Season 20 of The Voice just started, and it’s gearing up to be a big one. Judges Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, Nick Jonas, and Blake Shelton are all eager to pick and train the winning contestant on this season, which also marks the 10th anniversary of the show. But with the mud-slinging and good-natured competitiveness between the judges, viewers sometimes forget about the real prize. The winning judge earns bragging rights for future seasons, but what about the winning singer? What do they walk away with?

None of the competitors that make it past the first episode of the show walk away empty-handed. The contestants get expert advice from big names in the music industry. Season 20 includes heavy-hitters like Darren Criss and Brandy, who are the mentors for Nick Jonas and John Legend’s teams, respectively. Whether or not a singer takes home the big prize, they gain a personal vocal masterclass that only the richest of the rich could ever afford. Besides the boost to the singers’ resumes, musicians who have worked in the business for decades can offer invaluable advice to relative newcomers.

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The winner of each season of The Voice reportedly gets $100,000 and a recording contract with Universal Music Group (via Taste of Country). By comparison, the winner of American Idolis reported to get $250,000, plus a $1,000 weekly stipend while recording their album. Beyond that, the winner’s celebrity coach has sometimes offered other perks to the champion. Judge Blake Shelton has taken winners from his team on tour with him and tried to push Universal Music Group to properly promote their records. Considering he makes $16 million per season of The Voice, he can afford to support his winners. Some judges, like Adam Levine, have offered to sign contestants to their own record label. Kelly Clarkson now has her own daytime talk show on which she could promote winners from her team.

As for lasting singing fame, The Voice doesn’t seem to offer its competitors the same sort of notoriety that American Idol does. While American Idol has produced big names like Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, and even current The Voice judge Kelly Clarkson, The Voice hasn’t created the same sort of household-name recognition for their winners. A handful of past winners have managed to scratch out successful full-time singing careers, but most have found themselves back at square one after winning the show. With two seasons every year, producers don’t dedicate much time to past winners, as they’re always focused on the next season.

Despite not creating superstars, the show has not had trouble finding willing competitors for 20 seasons now. Even if contestants don’t become famous, $100,000 is a prize most people would be happy to receive. Appearing on The Voice has possibly done more to boost the music careers of the judges rather than the contestants. In the end, competitors have to decide if the prize money is enough to justify the sacrifices they make to appear on the show since they can’t count on a profitable singing career in the future, even if they win.

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

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Source: Taste of Country

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Veronica Brush
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Veronica Brush is a writer of many words. When she’s not contributing to Screen Rant, she can usually be found in a dark corner, composing tales of fantastical futures. Her musings include a novella series about murder in the first Martian colony and a short story about robot psychology. The rest of the time, Veronica can be found doing her actual full-time job: snuggling her dogs (a job for which she has yet to be paid.)

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