‘The Voice’: Blake Shelton Reflects on Past Relationships That Seemed Like They’d ‘Work on Paper’

Blake Shelton is looking back on his past relationships that didn’t end how he expected. On Monday’s episode of The Voice, the country star worked with team member Lana Scott alongside Knockout Rounds Mega Mentor Ed Sheeran on her rendition of Taylor Swift’s “Wildest Dreams,” which eventually brought up the topic of failed romances when Scott revealed she was “newly single.”

The Voice competitor continued she was feeling particularly connected to the song as she had come to the realization that “not all real stories have a happy ending.” Shelton agreed, telling his team member, “I’ve had those relationships that seemed like they would work on paper, too. And they end up not working at all.”

Sheeran joked that it was he and Shelton who had a “secret love affair,” but Shelton was clearly referring to a real relationship in his past. The “God’s Country” singer previously was married to Kaynette Williams from 2003 to 2006 before marrying fellow country star Miranda Lambert in 2011. The two split in 2015, and Shelton would go on to find love on The Voice with former co-star Gwen Stefani, who at the time was going through a divorce from Gavin Rossdale. 

The couple finally tied the knot in July, with Shelton joking on Late Night With Seth Meyers last month that he and his wife were pulling off “the ultimate publicity stunt” for the NBC show. “Because you know, the next season of The Voice is coming up and we’re team players for NBC,” he teased. When it came to having The Voice host Carson Daly officiate the ceremony, Shelton brought up the former TRL host’s credentials: “The way he handled those wet T-shirt contests back in the day when he was hosting those spring break specials, we knew he had to be the guy for us,” the singer joked.

Marrying in a small, private ceremony on his Oklahoma property, Shelton previously told SiriusXM’s Storme Warren that there were some “awkward” conversations afterward with friends who didn’t even know the wedding was happening. “I’ve had awkward conversations with so many of my friends since. ‘Oh, I read y’all, I read about that, how was that?’” he said in August. “Listen, we kept it small, get over it. It’s not about you. There’s a lot of them.”