Snoop Dogg, Gwen Stefani, Reba McEntire, and Michael Bublé in their promo for 'The Voice' Season 26.

Apart from shaking up its customary Monday and Tuesday back-to-back airings to accommodate the U.S. election debates, the premiere of The Voice Season 26 also saw the emergence of new coaches on the reality compeition series, with Snoop Dogg and Michael Bublé joining fan favorites Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani in the coaches’ chairs. But one of the newcomers could have arrived much sooner than the 26th season.

Throughout its history on television, The Voice has featured a number of outstanding coaches. The 26th season, however, marks the show’s most diverse set of coaches, with Bublé and Snoop Dogg’s — both artists with relatively different musical genres — involvement. But Bublé could have appeared in earlier seasons if it hadn’t been for one thing: he doesn’t really like “judging” other singers. In an interview with the Today show (via PopCulture), the Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter (known for timeless hits “Home,” “Cry Me a River,” “Love You Anymore,” “Feeling Good,” and more) revealed that he was asked to join the show at least 15 times.

“My favorite part about it is, thank god we’re not judges. 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,” the singer told host Craig Melvin . “To get to coach them and live the fantasy of having this career that I’ve had. And then get to have the fulfillment of helping someone else get that? That’s t cool part.”

One Fan Favorite ‘The Voice’ Coach Won’t Be Returning for Following Seasons

The Voice Season 26 coaches smiling in the back of a car for a promo image.
Image via NBC 

Bublé and Snoop Dogg came as an exciting addition to the series, considering what they can both bring to the table. However, despite some significant additions and the highly anticipated return of Stefani (who joined the show during Season 7), The Voice Season 26 will unfortunately mark McEntire’s final season. The award-winning singer, dubbed “the Queen of Country,” first appeared in the show as a Battle Advisor during its inaugural season. She then returned as a mentor once again for Season 8 before joining the 23rd season as a Mega Mentor. It wasn’t until Season 24 that McEntire joined the twisting chairs, coaching alongside Stefani, Niall Horan, and John Legend. Though McEntire won’t appear in the next season, there is still a chance she’ll return sooner or later, considering Stefani also took a break during Season 25.