Adam Levine Has a Playful Message for Blake Shelton Amid His ‘The Voice’ Return

Despite the pair’s public sparring and ongoing pranks since costarring on “The Voice” together, everyone knows that Adam Levine and Blake Shelton are best buds. Now that Levine is back as a coach after a long absence, some fans are missing the friendly bickering that was so prevalent between the two. Luckily, Shelton has announced that he’s returning to “The Voice,” though not as a judge, and Levine has some choice words for his frenemy.

Levine Gives Hilariously Snarky Response

When E! News asked Levine how he felt about Shelton returning to “The Voice” to perform for the Season 27 finale on May 20, Levine had a prickly reply ready. “Boo!” he said. “You hear me, Blake Shelton? Right now, you hear me at home? I’m not excited that you’re coming back and I don’t like you.”

Even with Shelton gone from the show, Levine has been unable to escape his playful jabs and quips. New coach Kelsea Ballerini added some of Shelton’s one-liners to her chair button for ‘backup.’

On one episode, Levine started to convince an artist that she wanted on her team to join his, and Ballerini used Shelton’s canned phrases to hilarious effect. “Adam’s a big baby,” the chair speaker blares. She presses the button again, and “Adam won’t shut up,” in Shelton’s voice rings out. The last time she pushed it, viewers heard “Adam, you say a lot of stupid stuff,” which caused fellow judge, Michael Bublé, to crack up.

He Takes a Subtle Dig at Blake Shelton’s ‘The Voice’ Finale Appearance

After leaving the show in 2019, many were surprised when the news began circulating that Levine was returning. At the time, he had said he wanted to spend more time with his family, and he felt it was time to move on. When asked how it felt to be back, he told Extra TV that he was “having even more fun than when he first started.”

“I think that I did it for so long, such a long run, that I didn’t think about it, that I can really appreciate now that I’ve taken a step back,” he continued. “It’s just been super fun, amazing.” But when asked “what’s up their sleeves,” concerning Shelton returning for the finale, he returns to form.

“I feel like the show is doing so well, you know? Like, why they would dumb it down — I don’t know why they would have him on because it’s so elevated right now. And I feel like he just kind of brings it, drags it down into the mud,” he deadpanned.