely not involved in each other’s decision making when it comes to our careers.” He continued, “She’s Gwen Stefani and that’s it’s own machine. So it’s like, ‘Oh wait, you’re going back, because I just quit. So I’ll catch you next Spring, I’ll see you.’”

Shelton has enough on his plate with his sixth Ole Red location opening in Las Vegas and his upcoming Back to the Honky Tonk Tour in 2024. The new Ole Red is located at the Horseshoe Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, and is approximately 27,000 square feet. It’s the largest of the six Ole Red locations, joining the locations in Tishomingo, Oklahoma; downtown Nashville; Nashville Airport; Gatlinburg, Tennessee; and Orlando, Florida.

Additionally, the next leg of his Back to the Honky Tonk Tour is kicking off in February 2024 and wrapping up in March. For support he’s bringing along Dustin Lynch and Emily Ann Roberts. The tour begins in Hershey, Pennsylvania on February 22, and concludes in Wichita Kansas on March 29.