TV SHOCKER: The Voice Taps Beloved Reality TV Icon As Contestant For All-Celebrity Season

Ariana Madix is reportedly preparing to compete on the first celebrity edition of The Voice, adding another major television project to a career that has changed dramatically over the past few years.

According to The U.S. Sun, the former Vanderpump Rules star and current Love Island USA host has been selected as one of the celebrity contestants for Season 31 of NBC’s singing competition.

The report claims Madix, 41, has already completed her Blind Audition and successfully advanced to the Battle Rounds.

NBC has not revealed which celebrity coach chose her, and many details about the upcoming season are still being kept private. However, a source claimed Madix surprised the coaches when they turned their famous red chairs and discovered who had been singing behind them.

“The celebrity contestants are full of some big names, but one familiar face fans will be excited to see is Ariana Madix,” the insider told the publication.

The source added that Madix’s Broadway experience helped prepare her for the competition.

“She showed off her vocal chops on Chicago and now is excited for a wider audience to see her talents,” the insider said.

Her appearance will come during a major change for The Voice. Season 31 is expected to become the programme’s first competition featuring an entirely celebrity cast rather than unknown singers hoping to begin professional music careers.

Recognisable figures from television, film, sports and popular culture are reportedly expected to compete against one another.

For Madix, joining the show would give her another opportunity to prove that her career extends far beyond reality television.

Although many viewers first became familiar with Madix through Vanderpump Rules, performing was part of her life long before she joined the Bravo series.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in theatre and later moved to Los Angeles to pursue opportunities in acting, music and film.

Throughout her reality television career, she continued appearing in comedy shows, sketches and live productions. Those experiences were sometimes overshadowed by the personal drama featured on Vanderpump Rules, but Madix had never completely abandoned her interest in performing.

Her largest stage opportunity arrived in 2024 when she made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago.

Madix was initially expected to appear for a limited engagement. Her run proved successful enough that producers repeatedly extended it, allowing her to remain in the production longer than originally planned.

Audience members praised her singing, dancing and stage presence, helping establish that she could perform outside the reality television format that made her famous.

That Broadway experience may have also made her a natural choice for the celebrity edition of The Voice.

Unlike a traditional celebrity appearance where a star performs a single number, Madix will reportedly have to compete through multiple stages. Advancing beyond the Blind Auditions means she is expected to return for the Battle Rounds as production moves forward.

The report did not reveal which song she performed during her audition or how many coaches turned for her.

It also remains unclear which celebrity contestants she will face during the season.

Madix’s latest opportunity follows a remarkable period of career growth that began after one of the most widely discussed scandals in reality television.

In 2023, her longtime relationship with Tom Sandoval ended after it was revealed that he had been involved with Rachel Leviss, who had also been one of Madix’s close friends and a fellow Vanderpump Rules cast member.

The scandal was quickly nicknamed “Scandoval” by viewers.

It dominated entertainment coverage, attracted international attention and delivered some of the highest ratings in the history of Vanderpump Rules.

Madix received an enormous amount of public support following the breakup. Rather than disappearing from television after such a painful and public betrayal, she used the new attention to pursue opportunities that had previously seemed out of reach.

Within months, Madix joined Dancing With the Stars and finished the competition as runner-up alongside professional partner Pasha Pashkov.

She then made her Broadway debut, published a successful cocktail book and appeared in several national advertising campaigns.

Madix also became the permanent host of Peacock’s Love Island USA, moving from reality television cast member to the person responsible for leading one of the country’s most closely watched dating shows.

Away from television, she opened the sandwich shop Something About Her with Katie Maloney, her longtime friend and former Vanderpump Rules co-star.

Each new project allowed Madix to separate her public identity from the scandal that had initially pushed her into the mainstream spotlight.

Her reported role on The Voice would continue that transition.

This time, she will not be discussing her relationship, judging other people’s romances or performing a carefully rehearsed Broadway role. She will reportedly compete directly as a singer while celebrity coaches evaluate her voice without seeing her identity during the audition.

Madix officially left the original era of Vanderpump Rules behind in 2024, when Bravo announced that the programme would return with an entirely new cast.

The decision ended the original group’s 11-season run and closed the chapter of television that first made her a recognisable name.

Since then, she has continued expanding into hosting, acting and live performance.

Season 31 of The Voice is also expected to begin a new chapter for the NBC franchise.

Carson Daly, who hosted every previous season, has reportedly stepped away after 15 years and 30 seasons.

His departure means the celebrity edition will be the first season without Daly welcoming contestants, speaking with their families and guiding viewers through the competition.

Actress, singer and television host Keke Palmer is reportedly taking over the role.

Palmer will be responsible for helping the programme adjust to its first major hosting change while also introducing a format built around established celebrities rather than aspiring unknown performers.

NBC is also expected to introduce a new group of celebrity coaches, although the full lineup had not been officially announced in the original report.

That secrecy has left several important questions unanswered, including which coach selected Madix and how far she has progressed beyond the Blind Auditions.

The source nevertheless claimed she had already made a strong impression.

For viewers who know Madix mainly from Vanderpump Rules or Love Island USA, the competition could reveal a side of her they have not seen before.

Her Broadway run proved that she could sing and perform in front of a live audience. The Voice will place that ability into a competitive format where her fame cannot help the coaches during the opening audition.

The red chairs turn because of the voice, not the name behind it.

If the report is accurate, Madix has already done enough to convince at least one coach that she deserves to continue.

Her journey from a reality television scandal to Broadway, national hosting roles and now a celebrity singing competition has been unusually rapid.

Season 31 may give her the chance to show that she is not simply a reality star benefiting from a moment of public sympathy.

She has spent the past several years building a career across television, business and theatre. The Voice could now become the stage where a much larger audience finally hears what she can do as a singer.