Back in May, Blake Shelton returned to his roots, dropping his first album in four years, the winkingly titled For Recreational Use Only. After solely recording love songs with wife Gwen Stefani, the country singer offered up a surprising duet, “Hangin’ On” — the first breakup song the two have recorded together. Blake said they collaborated on the track, which is about “breaking up but still trying to stay together,” he told Access Hollywood in March, adding that he chose it simply because “it’s a bada*s country song,” insisting, “It’s really no reflection of where Gwen and I are in our relationship — I hope.”
In recent months, fans and friends alike have grown concerned the message may be more autobiographical than Blake let on. In fact, the pair haven’t been photographed in months. Date nights and getaways “don’t seem to be happening anymore,” an insider tells Star. “Gwen and Blake have been spending an awful lot of time apart lately.”
Ten years ago, the country music singer and the pop star unexpectedly fell in love following the implosions of their respective marriages — Blake’s to fellow country singer Miranda Lambert, 42; Gwen’s to Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale, 60. They bonded over their shared heartbreak while working as coaches on The Voice and wed four years ago in the chapel Blake built for his bride on his Tishomingo, Okla., ranch and continued to show the world their love on the NBC competition series until 2022. The pair were a surpising couple, with Gwen a fashion-loving California native and Blake a down-home country guy.
“The Voice was good for their marriage because it bonded them professionally,” says the source. (Not to mention it gave Blake, who’s “not an L.A. guy and never will be” per the source, a reason to spend time in L.A. despite his preference for his beloved farm.) But with Blake rooted in the country and Gwen looking ahead to a 2026 Las Vegas residency at Sphere, says the source, “It’s become a talking point amongst friends and fans that they’re living separate lives. A lot of people think the magic’s started to wear off.”
A Noticeable Shift
It’s been seven months since they last posed on a red carpet together — back when Blake hosted NBC’s Grand Ole Opry 100th anniversary celebration in March. A few weeks later, in April, Gwen shared snapshots from a family getaway to the Ozarks with Blake and her three sons from her first marriage, Kingston, 19, Zuma, 17, and Apollo, 11. Over the summer, she posted sweet tributes to their stepdad for Father’s Day, his 49th birthday and their wedding anniversary — though things have been noticeably quieter since. When Blake marked Gwen’s 56th birthday on Instagram Oct. 3, his message to his “pretty girl” was brief and, for him, relatively muted.
For fans used to their big, public love-fests — gushing posts, red-carpet PDA and plenty of playful back-and-forth — it’s hard not to notice the couple has dialed things back, marking a shift from the days when they’d seemingly shout their love from the rooftops. Last year, when ESPN’s Pat McAfee asked him about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s increasingly public romance, Blake said he got it — because he’d done the same thing. “It’s like, ‘Look, I’m dating Gwen Stefani. I want the f**kin’ world to know that.’ You know what I mean?” he said, adding that putting themselves out there was a way of showing the world they were “super into each other and proud of each other and their accomplishments.”
Now? Not so much. “Truth be told, they’re both so different and it’s starting to become more apparent now,” says the source. “There’s a real fear that the way things are headed, Blake and Gwen could wind up becoming another Hollywood divorce casualty, even though it’s the last thing either of them would want.”
Different People
By the time Blake was 14, he knew what made him truly happy. “Country music, fishing and hunting,” he told Hook & Barrel magazine in February. Gwen loved music, too — but never dirt, bugs and humidity, she confessed to People. “I’m like, makeup girl,” the No Doubt frontwoman told Rolling Stone, acknowledging she and Blake are “so opposite in so many ways.”
Heartache helped them find each other. Following the demise of their previous marriages in 2015, “I was at rock bottom, in the middle of hell… Gwen saved my life,” Blake told Billboard. “Who else on earth could understand going through a high-profile divorce from another musician?” As Gwen turned to her Roman Catholic faith to help her heal, Blake rediscovered his Christian roots, too. “I believe in God now more than I ever have in my life,” he told The Tennessean a few years into their romance, seeming to credit divine power for his relationship.
The city girl and the country boy tried to find common ground in Oklahoma — literally. “So much joy in gardening together,” Gwen told Rolling Stone last year. She even got “her own tractor,” Blake proudly told Nylon in 2024. Last year, he bragged about her nurturing instincts. “Gwen has an incredible sense for planting things: how to grow them and, once it’s growing, how to cultivate it, and when to prune something,” he said, adding, “I like to farm on a big scale, like corn or beans, acres at a time. She concentrates more on patches here and there and ends up farming things a little better than I do.” But the truth, according to the source, “is Gwen’s more at home in L.A. and this life in the outdoors doesn’t really stimulate or excite her the same way it does Blake. She gave up so much for him by moving to the ranch full-time, and it’s been a lonely existence at times.”
More Time Apart
Now Gwen’s gearing up for a sweet escape. Last month — days before the Oct. 19 debut of the new music competition show Blake’s hosting on CBS, The Road — No Doubt announced the band is reuniting for a series of high-profile concerts in Las Vegas, marking the 30th anniversary of their seminal album, Tragic Kingdom, which produced hits that include “Just a Girl,” “Don’t Speak,” “Spiderwebs” and “Sunday Morning.” Blake is busy too, says the source — making music, occasional tour dates, his Ole Red restaurant chain and TV projects — “but he’s all about the downtime when he can get it these days, whereas Gwen’s got a ton of commitments coming up. The Vegas residency is a big deal — she’s excited about that but also nervous as it’s a huge challenge. And it’ll mean more time apart from Blake.”
And it could mean the end. Last year, Blake gushed about his happy life with his wife. “She’s my best friend,” he told Access Hollywood. “Maybe that’s the key… we literally have so much fun together. Whether [we’re] having a cup of coffee in the morning or watching a movie or performing in an arena somewhere.” Those who know them are hoping they can get back to that place “and get back on track,” says the source. “The priority is to get in the same room again and stop the rot before it’s too late.”
Gwen Stefani & Blake Shelton’s Marriage Has Reportedly Become a ‘Talking Point’ Among Their Friends
Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton have gone through phases where their four-year marriage is a hot topic of conversation, and it appears to be happening again.
Fans raised a few eyebrows back in March when Shelton released a duet with his wife called “Hangin’ On.” He promised that the breakup song was “really no reflection of where Gwen and I are in our relationship — I hope,” but he seemed to plant a seed of doubt in Access Hollywood viewers.
Now, the couple’s reported distance seems to be worrying some of their friends since they haven’t been seen in public together in months.
“Gwen and Blake have been spending an awful lot of time apart lately,” a Star Magazine insider claimed. It’s become a talking point amongst friends and fans that they’re living separate lives. A lot of people think the magic’s started to wear off.”
The 56-year-old pop star is busy preparing for her 2026 Las Vegas residency at The Sphere with No Doubt, and he’s focusing on his country music career, Ole Red restaurant chain, and his CBS show, The Road. Still, Shelton and Stefani have a very different approach to their careers.
The source noted that “he’s all about the downtime when he can get it these days, whereas Gwen’s got a ton of commitments coming up. The Vegas residency is a big deal — she’s excited about that, but also nervous as it’s a huge challenge. And it’ll mean more time apart from Blake.”
Stefani gave a subtle update on their relationship in an August Instagram post where she showed a plaque of Shelton’s handprints in cement, and lots of lipstick kisses surrounding them. But the duo has fought against breakup rumors over the years.
The “Hollaback Girl” told Nylon in April 2024 that she and Shelton are solid.
“The truth is I am in love with my best friend,” she explained. “When you’re in love and have truly aligned values, nobody can get to us. You can say whatever you want to say about our relationship — I mean, a week ago we were getting divorced again or something. It’s just lies. The truth is the truth, and we know what that is…”
Some friends might be side-eyeing Stefani and Shelton’s marriage, but it seems like they are on the right track despite their hectic schedules.
Blake Shelton Gets Real About Regrets From ‘The Voice’ And How He’s Changing The Game With ‘The Road’
He called out the flaws in the show that he believes ultimately kept contestants from reaching star status.
Blake Shelton was the longest-serving coach on NBC’s The Voice, having guided contestants every season from 2011 through 2023 and earning nine wins along the way. While he played a monumental role in helping a slew of hopeful artists launch their careers, none have ever reached true superstar status. Looking back, Shelton admits how disappointing that reality is to him.
The country superstar recently co-hosted Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton, where he reflected on this chapter of his career and revealed how that lack of major success inspired him to start his own TV talent contest, The Road.
When Helton asked whether it bothered him that The Voice never produced a major star, Shelton didn’t hold back in his response. He acknowledged a few flaws in the show that stood out to him and explained that in his eyes, those issues ultimately kept contestants from fully thriving after their time in the competition.
He said, “It bothered me more than it bothered the TV people. It’s easy to see why. By the time the artist wins the show, they’ve already moved on to the next season. But also, that show was more about the coaches, and that’s why it was so popular, and not as much focus on the artists.”
Now, the “Stay Country or Die Trying” singer is aiming to change that with The Road, a new TV competition series which stars Keith Urban (who also serves as executive producer) and features Gretchen Wilson as the “tour manager.”
The series follows 12 up-and-coming musicians competing for a shot at becoming country music’s next big star. In each episode, the contestants perform as opening acts for Urban at venues across the U.S., while feedback from live audiences and special guest judges, including special guests Jordan Davis, Karen Fairchild, Dustin Lynch, and Brothers Osborne, determines which artists advance to the next city in the competition.
The journey will come to an end when one lucky winner takes home a life-changing prize package: $250,000 in cash, a recording contract with Country Road Records (a division of 101 Studios in partnership with Thirty Tigers), and a performance on the iconic Mane Stage at the 2026 Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California.
Thanks to Red Bull, the winner will also earn a spot at Red Bull Jukebox in Nashville. Meanwhile, the two runners-up will each receive five recording sessions at Red Bull Studio in Los Angeles.
Shelton created the unique show concept alongside his co-executive producer, Taylor Sheridan, who he noted had a major impact on the series fans can watch on TV now.
“I met him through a mutual friend. He’s an amazing guy to work with. He’s a creative genius. He can have a huge impact on the way a show looks. He has done a lot with music on Yellowstone, and he really wanted to be part of a music competition show,” Shelton said of Sheridan.
Once the ideas started to flow for their new show, he called up his fellow country act, Keith Urban, asking him to join them in their search for stars.
“I got Keith on the phone, and told him our idea, and we came up the same way. That’s how this show was developed. Once he heard the idea, he was in. It’s a fun way to do a show.”
Now that the show is in full swing, Helton asked Shelton if they’ve done something that really works this time, and the country act appeared confident in the show’s ability to launch new talent.
“I think we found stars. Because they will perform an original song. Some of those original songs will take off and go viral. Whether they win or not. Their music will be available when the show airs, so they won’t have to wait for the end of the show to buy their music,” he explained.
THE ROAD’s extended premiere aired Sunday, Oct. 19 on the CBS Television Network. New episodes continue to air every week on the network and is also available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+*.
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