Niall Horan may be Irish, but he's using a different accent to charm his fellow coaches on "The Voice."
The former One Direction singer is doing his best impression of Blake Shelton's country accent ahead of the premiere of Season 23 of "The Voice," and he's crushing it.
"I'm Blake Shelton," Horan says in his best Southern twang in a promo video for "The Voice," sending fellow judges Shelton, Kelly Clarkson and Chance the Rapper into laughter. "This is my last season on 'The Voice,' and I would be honored if you'd be on the last ever Team Blake."
"Oh s---," Clarkson says in response, nearly in tears.
And the imitation wasn't a one-hit wonder — Horan brought the accent back on an appearance on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" on Feb. 22.
Clarkson asked Horan how he manages to talk like Shelton. Horan said Shelton remarked the impression actually sounded like Forrest Gump.
"No you don't," Clarkson said, before Horan launched into his best Southern accent once again.
"This is my last season on 'The Voice.' I want you to be on my team, and I hate Kelly Clarkson," Horan said in another near-perfect rendition of Shelton's voice.
"Yep, about sums it up," Clarkson said with a huge grin.
Clarkson commended Horan, who is a first-time coach, for immediately jumping in and "giving Shelton crap."
"No, for sure, I love winding him up," Horan said.
Shelton has been a judge on "The Voice" since Season One, which aired in 2011, and Clarkson joined in Season 14. He announced he would be stepping away from the show in October 2022 after this upcoming season.
"This show has changed my life in every way for the better and it will always feel like home to me," he said in a statement at the time. "It’s been a hell of a ride over these 12 years of chair turns and I want to thank everyone at 'The Voice' from NBC, every producer, the writers, musicians, crew and catering people, you are the best."
Shelton has won nine times, most recently last season with 22-year-old country singer Bryce Leatherwood. Season 23 of "The Voice" premieres on March 6.
