Texarkana Gazette

NBC’S ‘The Voice’ returns for another season

- By Raye Smith

Belting out the best: Back for its 23rd season of no-holds-barred talent, NBC’S hit singing competitio­n “The Voice” returns to prime time Monday, March 6. New episodes air on NBC Mondays and Tuesdays and are available to stream on Peacock the following day.

A series that puts all the focus on the talent of the singers, talented hopefuls perform in a blind audition (where the panel of four celebrity judges all have their backs turned), so that the only aspect of their performanc­e being analyzed is the sound of their singing voice — a choice designed to remove considerat­ions like looks and stage presence from the decision-making process. If the judges like what they hear, they’ll commit to their choice to have that singer on their team by hitting a button that swivels their chair toward the stage. However, even then, the choice goes to the singer; if more than one coach wants them, it’s up to the performer to choose which team they’ll work with.

From there, the singers work through a series of performanc­es and challenges, facing off against the show’s tense battle rounds, saves, steals, knockouts and instant saves to make it to the finale and claim the grand prize.

Hosted once again by Carson Daly, who has been with the show since its first season, this season also marks the swan song of judge and country singer Blake Shelton (“God’s Country”), the longest-tenured (and winningest) coach, who has appeared in every season of the show so far.

“I’ve decided that it’s time for me to step away from ‘The Voice’ after Season 23,” Shelton said in a statement. “This show has changed my life in every way for the better and it will always feel like home to me. It’s been a hell of a ride over these 12 years of chair turns, and I want to thank everyone at ‘The Voice,’ from NBC, every producer, the writers, musicians, crew and catering people. You are the best. It takes a lot of work, passion and adult beverages (Ha!) to pull off a live show twice a week.”

Filling up the other three chairs this season are returning coach, first-ever American Idol winner and Grammywinn­ing singer Kelly Clarkson (“Since U Been Gone”), singer-songwriter and former One Direction band member Niall Horan (“This Town”) and Grammy-winning hip-hop artist Chance the Rapper (“Sunday Candy”).

Tune in to find out whose pipes ring above the rest when Season 23 of “The Voice” premieres Monday, March 6, on NBC.

Queen Sweep:

Nineties nostalgia takes center stage in the new six-part limited series “SWV & XSCAPE:THE Queens of R&B,” premiering Sunday, March 5, on Bravo.

Bravo is bringing the music and the drama to the forefront in “The Queens of R&B,” as two of the best-selling girl groups of all time, SWV (Sisters With Voices) — including members Cheryl “Coko” Gamble, Tamara “Taj” Johnson and Leanne “Lelee” Lyons — and XSCAPE — made up of Kandi Burruss, Tameka “Tiny” Harris, Latocha Bivens and Tamika Scott — as they give fans “a VIP front-row seat and backstage access” to the groups’ “personal and profession­al lives as they prepare to hit the stage together” in a special, one-nightonly concert (per Bravo).

Following their hit performanc­e on Timbaland and Swizz Beatz’ web series “Verzuz,” the queens reunite once again as they prepare for a fiery performanc­e, all while balancing band relationsh­ips and their own personal and profession­al lives.

“Each episode will capture the highs and lows of their journey as they race against a ticking clock to create a career-reigniting concert. But can these strong-willed songstress­es ever reach an accord? Not before sharing their most vulnerable moments and venturing beyond business to try healing the personal hurts that stand in the way of their futures,” the show’s official news release notes.

Catch the performanc­e of a lifetime when “SWV & XSCAPE:THE Queens of R&B,” premieres Sunday, March 5, on Bravo.

We’re jammin’: “The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon is bringing his unique brand of celebrity fun back to the screen with the Season 2 premiere of the musical variety game show “That’s My Jam,” airing

Tuesday, March 7, on NBC.

A spinoff series that features fan-favorite game segments introduced by Fallon of “The Tonight Show,” “That’s My Jam” features four new celebrity guests in each episode, working in teams of two, as they compete in games including Turn the Beat Around, More Than a Feeling, Undercover Covers,wheel of Impossible Karaoke and Doombox, among others (per NBC). As they sing and play their way to the top, each team competes for a cash prize that goes to the charity of their choice.

This new season features a stacked lineup of celebritie­s, including musicians Chloe & Halle Bailey (“Do It”), Kelsea Ballerini (“Miss Me More”), Big Boi (“The Way You Move”), Chance The Rapper (“Work Out”), Jason Derulo (“Talk Dirty”), Kesha (“Timber”), Patti Labelle (“Lady Marmalade”),adam Lambert (“Runnin’”), Julia Michaels (“If The World Was Ending”), French Montana (“Unforgetta­ble”), Nicole Scherzinge­r (“The Masked Singer”), Quavo (“Bad and Boujee”),will.i.am (“I Gotta Feeling”) and Saweetie (“My Type”); actors Quinta Brunson (“Abbott Elementary”), Jabari Banks (“Belair”), Darren Criss (“American Crime Story”), Jenna Dewan (“Step Up,” 2006), Renee Elise Goldsberry (“Altered Carbon”), Taraji P. Henson (“Empire”), Sarah Hyland (“Modern Family”), Simu Liu (“Shang-chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” 2021), Joel Mchale (“Community”), Keke Palmer (“Nope,” 2022), Billy Porter (“Pose”), Diallo Riddle (“South Side”), Craig Robinson (“Killing It”), Bashir Salahuddin (“Top Gun: Maverick,” 2022) and John Stamos (“Fuller House”); profession­al wrestlers Alexa Bliss and Mike “The Miz”; comedians Nikki Glaser (“Nikki Glaser: Good Clean Filth,” 2022), Jay Pharoah (“Saturday Night Live”) and Kenan Thompson (“Kenan”); and TV personalit­y Jojo Siwa (“The J Team,” 2021).

Keep the jams going with a new season of “That’s My Jam,” airing Tuesday, March 7, on NBC.

 ?? ?? Blake Shelton as seen in “The Voice”
Blake Shelton as seen in “The Voice”

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