Aguilera and Cee Lo Leave, Shakira and Usher Join "The Voice"

As was the case over the summer with American Idol, there are some shakeups on the judges’ panel of The Voice.  It has been announced that for the upcoming fourth season of the show, Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green will be replaced by Shakira and Usher.  The original judges will be returning for the fifth season, however, in fall 2013.

NBC had to have seen this coming when they chose to start airing two seasons of the show in one year.  The best part about the panel is that the judges are current artists which means that they can’t just give up year after year without releasing records and going on tour. 

Plus, they all need some personal time too.  As Aguilera recently explained to Seacrest, she assumed The Voice would be "kind of like a side project...then it kind of took off, and there goes my free time!"  She does, afterall, have a small child so that must be a bit of a challenge.  At the same time, she’s been busy working on her own career and just released her newest single “Your Body” from her upcoming album, Lotus, which is scheduled for a November release.

Both Aguilera and Green have thanked NBC for the network’s willingness to allow them to take time off to focus on their careers.  As Green put it, he feels that their decision means that he’s “seen and respected as a complete artist and not just a cast member.” 

He’s definitely got a point.  It’s improbable that Fox would be as flexible considering how drama-filled this summer has been while they replaced their judges.  It should be interesting to see Usher and Shakira on the panel since they both are definitely appropriate choices.  Could The Voice turn into a six-judge show?