Ronan Keating might insist that “there’s no b—hiness going on” between The Voice Australia coaches this year, but that doesn’t mean secret allegiances aren’t forming behind those spinning red chairs!
Insiders tell New Idea that personal relationships between the coaches, which, along with Ronan, include Melanie ‘Mel C’ Chisholm, Kate Miller-Heidke, and Richard Marx, could result in strategic partnerships emerging that influence the outcome of the singing competition.
“Secret pacts between the coaches happen all the time,” says the source. “It’s almost a given at this point!”
While Ronan says Kate is the best female singer in Australia and puts Richard “on a pedestal”, he is closest to Mel, 51, so he could potentially form an alliance with her.
As members of Boyzone and the Spice Girls respectively, they have known each other for more than 30 years and supported each other through many ups and downs.
“Melanie is one of my oldest friends,” Ronan, 48, says. “We grew up together in the industry, [and] we’ve both watched each other grow.
“I hold her in high regard, not just as an artist but as a human being as well.”
Meanwhile, Kate has hinted she could team up with Richard. In a chat with New Idea, the classically trained singer admitted that if she were to appear on The Voice as a contestant, she would pick ’80s icon Richard, 61, to be her coach in a heartbeat.
“I was a massive Richard Marx fan back in the day. ‘Hazard’ is still one of my all-time favourite songs,” she tells us.
“His CV is insane. Like the people that he’s written for and worked with and produced over the years … I mean, he’s just a true artist, musician, composer, piano player, vocalist. He has it all.”
That being said, Kate, 43, was just as starstruck by Mel C, so her girlhood love for the Spice Girls could see her siding with Sporty Spice!
“Just being in the same room as a Spice Girl is an extraordinary experience,” she tells us.
Kate acted as a bit of a mentor to both Richard and Mel, who are new to The Voice stage. Ronan was previously a coach for our 2016 season, and also held the role on The Voice Germany and The Voice UK Kids.
“I was the only coach from last year who returned. We had that strange experience of the other coaches asking me for my advice,” she says.
It’s a 180 from Kate’s debut season last year, where she admits to feeling like a “stranger in Strangerland”.
“I was trying to learn as much as I could from the other coaches, who were all amazing,” she explains. “I was a bit nervous … I had to do a lot of learning on the job, and it was a steep learning curve.”
This year, Kate’s grown in confidence and isn’t afraid to put up a fight.
“I knew the drill,” she says. “I felt like I belonged [in the chair].”
