After Reba McEntire was announced she would be starring on The Voice — and taking over for Blake Shelton — even the country singer was surprised about the news!

“Well, he kept asking me if I was going to do it,” McEntire recalled in a new interview. “I couldn’t tell him that I was going to do it — because they say he can’t keep a secret.”

The red-headed beauty, 68, was first asked to join the show in 2011, but she declined.

“The first time I ever heard of The Voice, I saw the tape from Holland’s [version of the show],” she shared “They asked me to do it, and I turned it down.”

“But I think timing is everything,” the country legend added. “It all worked out for it to work now. I think I’ll be a better mentor to help the kids out more. 

I call them kids because they’re all younger than me. But I will be really excited to get it started.”

The “God’s Country” crooner, 46, was then asked about what he thinks of McEntire appearing on the music reality show.

“Well, there’s a couple of things about Reba that makes her so special. First of all, she’s just so authentic,” he told Extra. “I don’t know anybody country, or on the planet, [who is more authentic than] Reba, and that’s just the truth, but the other thing is her talent. … She was born with this raw, natural talent that’s just unbelievable.”

He continued, “People will finally maybe start to realize what an incredible vocalist she is. I shouldn’t say that; millions of us already know that. But so many more people are going to realize what an incredible vocalist she is because she’s going to, as a coach on this show, perform at times, you know, and it’s just, it’s shocking what an incredible singer she is.”

Additionally, Shelton will have to keep coming back to the set since his wife, Gwen Stefani, will return as a judge next season.

“Gwen’s got a lot of reasons to keep coming back to The Voice. First and foremost I know she absolutely loves this job and she’s always excited and a little bit shocked when they call and ask her and invite her to come back again,” he said. “I’m going, ‘Why? Why are you surprised by this? Of course they want you!’”

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Source: USA Today