The Voice is one of TV’s most popular shows and has surpassed American Idol as viewers’ favorite singing competition. Thanks to having great chemistry between its judges, giving audiences epic performances every week, and providing a platform for true underdogs to achieve their dreams, The Voice has become a national hit and NBC’s most successful program on the air right now. Here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about The Voice.
- The series’ concept comes from the Netherlands–The conception of The Voice didn’t come from England or Canada but a more unique location: the Netherlands. The Dutch singing competition, The Voice of Holland, which premiered in 2010, is what inspired the U.S. version of The Voice. Due to the popularity of the U.S. version, both England and Ireland, along with other countries, have since come out with their own versions of the Voice.
- Adam Levine worked in television before The Voice–The Maroon 5 singer was a writer’s assistant on the television show Judging Amy before his music career took off.
- Blake Shelton is a big fan of The Golden Girls–The country music star has stated in interviews that the 80s-90s sitcom is his favorite show. I’m sure Blake must enjoy the reruns that are constantly on Lifetime late at night, but I’d really be curious to see if he likes Blanch, Rose, Dorothy, or Sophia the best.
- Christina Aguilera was not a classically trained singer–Despite having some of the most praised pipes in the business, Christina Aguilera never received formal vocal training until after she was 18 years old.
- Cee Lo Green has quite the “holy family”–Although he will soon be officially leaving The Voice as a judge (with Pharrell Williams taking his place), there’s no questioning how big of a presence Cee Lo Green has been on the show. With his colorful wardrobe and sometimes eccentric personality, it’s hard to believe that both of Green’s parents are ordained ministers. Cee Lo has not forgotten his religious roots, though. He recorded his own version of “Mary Did You Know?” for the History Channel’s The Bible just last year.
- Blake Shelton once performed in a beauty pageant–In my opinion, you won’t find much more manlier men than Blake Shelton, but The Voice judge wasn’t always the pinnacle of rugged masculinity. Back when he was eight years old, Blake competed in a beauty pageant where singing was his talent.
- Christian Aguilera didn’t drive during her teens–Christian Aguilera wasn’t even 18 yet when her debut, self-titled album came out back in 1999. That album’s first single, “Genie in a Bottle,” made her a household name. However, even though Christina was an international music success, it turns out that she still couldn’t drive a car. Aguilera didn’t acquire her license until after she was 19 years old.
- Adam Levine is a yoga enthusiast–Adam Levine is a singer that is almost as well-known for his body (just take a look at his many different magazine photo shoots) as he is for his music. Surprisingly, a big contributor to Levine’s physique now appears to be yoga. Adam is reportedly a yoga fanatic, and even has a yoga instructor travel with him and Maroon 5 when the band is on the road.
- La Voz Kids–The immense popularity and success of The Voice hasn’t just led to other versions of the show in different countries but also to a children’s version of the competition called La Voz Kids. The children’s competition features contestants from ages seven to fifteen and airs on the Telemundo network. It finished its first season back in July 2013.
- Contestant Audra McLaughin always wanted to be on Blake Shelton’s team–I’m mainly putting this last fact here because Audra is from the Philadelphia area (just like me) and I’m really hoping she wins the whole competition. Audra has enjoyed great success being on Team Blake, and she recently just stated in an interview that Blake was her first choice as a judge and mentor, one hundred percent. Audra also stated during the interview that her favorite moment on The Voice so far has simply been working with Blake, saying, “he’s just such a great person and he really just makes you feel so confident about yourself.”
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