Michael Bublé is one of the newest coaches on The Voice, but he could have had a seat in one those spinning chairs much sooner. In a recent interview with the Today show, the Canadian singer revealed that he turned down joining the show at least 15 times.
His reason for the “15-16 years of saying no?” Bublé confessed that doesn’t like “judging” other singers. “My favorite part about it is, thank god we’re not judges,” Bublé told Today show co-host Craig Melvin. “The other shows have judges. We are coaches. And the reason I say that is because most of the singers are better than me, and I have no place ever judging anyone.”
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“To get to coach them and live the fantasy of having this career that I’ve had,” he continued, “and then get to have the fulfillment of helping someone else get that? That’s the cool part.” Notably, Bublé did appear on The Voice back in its third season, stepping in as an advisor for former The Voice coach and —nine-time champ —Blake Shelton’s team.
Bublé joins Snoop Dogg as brand new coaches on The Voice Season 26, alongside veteran coaches Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani. Speaking about the pool of talent both on stage and sitting alongside him, the “Feeling Good” singer said, “My team is really good, but everybody has good stuff happening on their team.”
He then shared some behind-the-scenes details about his peers, joking, “We call her Reba ‘Magnet-ire,’ because when the chair turns around, it’s like, the people just love her and that smile. And Gwen is ‘Never Ste-phony,’ because she has a stream of consciousness. She’s highly intelligent and just tells it like it is. And Snoop, my uncle Snoop, man. Everybody loves him.”
New episodes of The Voice Season 26 premiere Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.