American Idol dominated the singing competition genre of reality TV until The Voice came along. The show premiered on NBC in 2011. Country singer Blake Shelton was a coach for the show’s first 23 seasons before leaving in 2023. The reality show doesn’t always have the same judges every season. Reba McEntire sat in the coveted red chair for Seasons 24, 25, and 26.

She took Season 27 off but is back for Season 28. The new season premiered last month. Michael Bublé, Niall Horan, and Snoop Dogg joined Reba as coaches. The show made some changes for Season 28 that fans aren’t loving. Keep reading to find out why they’re livid over one major change in format.

The Voice Announces Season 28 Team Advisors

The coaches use the Blind auditions to choose singers for their team. The auditions wrapped up in this week’s episode. Next up, the contestants face the Battle rounds, where they go head-to-head on a quest to make it to the finale.

The four coaches mentor the singers on their team, but require help to really push the performers to do their best. Each team gets an advisor who has already made it big in the music industry.

 
[Credit: The Voice/YouTube]
The Voice revealed the advisors for the Battle rounds. According to NBC.com, Team Niall’s Battle Advisor is Lewis Capaldi. Team Bublé’s Battle Advisor is Kelsea Ballerini. Team Reba’s Battle Advisor is Nick Jonas, and Team Snoop’s Battle Advisor is Lizzo. 

Fans Livid Over Major Format Change In New Season

Things are a little different this season on The Voice. For the first time ever, host Carson Daly was involved in deciding which contestants advance on the show. He was given a Carson Callback to save one contestant from going home. He used it on Ryan Mitchell earlier this season.

Most fans loved that Carson Daly finally had a say in what happens on the show. But viewers were livid over a format change in this week’s episodes.

Newark, New Jersey native Conrad Khalil performed “Caught Up” by Usher during the Blind auditions. He received a chair turn from Reba McEntire, which put him on the newly-engaged country singer’s team for Season 28.

But fans were angry that they didn’t get to see all the moments of Conrad Khalil’s audition. “I hate when they montage artists that make a team and then do a whole bit for artists who don’t get any chair turns,” one viewer vented on social media.

“A waste of time tbh,” another fan wrote. With limited time, it makes sense that The Voice would only air bits and pieces of certain auditions. But fans weren’t happy about it.

Do you think the show should give less focus to the contestants who don’t get chair turns? Sound off in the comments.

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 PM Eastern on NBC. New episodes are available to stream on Peacock the next day.