The Voice: Battle of Champions 2026 — Season 29 Is Here and Everything Has Changed

The Voice: Battle of Champions officially premiered last night, Monday, February 23, 2026, launching one of the most ambitious reinventions in the show's 15-year history. The Voice 2026 brings back three of NBC's biggest coaching legends, scraps the familiar four-chair format, and introduces a slew of twists that have already generated massive buzz heading into the season.

The Voice Battle of Champions: A Brand New Format

The Voice Season 29 is dubbed the "Battle of Champions" because, for the first time in show history, every coach on the panel is a previous winner. The season features a three-coach panel, new competitive incentives in the Blind Auditions, an in-season All-Star Showdown, and — most notably — no traditional live shows. New two-hour episodes air every Monday at 9/8c on NBC, with next-day streaming on Peacock.

The Voice 2026 Coaches: Kelly, Adam, and John Are Back

The landmark season features fan-favorite coaches Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, and Adam Levine — all back in the red chairs for the first time together in years. The trio brings a combined coaching pedigree that no prior season has matched: Clarkson with four wins, Levine with three, and Legend with one.

The shift from four coaches to three was driven by NBC's reduced episode hours this season, tied to the NBA returning to the network's primetime lineup. Showrunner Audrey Morrissey confirmed that keeping four coaches with fewer episodes would have created teams too small to be competitive. Each coach ends up with 10 artists, creating 30 total competitors advancing to the Battles.

The Voice Battle of Champions: New Rules Explained

The Voice 2026 introduces several format changes that raise the competitive stakes significantly:

• Triple Turn Competition — When all three coaches turn for the same artist, the singer picks their team. The coach who earns the most Triple Turns by the end of Blind Auditions wins the Super Steal advantage.
• Super Steal — A one-time power in the Battle round that overrides any competing coach's steal attempt — guaranteed to win any head-to-head steal clash.
• Block Buttons Removed — For the first time since the feature was introduced, block buttons have been eliminated this season.
• In-Studio Audience Voting — Home viewers will not vote during the semifinals and finals this season. Instead, a studio audience made up of super fans and past Voice artists will cast votes in real time, with results revealed on the spot.

The Voice All-Star Showdown and CeeLo Green Returns

One of the most exciting new wrinkles in The Voice Battle of Champions is the in-season All-Star Showdown. Each coach brings back two fan-favorite artists from their previous teams to compete in head-to-head sing-offs. The coach with the most sing-off wins is guaranteed a second finalist in the finale. CeeLo Green returns in a new role to determine the winner of each All-Star Showdown.

The returning All-Stars are: Girl Named Tom and Jake Hoot (Team Kelly), Maelyn Jarmon and Renzo (Team Legend), and Jordan Smith and Javier Colon (Team Adam).

Druski Joins The Voice 2026 as First-Ever Commentator

Druski has joined The Voice: Battle of Champions as its first-ever special commentator, offering unique takes on the coaches' strategy while tracking the Triple Turn Competition and Super Steal. A string of NBA superstars will join him throughout the competition.

The Voice 2026 Schedule: Upcoming Episodes

The Voice: Battle of Champions streams the day after each episode on Peacock. Carson Daly returns as host for his 29th consecutive season.