Get your Alicia Keys fix on The Voice while you can, as she will not be returning next season. Keys, who first joined the show in Season 11, explains that she'll be stepping away from the series following Season 12 to work on new music, among other reasons:
I can't wait for you to hear new music, and so that's one of the reasons why I won't be able to come back next season. But I love writing. It's just the most beautiful, exciting things, and every time I get better.
As Entertainment Tonight points out, Alicia Keys' last album Here just released in 2016, so it's crazy that she's already hopping back in the studio! Perhaps Keys' time coaching her two talented top ten finalists on The Voice, Chris Blue and Vanessa Ferguson, lit a creative fire she needs to extinguish. As for the new music, Keys says she's about halfway done with her new album, although she did not share a release date or any other details regarding her latest work.
While news to us, it appears as though Alicia Keys' exit may have been planned far ahead of the announcement as Miley Cyrus was announced to be returning to the series for Season 13 a while back. Considering Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton are still an item and Adam Levine has been with the show since its beginning, Alicia seems to be the only one to rotate out of Season 12, barring any controversy. Rumors have swirled that Stefani is not the biggest fan of Cyrus and threatened to leave the show, but with no confirmation from either camp, its just rumors. If there is tension, Blake Shelton wasn't showing a hint of it as he joked with Keys and poked fun at her departure:
I know she's not going anywhere. It's all just a media thing, a ploy. She'll be back next year and the year after that. They are going to wait and do some, you know, Carson [Daly] is going to be in the Orange Room at the Today show and be like, 'Oh, what? This just in! Wow!'
While she's definitely out for Season 13, Alicia Keys didn't say she was done with The Voice permanently, so don't get too upset if you're going to miss her. Plus, you still have the top ten contestants to get through, so be sure to get your fill of Keys on new episodes of The Voice this Monday and Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on NBC. With the singing show winding down, now may be a good time to browse our summer premiere schedule in search of something new. Also, if you haven't checked our renewal guide be sure to do so to ensure your favorite shows are safe for next season.
