'I hate this country': Adam Levine sparks outrage with 'unpatriotic' comment on The Voice... but insists it was just a joke

PUBLISHED: 14:01 EST, 29 May 2013 | UPDATED: 01:48 EST, 30 May 2013

View
comments

He drew criticism after he was overheard muttering, 'I hate this country,' when viewers voted two of his contestants off The Voice last night.

But Adam Levine has jumped to his own defense, blaming the controversial comment on his disappointment at the results.

'I obviously love my country very much and my comments last night were made purely out of frustration,' the 34-year-old told US Weekly on Wednesday.

Scroll down for video

'I love my country very much': Adam Levine, pictured on The Voice on Tuesday, defends his 'unpatriotic' comment on Wednesday to US Weekly

Adam's comment was branded as 'unpatriotic', 'insensitive,' and 'uncalled for' by some Twitter followers.

The singer, who was born and raised in Los Angeles, initially responded playfully via Twitter, listing the dictionary definitions for the words 'misunderstand,' 'lighthearted,' 'humorless' and 'joke.'

Other Twitter followers agreed with Adam's anger over the elimination of his contestants Judith Hill and Sarah Simmons.

You're both out: Two of Adam's proteges - Judith Hill and Sarah Simmons - were voted off the competition on Tuesday night

'Being a part of The Voice, I am passionately invested in my team and want to see my artists succeed,' Adam told US.

'Last night's elimination of Judith and Sarah was confusing and downright emotional for me and my comments were made based on my personal dissatisfaction with the results.'

'I am very connected to my artists and know they have long careers ahead, regardless of their outcome on the show,' he added.

VIDEO: Listen to Adam Levine say "I hate this country" at 0:22

Adam Levine: "I hate this country"

'I'm p---ed off': Adam, pictured in NYC in February, said after the results that he was 'shocked' and 'sad'

Adam also spoke to US immediately after Tuesday's results show. 'I'm sad . . . and a little p---ed off, to be honest,' he said. 'I was shocked, actually. I think they all gave us really strong performances.

'I'm really passionate about these singers and their talent and believe that maybe their talent was overshadowed by some other things,' he said.

Adam only has one contestant remaining - country singer Amber Carrington, while the proteges of the other judges Shakira, Usher and Blake Shelton all stayed on.

Add your comments

Comments (30)

The comments below have not been moderated.

View all

These stupid shows are not based on talent but on popularity. (ooh, he's got pretty hair. I hate her dress, say the "voters") These shows all should be done away with. JMHO, of course.

- daria , USA, 30/5/2013 14:34

Click to rate Rating 1

Hey, I love my country, but there ARE a lot of imbeciles living here ... we reelected both W. Bush and Obama, for chrissakes!

- Cat2012 , New York City, 30/5/2013 14:03

Click to rate Rating 2

This is the same country that buys his crappy music.

- SonofaB , New York City, United States, 30/5/2013 13:33

Click to rate Rating 3

I dunno he seems to have Lee Van Cleefish eyes and hasn't properly shaven, 6 months in guantanamo bay? wait a sec he has an NBC logo tattooed on his right hand nevermind.

- Stuart , Edinburgh Scotland, United Kingdom, 30/5/2013 11:38

Click to rate Rating 3

His beautiful :) god I hate this country sometimes oh and moaning old twits

- Pnp , Leicester, United Kingdom, 30/5/2013 10:07

Click to rate Rating 2

His beautiful :) god I hate this country sometimes oh and moaning old twits

- Pnp , Leicester, United Kingdom, 30/5/2013 10:04

Click to rate Rating 1

Is this an English news site? Am I supposed to be outraged on behalf of America lol? Totally irrelevant

- me , uk, United Kingdom, 30/5/2013 09:27

Click to rate Rating 10

I've lost count how many times I've said the same about England. I don't mean it either but If you carry on reading on this site, there's a good chance you'll utter something similar and it's nothing to do with a couple of singers...

- Jagger , Bkk, Thailand, 30/5/2013 08:39

Click to rate Rating 10

I think Adam Levine's comment was absolutely inappropriate. His "country" had nothing to do with his two singers being voted off The Voice. His two singers got the least amount of votes from people who tweeted, phoned, etc. If he wants to verbally blame anyone, blame the voters who were unable to have the same vision that Adam had for these two singers. I'm a big fan of Adam Levine, but his comment wasn't necessary nor appropriate.

- Sue , USA, 30/5/2013 04:38

Click to rate Rating 6

I do love this country but sometimes the mediocrity of the masses gets me down.

- Nancy , Washington D.C., United States, 30/5/2013 04:21

Click to rate Rating 36

Share this comment

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.