The Voice coach Niall Horan counts himself lucky to have debuted during season 23, which was Blake Shelton's swan song on the NBC series.
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"Blake, he's like a dad to me," Horan told NBC Insider."Y'know, 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. Meeting them for the first time, the bond that I've grown with them has been amazing. 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. It's been hilarious."
Shelton spoke equally as glowingly of Horan, who's competing in season 24 against not just John Legend but Shelton's spouse Gwen Stefani and the show's newest country music expert, Reba McEntire.
"I feel like Niall is going to take my seat on the show," Shelton said. "I'm passing the baton on to my son."
As Horan tells it, he was intentionally positioned under Shelton's learning tree.
"I learned a lot from Blake last year sitting next to him," Horan told NBC Insider. "That's what they tend to do: stick everyone down beside Blake if you're new. I learned a lot from even just watching 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."
A big adjustment for Horan has been learning the television ropes.
"I'm not used to being on TV unless it's an interview," he said. "This is a completely different beast. When Carson [Daly's] not there, we're hosting the show. You have to think on your feet a lot...We're not used to being the ones giving advice. We're just going about our careers day to day, doing gigs, going to the studio, writing songs and stuff like that. We're not used to being, like, 'This is what I think' and, 'This is how I think you should do it' and advice, advice, advice."
