‘The Voice’ fans have been dreading a moment like this, as Kelly Clarkson officially says ‘bye’

As Season 24 of “The Voice” enters the exciting Battles stage of the competition, former coach and four-time champion Kelly Clarkson quietly informed fans of NBC’s reality TV show that their lives are going to suck without her as she will not be returning to the red chair any time soon. In conversation with “USA Today” earlier this week, Kelly discussed her relocation from Los Angeles to New York and how that ultimately meant she had to say “bye” to the singing competition.

Kelly has been a participant on “The Voice,” which she thankfully calls “family,” since Season 2 where she served as Blake Shelton‘s guest advisor during the Battles. But a moment like that was not enough for the iconic “American Idol” champ, leading Kelly to return in Season 13 as the Knockouts advisor to all four teams and then claim her own miss independence as a full-fledged coach from Seasons 14 to 21. This week’s statement means that last year’s Season 23 was not only Blake’s final, but it just may have been Kelly’s moment to walk away, too.

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Kelly won “The Voice” in her first two outings as a coach, ushering in a short-lived era of teenage winners of the show. Brynn Cartelli and Chevel Shepherd were 15 and 16 at the time of their wins, among the youngest the series has ever produced. Following one season where Kelly allowed John to breakaway with his own win, she earned her third championship with Jake Hoot in Season 17 and earned another record in Season 21 when Girl Named Tom became the first trio to win.

Since Kelly’s been gone from her chair, John Legend and Gwen Stefani have returned to theirs. They are joined by the only returning coach from Season 23, Niall Horan, who also happens to be the reigning champ. Reba McEntire took over Blake’s spot in his retirement, following up her own Season 23 stint as an advisor. Reba has already made a splash through a fiercely competitive round of blind auditions. Behind her hazel tots were four artists that Reba managed to bring on to her team as coveted “four-chair turns,” beating out the other coaches as the artists’ preferred choice in mentor.

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