The Voice’s Polarizing New Rule Has Fans Divided: What Is the Replay Button?

The Voice is back for its 26th season with a fresh crop of talent and two newcomers to the coaching lineup, Snoop Dogg and Michael Bublé. Monday’s (Sept. 23) season premiere has already brought plenty of drama, with Gwen Stefani already blocking fellow coach Reba McEntire. This year, The Voice is shaking things up with a brand-new Replay button. And the latest addition to the show’s rulebook had some fans quite confused.

Reba Confuses ‘The Voice’ Viewers By Pressing Replay Button

Carson Daly seemed befuddled when Reba McEntire didn’t turn her big red chair for Kendall Eugene’s emotional cover of “Don’t Think Jesus” by Morgan Wallen.

“Come on, Reba!” The Voice host can be heard saying on a clip posted to the show’s official Instagram.

Surprisingly, the “I Can’t” singer never pressed her big red button. She faced the opposite direction for Eugene’s entire performance. However, seemingly realizing she’d made a mistake, Reba pressed another button: the Replay one.

Fans were shocked, to say the least. “I left the room for a minute and missed what this new replay thing is,” one viewer wrote on X/Twitter.

https://twitter.com/ElbatheOne/status/1838379221246149091

“Wait, what did I miss?” another X/Twitter user wrote. “What’s the coach replay.”

[RELATED: ‘The Voice’ Fans Stunned by Snoop Dogg’s Vocals, Praise Reba McEntire as Coaches Perform Together]

So What Is The Coach’s Replay?

The latest addition to The Voice rulebook allows coaches Michael Bublé, Snoop Dogg, Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani to snatch up an artist even after initially not turning their chair.

Here’s how it works: A coach doesn’t turn during an artist’s Blind Audition. Once the performance ends, all coaches turn their chair to meet the artist. If a coach who didn’t originally turn likes what they hear, they can use their Coach Replay button. Each coach has one Replay button during the Blind Auditions, according to NBC.

What Do Viewers Think?

Once the shock wore off, viewers’ reaction to The Voice’s latest twist were mixed. One X/Twitter user welcomed it, posting, “There have been so many times that nobody turned and you could tell they wish they had. Well done, @reba!”

https://twitter.com/onufreyonboard/status/1838371313179570202

Another was less enthused. “I don’t like the ‘replay button’ because you made that guy feel small for a staged moment,” they wrote. “That was just tacky.”

https://twitter.com/CrazyBoothSocks/status/1838389677113434117

Featured image by Faye Sadou/MediaPunch/Shutterstock