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Christina Aguilera's Voice hiatus: Here come Shakira and Usher

Christina Aguilera's Voice hiatus: The pop diva and Cee Lo Green will be taking a break from 'The Voice.'  The reason for the hiatus: Christian Aguilera is releasing a new album and going on tour. Colombian pop star Shakira and singer/songwriter Usher will fill their chairs next season.

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REUTERS/Gus Ruelas
Singer Christina Aguilera's hiatus from 'The Voice' will start next season. She has a new album. She will be replaced by Colombian singer Shakira. Above, Christina Aguilera arrives at the National Council of La Raza ALMA Awards in Pasadena, Calif.
  • By Yvonne Villarrea Los Angeles Times

| Los Angeles

The prospects for bedazzled outfits on “The Voice” just diminished significantly: NBC announced Monday that Shakira and Usher will join the show’s judges panel in the spring, filling in for pant-fearing Christina Aguilera and sequin-loving Cee Lo Green.

The move will allow the veteran judges some breathing room as they embark on other projects. Christina Aguilera is releasing a new album and going on tour. Green is working on new music and developing a scripted comedy series for the network based on his life. Not to worry, ladies (and gentlemen): Adam Levine and Blake Shelton will still be around.

RECOMMENDED: Are you a real American Idol fan? Take the quiz

“We are thrilled to welcome Usher and Shakira to ‘The Voice,’” said NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt in a statement. “Doing two back-to-back cycles of this show requires a tremendous amount of time, and we are happy to accommodate the commitments made by Christina and CeeLo. The participants on our show benefit from our coaches’ expertise and their continued success in the music business allows for significant new contributions to the contestants when they return.”

Wanting to ride “The Voice” wave some more after solid ratings, the network added a fall cycle of the show, which launched earlier this month. The move adds to the celebrity coaches’ already-full schedules but has proved somewhat advantageous in other ways. Thought ratings were down from the previous season, this season’s premiere still drew people away from the second-season premiere of Fox’s “The X Factor” and Britney Spears’ GIF-able expressions.

Will the new additions keep things from going south? Usher recently secured his fourth No. 1 album, ‘Looking for Myself” — his seventh studio album. He was the latest to be interviewed by Oprah Winfrey for the OWN series “Next Chapter.” And Shakira has a forthcoming English album in the works, with the first single expected to drop later this month.

In case you need to update your scorecard, let’s review:

—“American Idol” now has Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj, Mariah Carey and Randy Jackson.

—“The X Factor” boasts Britney Spears, Demi Lovato, L.A. Reid and Simon Cowell.

—“The Voice” features Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, Cee Lo Green and Christina Aguilea — the latter two will be swapped with Usher and Shakira in the spring.

RECOMMENDED: Are you a real American Idol fan? Take the quiz

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©2012 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by MCT Information Services

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