'He's my brother': Christina Aguilera admits she will miss The Voice rival Adam Levine following her departure

By Mike Larkin

PUBLISHED: 18:51 EST, 22 September 2012 | UPDATED: 02:05 EST, 24 September 2012

In love: Christina Aguilera has revealed fellow Voice judge Adam Levine is like her brother

They have been the bitterest of rivals on The Voice.

But now she is quitting the show Christina Aguilera has revealed she will miss Adam Levine most of all.

Speaking for the first time about her recently announced departure, she admitted 'it's bittersweet'.

The 31-year-old told E!:  'I so enjoy being a coach to my team on The Voice [and] and at this point in season three, all of us coaches have truly bonded.

'When me and Adam are on breaks backstage, you know, we're writing profanity with my red lipstick all over Blake's trailer while he's napping inside.

'It's like we have definitely become like brother and sister. We goof around and play around. I'm going to miss it.'

The Dirrty singer is temporarily leaving the show for season four along with fellow judge Cee-Lo Green, though they could potentially return.

The pair are to be replaced by saucy Colombian singer Shakira and Justin Bieber's mentor Usher.

However the Candyman favourite thinks it will be difficult to recreate the camaraderie of the original panel, which also includes country crooner Blake Shelton.

And she is leaving the door open for a spectacular return if her new album Lotus does not perform as well as she hopes.

Off: Cee Lo Green is also taking the opportunity to recharge his batteries next season

She said: 'In order to be the best coach I can be on that show is to go out and be able to have the experience as an artist.

'Create new experiences for myself so that I can then come back to the show and share that much more.

'We're artists first. In order to remain great coaches and to stay relevant, we have to go out and we have to still tour, see our fans one-on-one.

'I have to feel creatively fulfilled in order for me to then do my job as a coach and be on that show.'

Hard to beat: Christina thinks it ill be difficult to recreate the chemistry of the original panel