“The Voice” is celebrating its milestone 30th season by changing the way the competition begins. For the first time, NBC is launching a season with a special three-night premiere event, giving fans three consecutive nights of Blind Auditions.
Season 30 officially premiered Monday, September 21 at 8 p.m. ET/PT with a two-hour episode. Instead of waiting until the following week for another round, the Blind Auditions continue Tuesday, September 22 and Wednesday, September 23 with one-hour episodes beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
That means viewers are getting four hours of “The Voice” across three nights during premiere week. Once the special launch is over, the competition will settle into its regular schedule, with two-hour Monday episodes beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
The unusual schedule also gives viewers more time to become familiar with Season 30’s new coaching panel. Kelly Clarkson and Adam Levine have returned to the famous red chairs, while Queen Latifah and country star Riley Green are making their debuts as Coaches.
But the premiere schedule is far from the only change. The Blind Auditions themselves now include the new First-In Button, which gives the first Coach to turn during a multi-chair audition an opportunity to automatically claim that Artist. Each Coach can use the advantage only once.
Another noticeable change involves “The Voice” mobile app. The longtime official app is no longer available in mobile app stores. In previous seasons, viewers could use it to play along with the Blind Auditions and virtually decide which singers they would have turned for. The reason for its removal has not been publicly explained.
However, arguably the biggest update will not arrive until later in Season 30. Live Shows are returning for six weeks, bringing a much longer stretch of live competition and fan participation than viewers have recently experienced.
Before the Lives, Season 30 will introduce Cut Week. Each Coach sends two Artists directly into the Live Shows while five others compete for one remaining place on the team. Once the Top 12 is established, America will vote one additional Artist through, creating a Top 13.
The six-week Live Show run will also feature several special themes. NBC has confirmed Dolly Parton Tribute Week, Y2K and TikTok themed episodes, along with special guest appearances throughout the live portion of the competition.
There is also a major streaming first. During the Lives, “The Voice” will be simulcast on NBC and Peacock across all U.S. time zones. NBCUniversal says this marks the first time an NBC entertainment program will receive this type of Peacock simulcast.
Voting is getting a significant makeover as well. Fans will be able to vote through SMS text messaging and TikTok, and results will be announced the same night. That should make the Live Shows feel considerably more immediate as viewers help determine who continues in the competition.
So the three-night premiere is really just the beginning of what NBC has planned for Season 30. Between two new Coaches, the First-In Button, Cut Week, six weeks of Live Shows, new voting options and simultaneous NBC and Peacock broadcasts, the milestone season is introducing several major changes while bringing live viewer participation back to the center of “The Voice.”
