CeeLo Green leaving 'The Voice'
"The Voice" judge CeeLo Green on the Sept. 17, 2012 episode of the show. Green says he won't be returning to the show. Credit: NBC
CeeLo Green won’t be turning his chair for “The Voice” any longer.
One of the singing competition’s original four judges, Green told Ellen DeGeneres on a show airing today that he would not be returning for a seventh season of “The Voice." (Green was already sitting out the sixth season, which begins on Monday.)
“I don’t want to wear out my welcome,” Green told DeGeneres, adding that he didn’t mean to make the announcement today. “I have so many other things I want to do… I haven’t released an album in four years.”
NBC confirmed his departure. “CeeLo Green has been an instrumental part of the success of ‘The Voice’ and we deeply appreciate all his contributions,” Paul Telegdy, NBC’s president of reality programming said in a statement. “We’re looking forward to working with him on other upcoming projects that will tap into both his musical and entertainment expertise.”
Green said in a statement that he’s “excited to be developing several other ideas with the network and my association with NBC remains strong.” The “Forget You” singer says he is working on a new music show with NBC, along with other projects.
No word on who will replace Green on the panel. In the season that starts Monday, the other original judges Adam Levine and Blake Shelton will be joined by Usher and Shakira, as Green and Christina Aguilera take a break to work on other projects. (Is it too much to hope the show pairs Shakira and Aguilera with Levine and Shelton for some gender parity? Perhaps.)
“The Voice has been an immensely enjoyable experience for me and I can only hope I have enriched the lives of our viewers, the contestants, and the many friends I made there,” Green said in a statement. “I will always be there in spirit.”
Green will spend his summer opening for Lionel Richie, including at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater on June 25.
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