‘The Voice’ Reveals Shocking New Twist for Season 28 Battle Rounds

Season 28 of The Voice is going to be unlike any other season of the show.

With the field narrowed down to 48, The Voice is heading from the Blind Auditions to the Battle Round. Things aren’t going to work as they did in the past, though.

On the Oct. 13 episode of the show, contestants learned that their coach would not be picking their partner for the Battle. Instead, the contestants must decide who they want to face off against themselves.

Snoop Dogg’s team was the first to learn the shocking news. The 12 contestant’s on the superstar’s team filed into the room expecting to pose for a photo. However, they were met by their coach instead.

“The crazy part about this year’s Battle? Y’all gonna trip off of this,” Snoop told his team. “This is the crazy part—for the first time in Voice history, you have to pick who you’re battling. You pick your partner and then I pick the song, and then we’ll figure it out from there.”

The Voice Contestants React to “Wild” Rule Change

Sadie Dahl called the rule change “wild,” while Emmanuel Rey admitted that it left him “at a loss for words.”

The contestants didn’t have much time to consider their options, as they were forced to pick their duet partner then and there.

“Everyone’s jaw hit the floor and it’s just pandemonium from there,” Mindy Miller said, while Lauren Anderson worried, “Everyone on Snoop’s team is so good. I don’t want to go up against anyone.”

Jerrell Melton called the scene “really chaotic” as he noted, The stakes are very high. There’s no guarantee that one of us might to get to stick around.”

After the duet partners were set, Snoop told the cameras why he was a fan of the new rule.

“Letting them pick has taught me so much about my artists in terms of how they think, how they move,” he explained.

Fans will have to wait to see how the move affects the Battle Rounds, as Team Snoop performs alongside contestants on Michael Bublé, Reba McEntire, and Niall Horan’s teams.

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays on NBC.

Photo by Ashley Osborn/NBC