Snoop Dogg is a new coach on The Voice season 26, and he’s already made a splash by doing something the show hasn’t seen before — bringing in a celebrity mentor who isn’t a professional singer. Many fans of NBC’s singing competition were confused to learn that Simone Biles would be working with the rapper’s team during the November 25, 2024, episode.
What Is Simone Biles Doing on ‘The Voice’?
Simone was announced as the playoff advisor for Team Snoop after the November 19, 2024, episode. She will help the rapper coach five vocalists who are vying for a spot on the live shows. At the end of the night, only two members of Snoop’s team will move forward to the next round.
“Talent, poise and 11 Olympic gold medals!” The Voice wrote on Instagram on November 21, 2024. “Welcome Simone Biles to #TheVoice as Team Snoop’s Playoff Advisor MONDAY 8/7c on @nbc.”
Many fans expressed their confusion over the casting choice in the comments.
“How does this make sense? Lol,” one user wrote.
“Love her! But she isn’t a singer :/,” another person added, while a third user commented, “I love her as [well] but I’m baffled?”
However, others took the opportunity to defend Simone and thought the decision made perfect sense.
“This totally makes sense when you realize that these people can already SING and what they need is training on stage presence, confidence, and performance, which she’s an expert in,” one person wrote.
Singer Savion Wright, a.k.a. NOIVAS, who competed on The Voice season 23, also weighed in. “People not realizing that Simone can actually give great advice on performance, routine, stage presence, and confidence. It’s not just about ‘the voice.’ They can already sing they don’t need advice on that … trust me, I would know, as a performer from the show,” he wrote.
Why Did Snoop Dogg Pick Simone Biles as His Advisor on ‘The Voice’?
Though Simone might seem like an unusual choice for The Voice, Snoop tapped the artistic gymnast himself to join him on the show after they meshed well together at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“We have such diverse careers. But the things that we dealt with, they’re dealing with now,” he told the Associated Press ahead of the episode. “We have the best experience and knowledge to give to these performers. She’s a performer. I’m a performer. We’ve performed under extreme conditions. We always do our best. But sometimes things happen behind closed doors that you don’t know about. So, we’re able to speak to those things and give them real reassurance.”
Snoop, who is a first-time coach alongside Michael Bublé and returning coaches Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani, said Simone fit in with his team, which is like a “family.”
“It feels good,” the rapper said. “[Simone] can do anything she wants to do. She picks and chooses what she wants to do. We’re at that point of our careers right now. It has to feel good. It can’t be forced or I’m not doing it. Period, point, blank.”
Meanwhile, Simone shared that she and Snoop were “able to riff off each other and give the artists the best insight going into the next round.”
The Olympian continued, “It was pretty easy, simple. We’re both very mellow. But if we need to bring that energy up, then we can. For us, it was about instilling confidence going into the next week.”
Simone, who won three gold medals and one silver at the Paris Olympics, also shared how she was able to relate to the artists despite not being a singer herself.
“These are the learning steps: Learn, process, go back in and work,” she explained. “They all have the vocal talent. It’s about harnessing that, knowing when to bring it out and which songs to sing and which genre you fit in. And what you want your legacy to be. This is truly a special show as well as the judging. They don’t get to see the physical appearance first. It’s all off of ears, listening and putting their craft together as well.”
