Carly Pearce has now worked alongside two very different Voice coaches — Michael Bublé and Riley Green — and she couldn’t resist having a little fun when asked to compare the experiences.
The country star returned to The Voice Season 30 as Riley Green’s Battle Advisor, helping the rookie coach prepare his artists as the competition moved beyond the Blind Auditions.
But this isn’t Carly’s first time helping contestants on the show.
She previously served as an advisor for Michael Bublé’s team in 2024, giving her a unique perspective on what it is like working with two coaches whose personalities and musical backgrounds could hardly be more different.
When the subject came up in a playful new clip, Carly delivered an answer that immediately caught attention.
She began by describing Bublé as a “fine singer” and a “fine artist.”
Then she turned toward Riley.
Her tone became deliberately dramatic as she called him a “true artist” and a “true icon.”
The comparison was clearly tongue-in-cheek.
Carly wasn’t seriously suggesting that Bublé — a multiple-Grammy-winning international star — somehow isn’t an accomplished artist.
Instead, the moment showed the comfortable teasing relationship Carly and Riley have developed while working together.
And that chemistry is one of the reasons Riley says Carly was such an easy choice when producers asked him to select someone to advise Team Riley.
Riley revealed that he had actually admired Carly’s music long before he had his own record deal.
Years later, the two finally worked together professionally on their duet “If I Don’t Leave, I’m Gonna Stay.”
That experience gave Riley an even clearer idea of what Carly could offer his contestants.
He described her as an “obvious choice” for the advisor role because he had already seen how seriously she approaches vocals, phrasing and performance.
Interestingly, Riley said recording their duet forced him into the student role.
The original demo contained phrasing and harmonies that weren’t naturally how he would sing, so Carly helped him navigate a vocal approach outside his comfort zone.
Riley said it may have been the most he had ever needed to learn how to sing a particular song.
That experience mirrors exactly what his contestants are going through now.
They arrive with their own styles, then have only a short period to adapt to unfamiliar songs, harmonies and Battle partners.
Carly understands that process from another angle too.
When she previously advised Michael Bublé’s artists, she wasn’t working with singers from her usual country world.
She recalled that Bublé’s team didn’t really contain anyone directly in her country-music lane.
Instead of trying to turn them into country singers, Carly focused on identifying what made each contestant distinctive and helping them strengthen those qualities.
That philosophy hasn’t changed with Team Riley.
The difference is that Riley’s roster contains significantly more artists whose musical influences overlap with Carly’s own background.
That allows her to offer particularly detailed advice about storytelling, country phrasing and how singers can remain recognizable even while performing somebody else’s song.
Riley has said that is exactly what he wants his artists to learn.
He has openly admitted that there was once a time when he didn’t even like hearing his own voice and doubted whether he was a strong enough singer to build a career.
Years of touring and performing eventually gave him confidence.
Now he wants contestants to discover the qualities that already make them special instead of trying to sound exactly like another artist.
That coaching philosophy may also help explain why Riley has fit into The Voice surprisingly naturally during his rookie season.
He isn’t approaching the job simply as a famous country singer telling contestants whether they sounded good.
Instead, he and Carly are trying to identify something contestants can build an actual career around after the show.
And Riley’s relaxed personality has become an important part of that.
Carly’s exaggerated comparison with Bublé may have been a joke, but it highlighted how comfortable she feels working beside Riley.
Their easy banter, musical history and shared country background allow them to challenge contestants without making the rehearsals feel overly serious.
Michael Bublé gave Carly experience advising singers outside her usual genre.
Riley Green gives her the opportunity to work much closer to home.
And while Carly probably isn’t actually declaring one superstar “better” than the other, her hilarious answer made one thing obvious:
She is having a very good time on Team Riley.
