Blake Shelton is ready to kick up his cowboy boots.
After announcing earlier this fall he leaves The Voice next year, the 46-year-old country superstar plans to make a big-time comeback from show business.
“I’ve had people say, ‘Man, come on. You are not leaving “Voice”. [to do] nothing!’ But I really am, – Shelton Told the people. “Please, I’m open to ideas.”
Shelton, the only coach to appear on all 22 seasons of “The Voice” since the NBC singing competition began in 2011, will finally vacate his big red chair next spring.
“The thing that has stuck with me over the years is that it’s very hard for me to let go,” he said. “I’ve been here since the first minute.”
And the singer credits the show for boosting his career and that of the contestants. “When I started The Voice, it was 10 years into my career as a rural artist,” he said. “I never made it to the A level of country artists until I became a coach. The show did more for me than what I brought to the table at the time. I have far surpassed anything I thought I could achieve in the entertainment world.”
Although Shelton has started a new popular alcohol game show, “Barmageddon” This week on USA Network with “The Voice” host Carson Daly, he’s slowing down his career. “It’s time to press some of these [work] let things out and allow more family and personal life to come in,” he said.
Of course, this personal life includes his wife and fellow “The Voice” coach Gwen Stefani, 53, as well as his sons Kingston, 16, Zuma, 14, and Apollo, 8, with ex-husband Gavin Rossdale.
“If I quit my career now, I risk regretting missing out on more important things in life. For now, these are our children, he said. “It’s not about me anymore and it never will be… I’ve made a lot of money, but you can’t turn back time.”
At home in Oklahoma with Stephanie and her family, Shelton enjoys a quiet life.
“Gwen and I have traveled and toured and worked so much in the first half of our lives that now we’re like, ‘Hey, I’d better put on my sweatpants and watch Ozark eight times at 6 p.m.'” he said. “This is our life and we love it.”
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