When NBC announced on July 22, 2025, that season 29 of “The Voice” will feature three superstar coaches and a new format called “The Voice: Battle of Champions,” there was so much information to digest, that some very big news got lost in the fine print.

Season 29, slated to air in the spring of 2026, will pit Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, and Adam Levine against each other, but it will also see the return of CeeLo Green, who was one of the show’s four original coaches alongside Levine. Green won’t be back in a red chair all season, but he will be helping to decide which contestants advance on the show.

CeeLo Green Will Decide Winner of the New In-Season All-Star Competition on ‘The Voice’

Green, one-half of the chart-topping duo Gnarls Barkley in the early 2000s, was a coach on the first three seasons of “The Voice” and in season five. Although he’s periodically returned to the show to perform or as an Advisor to Levine in 2018, season 29 will see Green return to make some “major decisions,” per NBC Insider.

The Knockouts round will be very different in season 29, as Clarkson, Levine, and Legend each get to bring back two contestants from their past teams to compete in a special episode called the “In-Season All-Star Competition.”

The returning artists will have their own Knockout round, per NBC Insider, with sing-offs against each other. Green will decide the winner, which matters a lot because the Coach “with the most sing-off wins is guaranteed to enter the Finale with two Artists.”

Green tweeted the announcement on July 23 and wrote, “Honored to be apart! ❤️ @NBCTheVoice”

Fans Have A Lot to Say About CeeLo Green’s Return to ‘The Voice’

Fans have been very vocal about Green returning to make such consequential decisions on season 29.

When “The Voice” announced the news on Facebook, one fan wrote, “I feel like that role should be someone else who’s had success on the voice. Blake would be a great option for that. I’d even accept Christina to come back to do that specifically. Not the guy who quit because he never won a season and was always a contestants last choice.”

Shelton is launching his own singing competition on CBS called “The Road” in the fall, and Aguilera told “Entertainment Tonight” in 2018 that she won’t return to “The Voice” because “it’s not about the music.”

But many fans have noted there are other winning coaches who could have fit the bill for the “Battle of Champions” season, including one who commented, “Since when has he been relevant. Seriously there are so many other people they could bring back.”

Someone else wrote, “Omg Adam Levine, now Ceelo Green, you really want the voice cancelled don’t you. Pass……”

There are fans thrilled about Green’s return, too, including one who wrote on Facebook, “I love Celo in any capacity. Will be good to see him again” and another who chimed in, “Missed you CeeLo!!! It will bw nice to see u again in The Voice!!”

Although season 29 has already begun filming and will tape the Knockouts in August, the season won’t air until the spring of 2026. First up is season 28 with Reba McEntire, Niall Horan, Snoop Dogg, and Michael Bublé back as coaches, debuting on September 22.