Adam Levine on the TV Show THE VOICE "Live Finale" Episode 1616A - (Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC)

After coaching talented musicians for 16 seasons, Adam Levine has announced his departure from The Voice. Together with Blake Shelton, the Maroon 5 frontman has been with the NBC show since it began in 2011. Levine’s exit from The Voice has set the rumor mill abuzz with speculation about why he’s leaving. While Levine’s announcement is being met with gratitude for his dedication to coaching aspiring talent, the speculated reasons behind his exit are far from pleasant.

Adam Levine Announces Shocking Exit from The Voice

The Voice‘s longtime host, Carson Daly, announced on the May 24 recording of NBC’s Today that Adam Levine won’t be returning to The Voice for season 17. Levine followed it up with an Instagram post confirming he is leaving behind the red chair.

He thanked everyone who was with him on his 16-season-long journey, especially his bromance partner, Blake Shelton. He didn’t state any reason for his exit, apart from writing that it was “time to move on.”

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About 8 years ago, Mark Burnett convinced us to sign up for this show where you sit in a big red chair with your back turned away from the singers on the stage. First thank you must go to Mark. ❤️ We had no idea what we were doing or where it was going. After the first day of shooting, I sat there, stunned. I said to myself “theres some magic here. Something is definitely happening.” It went on to be a life shaping experience that will be close to my heart forever. Thank you NBC for signing me up. I am truly honored to have been a part of something I’ll always cherish for the rest of my life. Thank you to every single coach I ever sat in those chairs with. That is shared experience that is singularly ours. We have that for life. Thank you to everyone who supported this long strange and amazing left turn into a place I never thought I’d go. Thank you Carson Daly for babysitting the musicians and making sure our shoes were tied and we had our lunch boxes. You are the backbone of this thing and we appreciate you more than you know. Audrey, thank you for being perhaps the most patient person in all the free world. 4 musicians all at once is a lot. Sainthood is imminent. Thank you to Paul Mirkovich and the band for their ridiculously hard work and learning more songs than maybe any band ever. 😂 Thank you to the people behind the scenes who do the real work and make this machine hum. To the amazingly talented vocalists who competed on the show and blew my mind on a daily basis. And, BLAKE FUCKIN’ SHELTON. I couldn’t hide my love for you if I tried. Seriously. I tried. Can’t do it. Our friendship is and always will be one for the books. Whatever this whole surreal experience was, Im just happy I got to experience it with you. You’re my brother for life. Kelly and John, take care of the cowboy and I’m sure I’ll be back to say hi very very soon. So much love to you both. And lastly, to all of the loyal voice fans, there’s literally no show without you guys. For me, it was time to move on. Your support has meant EVERYTHING. And Lastly, I’d like to thank my manager Jordan for convincing me to take that meeting. 😊 What an amazing ride. Thank you all so much. ❤️ Adam

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On May 10, it was announced that Levine and the season 16 coaches would return for season 17. However, that changed when the network and the “Moves Like Jagger” singer revealed he wouldn’t be part of the lineup.

On-and-off coach and Blake Shelton’s girlfriend, Gwen Stefani, will replace Levine in season 17. Shelton, John Legend, and Kelly Clarkson will return as coaches next season, too.

Team Adam has won the competition thrice—Javier Colon (Season 1), Tessanne Chin (Season 5), and Jordan Smith (Season 9).

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Levine Reportedly Disappointed by Rule Changes

Adam Levine’s Instagram post doesn’t indicate that he’s leaving on a bad note. He simply stated that it was time to move on. And really, after 16 seasons, now might feel like the best time to leave on a high note. However, the reasons speculated on the Internet aren’t as positive.

Many believe the new rule implemented in season 16 pushed Levine to bow out of The Voice. As longtime viewers may know, after season 15, the Knockout Rounds were replaced with the Live Cross Battles. While the Knockouts guaranteed that each coach would send at least six artists from each team to the Playoffs, the new rule didn’t guarantee each coach would enter the Playoffs with the same number of artists.

In the Live Cross Battles, Team Adam took the brunt of the cuts, being reduced from eight contestants to four. By the Semifinals, Coach Adam had no singers left on his team.

Levine, who hasn’t won since season 9, was allegedly upset by the new format. At one point, his frustration seemingly showed when he commented on Coach Kelly’s artist, Rod Stokes’ performance, saying, “I still don’t understand how you’re not on my team. I don’t think anybody does, just ’cause it’s weird how it works now. I’m still learning the rules of the new show.”

Things appear to have come to a head during the NBC Upfronts Presentation where he performed with the other coaches. Levine was derided for his relative lack of enthusiasm.

Many thought he looked like he didn’t want to be there. And the reports of how the NBC bosses reacted to his apparent indifference vary.

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Levine Has a New Show on NBC

Even if he won’t be coaching aspiring singers on NBC, Levine is going to discover songwriting talent on the network with the new show, Songland. Co-produced by the Grammy-winning artist, Songland will give aspiring songwriters the chance to have their music sung by top recording artists.

The lineup features a judging panel of three and multiple guest artists who will record each songwriter’s creation. John Legend and the Jonas Brothers are among the guest artists on Songland.

Levine is actively promoting the new show, and while it’s unclear whether he’ll be on the show yet, it might be that he’s opted to focus on Songland after leaving The Voice.

Songland premieres on NBC on May 28, at 10:00 p.m. EST.

Levine’s Feud with Miley Cyrus Speculated as One of the Reasons

Some speculate that Levine’s issues with the show began in season 11 when Miley Cyrus joined the coaching panel. Several reports made the rounds that Levine and Cyrus didn’t get along.

When Cyrus returned for season 13, Levine reportedly was closing to quitting the show then. The Disney alum said she was done with The Voice for the time being, and Levine also stuck around until season 16.

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Fans Were Reportedly Done with Levine after Season 15

In season 15, Team Adam’s Reagan Strange and DeAndre Nico were in the bottom three and fighting to earn the Instant Save. Strange was too ill to perform, but that didn’t stop Levine from seemingly playing favorites.

Instead of commenting on Nico’s performance, Levine vigorously campaigned for votes for Strange. The Voice fans felt Levine was being unfair to Nico.

One of the criticisms about The Voice is that viewers tend to vote for artists on their favorite coach’s team rather than based on the artist’s performance. After the season 15 debacle, fans were allegedly displeased by Coach Adam for throwing Nico under the bus and didn’t send enough votes his team’s way.

Additionally, fans were apparently getting tired of his banter/bromance with Shelton and the other coaches. It was entertaining at first, but for many, the gag has gone too long.

A few also believe that he’s burned out as a coach and needs to a take break. NBC said that they have left the door open for Levine’s return. So fans can probably anticipate Coach Adam’s return after a well-deserved break.

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