Kelsea Ballerini might have made a name for herself as a country singer, but she has now jumped into the world of reality television, taking on the role of a judge on The Voice. As a new face for the show’s 27th season, Kelsea joins fellow judges Michael Bublé, John Legend, and Adam Levine.

Her time on The Voice has seen her bonding with her fellow judges and sharing her passion for music. However, Kelsea has made it clear that she doesn’t want to make it all about the judges. She wants the contestants to have their moment as well. She even used her final steal to advocate for one contestant, in particular, who she was very passionate about.

Kelsea Ballerini Finally Stole Darius J After Begging To Have Him On Her Team From The Beginning

Kelsea Ballerini is smarter than some viewers might have guessed. During a recent episode, Kelsea used her final steal on The Voice to grab Darius J from Team Adam. As a result, it’s clear she was extremely happy with her decision.

“I have been waiting for this for so long,” Kelsea said with glee as she hit the steal button. “I think Darius is so special. He has this certainty about him and this joy, quirkiness. I don’t think I have anyone on my beat on that level of full-encompassing performer. I fought so hard for Darius since the jump.”

A flashback to Darius’ audition was then shown where viewers are reminded of the fact that Kelsea begged to have him on her team from the very beginning. “You are such an artist and my gut is telling me that I can do this with you,” she told him. During her interview, Kelsea happily declared, “I finally got him… I am so giddy to work with Darius J in the playoffs.” Conor James was his competition in the knockouts, but Darius impressed the audience with a performance of Estelle’s “American Boy.”

Following the performance, Adam Levine praised Darius’ energy and stage presence. “Darius, first of all, really great job turning this into a more high energy performance. That’s a hard thing to do. You definitely accomplished that today. Congratulations man,” Adam told him.

Conor, meanwhile, performed “Forever Young” by Alphaville. Adam’s feedback was also positive, as he complimented Conor for taking on “a very difficult song.” “You sung the crap out of it,” Adam said. “Between your voice and Darius your showmanship… honestly this knockout round felt like you were both finalists.”

Adam admitted that he “had a feeling” the universe would “do as it should” before making his decision. He ultimately chose Conor. “The possibilities are kind of limitless with Conor. That dude can just sing like very few people can. Just soulfulness. I want to lean into that even more. He’s going to be around a while,” Adam explained.

Darius posted a black-and-white photo on Instagram after the episode aired. In the picture, Darius is wearing his Team Adam sweatshirt and showing off his new Tecovas boots from Kelsea. “’One of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you ‘ 👢👢👢👢 #TEAMKELSEY,” he wrote in the caption.

Kelsea Revealed How Her Spot On The Voice Came To Be

Believe it or not, this isn’t the first time Kelsea has been a part of The Voice. Prior to becoming a permanent judge, Kelsea was the first person to coach the comeback stage. She was also a battle advisor and even filled in for Kelly Clarkson during Season 20 of The Voice.

During her time filling in for Kelly, she realized judging The Voice was something she actually wanted to do. “I have a screenshot on my phone!” Kelsea told Byrdie. “I sent a text to my girlfriends, and I was like, ‘I really think I want this chair one day.’”

“Between the three of those experiences, I was like, I think I really want to do this. I’m so uncomfortable, but I like it,” Kelsea told Backstage Country. “I’m not writing a song or singing my song on stage. It’s just like a different part of the job, I guess. And, it’s also on TV and a lot of people watch it, and that’s terrifying.”

Producers from The Voice visited Nashville nearly two years ago when Blake Shelton left the show. Several artists were interviewed to be potential judges, including Kelsea. While she had a great dinner with the producers, Kelsea was unaware of the other artists being considered.

“At the end of dinner, something just came over me and I looked at them and I said, ‘Hey. I really want this, and I know that you’re probably talking to a lot of people that have a bigger track record and all the things, but I just want you to know that I know I can do this and I really want to do this, so I just want you to hear that from me.’ I walked away and I was like, well, who is that? Who is she? And so, yeah, then the call came for this next season,” Kelsea said.

She continued, “Luckily, you know, I was like, no, I didn’t get it last year. Then ‘Rolling Up The Welcome Mat’ happened. I was able to have the time to like really tour it and really, really put my focus into that music, which is the most important thing to me. So it really worked out beautifully and I’m very excited.”

Kelsea isn’t the first country artist who has been a judge on The Voice. Other notable judges have included Shelton, Dan + Shay, and Reba McEntire. Christina Aguilera, Shakira, Usher, Ariana Grande and Nick Jonas have also served as judges on The Voice.

During her chat with Byrdie, Kelsea credited “perfect, divine timing” to her landing the job. According to the singer, Kelsea has learned just as much wisdom as she has taught the contestants. “It’s been such a beautiful experience. I think it’s really sharpened me as an artist because as you’re giving advice, you’re also reminding yourself of the same thing,” she told the outlet. “As I was filming The Voice, I was also finishing the album. Then I was putting the album out, and I was actually doing the things I was giving advice about, so it was a refresher for me.”

Kelsea also said The Voice gave her an opportunity to support other female artists who are up-and-coming. Kelsea said she “always known” she was “drawn to and protective of” these women. “It ignited in me, being in that seat, how much I want to see and enable and help facilitate whatever they need,” she revealed. When asked about her own industry mentors, Kelsea said there were specific things each of them offered her. “A huge part of my growth is [thanks to] the women who came before me, turned around, reached out their hand, brought me up on their stage, had me over to their couch for wine, whatever it was.”

Kelsea Opened Up About Her Relationship With The Other Judges

Kelsea’s time on The Voice has provided her with an opportunity to reflect on her career and what she has accomplished. “It’s making me go into the last 10 years and think, wow, I really have done a lot. I have learned a lot,” she told Byrdie. “It’s helping me give credibility to my career. Being up there with people I grew up listening to, and having an opinion they’re holding on the same level as their own, has felt beautiful.”

Kelsea also told the outlet that she now has “three new brothers” in her fellow judges, John Legend, Michael Bublé, and Adam Levine. “There’s a level of warm and fuzzy we all have for each other. There’s never been a day, not once, that we’ve left set without texting the group chat to build each other up.”

While at Deadline’s Contenders Television: Documentary, Unscripted & Variety event, Kelsea spoke about the importance of allowing the contestants to have their moment. She admitted to wanting success as a judge, but didn’t intend to take attention away from those who were competing.

“I am competitive. I think when I first started, like during the blind [auditions], I was very I really wanted to win,” she said. “That shifted now that we’re deeper into the season, and just having conversations off camera, either with [showrunner and executive producer] Audrey [Morrissey] and the producers or the other coaches, the win really is knowing that these artists are having these moments, and whether it’s the finale where they win and that’s attached to one of us, or it’s the knockouts, and they don’t make it past that, but it’s an impactful moment on the show and for their career, that’s a win.”

Kelsea also revealed that The Voice caused her to “rewire” her own idea of what success means. “What is the end goal? What is the win? It used to be a number one or a certain award, and those things are amazing, and knock on all the wood around me, those are a part of my career for a while, but I think it is just finding those moments that feel impactful and connective. You’re seeing that every episode for people. So do I want to win? [Absolutely]. But am I happy to just see these artists on every team have moments? I really am,” she said.