Reba Jokes That The Other ‘The Voice’ Coaches Are Mean, “Especially Gwen”

A new The Voice promo video was released ahead of next week’s Season 24 premiere, and rookie coach Reba McEntire isn’t holding back about what the other coaches are like on set and off.

In the clip, Reba and her fellow judges, Niall Horan, Gwen Stefani and John Legend, meet on set for their first day at work together, which Niall likens to the first day of school. Reba asks the other judges, “Am I supposed to like y’all? Be mean to you? Is there something that I need to know to let me win?”

Veteran judge, John Legend, instructed the “Fancy” singer, saying: “You’re supposed to direct all the artists my way.”

 

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The cast chemistry is evident as they tease each other with some good-natured smack talk about the upcoming season. Gwen and Reba were both smitten with Niall and his Irish accent.

“Not gonna lie, but that accent is cute,” Gwen told Niall. “It is so cute!” Reba agreed.

“Hear that, Shelton?” Horan responded.

Later in the clip, Reba gave an update from her red chair about how the Blind Auditions were going so far, and joked that the other coaches are mean.

“The blind auditions were so much harder than I thought they were going to be,” she said. “They block you, and it’s just so devious, but a lot of fun too!”

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The 68-year-old country star joked that the judges are different when the cameras are rolling than when they’re not. “Everybody’s just as sweet and kind offstage as they can be. When they come on the stage though, they kinda change their personalities,” Reba said before turning serious. “They’re real mean — especially Gwen!”

Reba McEntire is sitting in a judge’s chair for the first time this season as she replaces longtime coach (and the show’s winningest coach), Blake Shelton.

While this is Reba’s first time judging, she is no stranger to The Voice. She made her debut on the reality singing competition in its first season when she served as a Battle Advisor for Blake Shelton.

She returned again in Season 8 where she served as a mentor for the Top 12, and served as Mega Mentor during Season 23. But, did you know that McEntire was asked to be a coach before Blake Shelton? The Country Music Hall of Famer turned down the opportunity 24 seasons ago due to being concerned about being able to handle rejecting people “day in and day out.”

“It was a very popular show in Holland….I watched the tape, and I said, ‘No, I’m going to pass on that,’ because I don’t think I could ever be able to tell somebody that they’re terrible or ‘go find another job’ or ‘hope you like your nighttime job.’ I couldn’t do that day in and day out. I just couldn’t do it. So I did pass on it,” Reba said.

As much as Blake will be missed on The Voice, we’re glad Reba changed her mind and decided to take over a judge’s seat. Watch her at work in the new season’s promo video below.