The Voice announced it will finish its current season with mix of live and taped remote segments, as production has had to make changes amid the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown.
The show’s panel of celebrity judges – Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, John Legend and Blake Shelton – will appear from their homes via teleconference, as NBC will have the contestants submit their performances in prerecorded segments, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The show’s studio, with its trademark red chairs, will be vacant except for host Carson Daly, who will direct traffic with a scaled-down crew adhering to current social distancing statutes.
Changes: The Voice announced it will finish its current season with mix of live and taped remote segments. (L-R) Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson, host Carson Daly, Nick Jonas and John Legend will remote in from their homes
Audrey Morrissey, the program’s showrunner and executive producer, credited the cast and crew’s ‘incredible team effort with the coaches, artists and their loved ones being involved in the process.
‘Reinventing the live shows has allowed us to create innovative ways to bring The Voice to life in a fresh and intimate way,’ Morrissey said. ‘With Carson at the helm from the stage, we are excited to share a unique Voice experience that will feel both new and familiar.’
The show will return Monday with the 17 finalists sending in performances and being mentored.
To pave the way for smooth production, the show set up the artists with audio and video equipment with pointers on dress and choreography, according to THR.
Moving forward: Votes will be counted between Monday and Tuesday as the field is shrunk down to nine remaining performers
Icon: James Taylor (with Shelton) will mentor and perform on the series this week
James Taylor will appear and perform on the series, with votes being counted between Monday and Tuesday as the field is shrunk down to nine remaining performers.
Other musically-formatted broadcasts that have pivoted to video conferencing amid the near-national lockdown in an effort to flatten the curve of the virus include ABC’s American Idol and The Disney Family Singalong on ABC; ACM Presents: Our Country on CBS; and the One World: Together at Home, which streamed on multiple platforms.
The coronavirus has heavily impacted the music industry, as pop superstar Pink and singer-songwriter Jackson Browne are among the stars who have said they tested positive for the virus.
Trend: The show follows the direction of other musically-formatted broadcasts that have pivoted to video conferencing amid the near-national lockdown in an effort to flatten the curve
In studio: The show’s studio with its trademark red chairs will be vacant except for host Carson Daly, who will direct traffic with a scaled-down crew adhering to current social distancing statues
Others who’ve tested positive singer include Natalie Horner, Duran Duran bassist John Taylor, opera singer Placido Domingo, singer Sara Bareilles, singer Christopher Cross, singer Charlotte Lawrence and Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan.
Singer-songwriter John Prine, 73, Jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis Jr., 85, and Fountains of Wayne Cofounder Adam Schlesinger, 52, have all died of complications from COVID-19.
As of Thursday, the death total for COVID-19 was at 57,266 people in the U.S., with 1,061,101 total positive diagnoses, The COVID Tracking Project reported.
On a global level, 233,405 people have died amid 3,257,520 positive diagnoses worldwide, Johns Hopkins University reported.