Adam Levine leaving The Voice; Gwen Stefani to coach season 17

Well, consider this one of the biggest The Voice shockers that we’ve seen in some time. This morning, it was announced on The Today Show that Adam Levine, one of the show’s longest-tenured coaches after 16 seasons, is leaving the program. This comes mostly as a surprise given the fact that previously, it appeared as though Levine was planning to come back for the show and the entire panel would remain the same this season.

Here is some of what Carson Daly had to say on the program:

“After 16 seasons, Adam Levine, our beloved coach and friend, has decided to leave The Voice. Adam was one of the original coaches who launched the show, winning the competition three times and inspiring many of the artists that he worked so closely with over the year …  He’ll always be a cherished member of [our] Voice family, and we wish him nothing but the best.”

For some more news when it comes to The Voice in video form, be sure to check out the latest below! Meanwhile, subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube for some other news and take a look at our playlist.

Why the sudden change for Levine? We do think that previously, he intended to come back — yet, he may have gotten a sense that there wasn’t a whole lot of enthusiasm for him wanting to be a part of the show anymore. A lot of it still comes down to the perception that he threw his own team member in DeAndre Nico under the bus to save Reagan Strange back in season 15, and since that time he’s struggled mightily in order to get people to stick around in the competition. He’s won the series multiple times, but not in a little while. Adam does deserve credit for helping to get the show off the ground in the early going; he and Christina Aguilera were two of the biggest names at the time the show first

So where does The Voice go from here?

Well, think in terms of another familiar face. Gwen Stefani is going to come back in Adam’s place for season 17 — whether or not she’s a permanent addition remains to be seen, but obviously the producers wanted to replace someone who had a good rapport with Blake Shelton with someone else. It’s a smart move, but whether or not it moves the ratings needle is to be seen. Eventually, we do think that The Voice needs to land someone who hasn’t been on the show, and someone who is incredibly surprising as a coach — both John Legend and Kelly Clarkson are fantastic as TV personalities, but they also have a lot of experience within this world and weren’t surprising choices because of that.

For some more news when it comes to The Voice…

Check out the link here to get some more news on what else should change moving into season 17.

What do you think about Adam Levine leaving The Voice? Be sure to share in the comments below, and check back soon for more news. (Photo: NBC.)