The Voice Australia coach LeAnn Rimes dramatically walks off set after refusing to eliminate favourite contestants: 'I don't like this'

LeAnn Rimes has dramatically walked off set after refusing to choose between two of her favorite contestants.

The American singer stormed off after watching a Battle Rounds between singers Brad Butcher and Tori Darke.

'This is hard. I don't like this' the 42-year-old said, looking troubled and delaying her response as she pondered what to do.

'I really don't know. It's really hard' she continued, before getting up and leaving her chair.

'Hold on. Hold on, hold on, hold on' she said, the stunned everyone by walking off set.

LeAnn later returned with an offer - keeping both singers on as a duo instead of solo artists.

'You don't have to' she said of her request to the two nervous singers.

'Obviously this is completely your choice, but if you don't choose to go through as a duo obviously I'll have to make a choice and send one of you home today.'

The pair were given a minute to think it over - before accepting to move forward together.

'Surprise!!! Well that was an unexpected turn of events,' Tori later wrote on social media.

'I couldn't think of a better human to continue this wild ride with than my mate

thank you for believing in us, we are gonna make you proud. LETS GO!' she concluded.

It comes after LeAnn was pegged as a 'one and done' coach on The Voice Australia by TV insiders.

After Daily Mail Australia revealed the '90s country music star would be using her turn on the The Voice Australia as 'a dress rehearsal' for the more popular UK iteration of the show, those behind the scenes have suggested Rimes will indeed be leaving sooner rather than later.

Rimes joined the TV singing competition this year, after homegrown songstress Jessica Mauboy, Brit Rita Ora , and American hitmaker Jason Derulo left their big red chairs.

Despite this season of The Voice Australia firming up to be The Block's prime time ratings contender, industry insiders claim it may not be enough to persuade new coach LeAnn to commit to regular appearances Down Under.

'She could well be a 'one and done' coach,' a TV insider told New Idea.

'So far, she has struggled to find her voice on the show, as her fellow coaches Guy Sebastian, Kate Miller-Heidke and Adam Lambert banter with one another – and snap up the most talented contestants.'

Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian, who started on The Voice in 2019, is the last judge remaining from the 2023 line-up .

Production for this season got underway in March, when Jess was touring her Yours Forever album, Rita was in the US filming the American version of The Masked Singer after joining the judging panel there, and Derulo was touring in Europe.

LeAnn made her debut on The Voice this year alongside Guy and the two other new coaches, fellow American Adam Lambert and Kate Miller-Heidke.

Respected, classically-trained Aussie pop singer-songwriter Kate is believed to have replaced Jess as 'the nice judge' archetype.

Ghost Town singer Adam, who arrived in Sydney to perform at Mardi Gras in March, is the obvious replacement for Jason as the global hitmaker judge.

Adam has 'proved popular' the magazine's source continued, because he's an example of how to make a career stick after winning the competition.

The runner-up in American Idol back in 2009 went on to tour the world with Queen's Roger Taylor and Brian May .

LeAnn, then, is the substitute for 33-year-old UK songstress Rita — but there's an age gap problem.

The insider claimed some of the younger contestants on the show were initially 'reluctant' to choose LeAnn as their new coach because 'they didn't know who she was.'

LeAnn's signature hit song How Do I Live topped global charts in 1997, followed up by Can't Fight The Moonlight from 2000 film Coyote Ugly — before some of this season's younger contestants were born.

The Voice Australia continues to be pipped in the TV ratings by Nine's home renovation show The Block, which pulled an average of 1.039 million viewers last week compared to its 986,000 .

Channel Seven will not yet comment whether there will be changes to show's judging panel in 2025.