Blake Shelton Made a Surprise “Appearance” on The Voice to Help Niall Shade Bublé

As he should!

Blake Shelton may be gone from The Voice, but he’s not forgotten!

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The longtime Coach may have retired from the show, but his legacy lives on in Coach Niall Horan, his “son.” During a recent round of Season 28 Blind Auditions, for instance, Coach Michael Bublé got a little too brag-y for Horan’s liking, so the Irish singer pulled out a Shelton-ism to shut him down.

The hilarious interaction went down after Artist Kenny Iko showed off his beautiful falsetto, and for some reason, Bublé didn’t even press his button. Attempting to cover his tracks, the Grammy winner told the Artist, “I feel like you mighta been a real good chance for me to have a three-peat,” referring to the fact that he’s coached the winning Artists of the past two seasons (Season 26 winner Sofronio Vasquez and Season 27 winner Adam David).

Horan, who coached the winning Artists for Season 23 (Gina Miles) and Season 24 (Huntley), smashed his red button, and suddenly the theater heard Shelton’s iconic Southern drawl: “I don’t give a crap about a three-peat.” As everyone cracked up, Horan looked at the sky. “My father! Is that you?” he asked, then hit the button again to replay the soundbite.

“I miss you dad. I know you’re back there in Oklahoma, harvesting some fields or something…” he told “Shelton.”

Horan’s not the only one with soundbites, either. Coach Reba McEntire’s red chair is outfitted with at least two gag sounds: a sad trombone and a “boo” audience effect that she can play to keep the boys in line. And by the boys, we mean Michael Bublé.

Niall Horan loved working with Blake Shelton on Season 23 of The Voice

Niall Horan and Blake Shelton appear on The Voice, Season 23 Episode 7- The Battles Premiere.

Photo: Trae Patton/NBC

Though they only overlapped for a single season, it was enough to form a real bond between Horan and Shelton. “Blake, he’s like a dad to me,” Horan told NBC Insider at the start of Season 23. “He’s really helped me during the show. I’ve really enjoyed his company, and watching him has been a real honor…It’s been amazing to work with him and Kelly Clarkson…It’s been so funny to dive into that Southern sense of humor with them and see the stuff that goes on behind-the-scenes.”

The next season, he reiterated how much Shelton had guided him through the process, telling NBC Insider, “I learned a lot from Blake last year sitting next to him…Nothing that he said. Just watching how he does it. I think that made a lot of difference to how I’ve been in the show this year.”

Now that Horan is back, Bublé has occasionally tried to (jokingly) claim him as a “son,” which Horan has said Shelton won’t be happy to hear. “I’m Blake’s son. I always will be,” he said during an early Season 28 episode. But if Bublé gets that three-peat, will it change Horan’s mind? Who wouldn’t want to be the son of a champion?