As The Voice’s 23rd season prepares to wrap up its audition round, the coaches seem to be settling in nicely with each other. Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson have reignited their friendly rivalry; Niall Horan has found a new father figure in Shelton; and Chance the Rapper is blowing everybody away with his vision as a producer. But rumors have begun to circulate that things aren’t as hunky dory as they appear, particularly when it comes to Clarkson and this season’s Mega Mentor, Reba McEntire.
In honor of Blake Shelton’s final season, The Voice is giving him a full-circle moment by bringing back country music legend Reba McEntire, who served as his Battle Advisor in Season 1. The “Fancy” singer also just happens to be Kelly Clarkson’s ex-mother-in-law, and Radar Online reports that tensions have arisen over the talk show host’s divorce from Brandon Blackstock, which was finalized in March 2022. The site alleges:
They have to play nice for the cameras, but things are really tense between them. Reba’s got it in her head that Kelly should take Brandon back, which has really upset Kelly.
These rumors, if true, are surprising, given the fact that Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock split up nearly three years ago, and Reba McEntire — who was married to Brandon’s father Narvel Blackstock for 26 years before divorcing in 2015 — publicly refused to take sides in the breakup. The insider, however, claims that “for some reason” McEntire can’t accept that it’s over.
Kelly Clarkson has opened up recently about how she and Brandon Blackstock’s two children have handled the divorce, and allegedly, Remington and River Rose are at the center of the Queen of Country Music’s concerns. The source continued:
Reba has this delusional hope Brandon and Kelly could work things out. She thinks it would be better for the kids. Kelly’s not having any of it. She thinks Reba should leave The Voice. The tension’s boiling over — and everyone’s worried it’s going to come out on camera.
Kelly Clarkson filed for divorce in June 2020, and the proceedings took nearly two years to settle, due to battles over money owed, custody agreements, and ownership of the singer’s ranch in Montana. It doesn’t seem likely that Reba McEntire would still be harboring hope for the relationship a full year after the divorce was finally settled. It also seems questionable that the show would bring McEntire on in the first place if Clarkson wasn’t OK with it.
Furthermore, if the job of the Mega Mentor is handled in the same way as in seasons past, Reba McEntire will be in and out of the show pretty quickly. When Snoop Dogg, Taylor Swift, and others appeared on The Voice in previous years, they were only featured in one round, so even if there was tension between the two powerhouse singers, it’s likely filming has occurred and the situation is already behind them.
We don’t know what goes on behind closed doors, though, and even if Reba McEntire has remained neutral about the divorce publicly, she wouldn’t be the first mother-in-law to have an opinion, especially if there are grandchildren involved.
The Voice fans will have to keep an eye out for any possible awkwardness between the two when the icon makes her Season 23 debut. The competition airs at 8 p.m. ET Mondays and 9 p.m. ET Tuesdays on NBC, and be sure to check out our 2023 TV schedule to see what other shows are premiering soon.