Why Did Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton Split? Divorce to Now
Country stars Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert have been divorced for a while, but their split will go down as one of the most tumultuous in A-list history. Their feud lasted for years after their uncoupling, but luckily, they have since moved on. Miranda married former NYPD officer Brendan McLoughlin in January 2019, while Blake married fellow musician Gwen Stefani in July 2021. Although they both found amazing partners, fans still wonder what went wrong between Blake and Miranda, who were country music’s darlings for years. Keep reading to learn more about their divorce!
Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert Didn’t Always See Eye-To-Eye
Blake and Miranda may have been seen by the country music A-listers as the golden couple, but the former spouses had their fair share of issues. In fact, during a 2014 interview with Marie Claire, the cracks in their marital foundation showed themselves in an unflattering way. Categorizing his then-wife as “complicated,” Blake admitted that there were elements of their marriage that needed more of Miranda’s attention.
“Blake says I’m complicated, but, I mean, all girls are,” Miranda admitted during the interview. When Blake was pushed about his characterization, he seemingly skirted around the comment.
“She was like, ‘What the hell is that supposed to mean?’ But it is the best way I know to describe her. Holy s—, man. That’s what I admire about her. Her complications,’” Blake said, before adding that he thought Miranda needed to improve on delegating professionally. “At some point, she’s going to need to divvy out some responsibility,” he said.
Why did Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert break up?
July 20, 2015: “This is not the future we envisioned, and it is with heavy hearts that we move forward separately,” Blake and Miranda announced in a joint statement. “We are real people with real lives, with real family, friends and colleagues. Therefore, we kindly ask for privacy and compassion concerning this very personal matter.” The divorce is finalized that same day.
As Life & Style reported at the time, allegations of infidelity had hounded Blake for years. He reportedly had an inappropriate relationship with up-and-coming singer Cady Groves in 2011, for example. However, he denied those allegations.
July 21, 2015: Media outlets reported conflicting reasons for the split. Page Six claimed the couple had differing opinions about kids. “[Blake] is eager to have children, but she really enjoys not being tied down,” the source said at the time. “I think they both were off on what the time frame would be.”
Meanwhile, TMZ alleged Blake called the marriage off because he heard rumors Miranda had an affair with a country singer, which she’s denied.
November 6, 2015: After Blake hooked up with fellow Voice coach Gwen, reports claimed Miranda suspected they had actually been dating for a while. “Miranda believes something’s been going on between these two for a lot longer than they’re letting on,” a source told Hollywood Life. “She doesn’t buy their story that it’s totally brand new.”
May 9, 2016: At a release party for his album If I’m Honest, Blake talked about his song “I Bet You Still Think About Me” and claimed he’s unsure why his marriage to Miranda failed.
“It’s basically what it sounds like,” the singer said. “At some point whether you go through a divorce or a breakup or whatever, once you get past the anger and the frustration of it all, you kind of go into the sad part of it where it’s just like, ‘Gosh, how come that didn’t work out?’”
July 27, 2017: Billboard published an interview with Miranda in which she says her album The Weight of These Wings explains her breakup with Blake.
“If you want to hear my side of the story or my opinion of what happened, it’s all on there,” she said. “There’s no mystery anymore — take from it what you will.”
October 4, 2017: After sources said Miranda was tired of being the villain of the story, an insider told Life & Style, “Blake blindsided her with the divorce and drove her out of their home. It hurt her badly and profoundly changed her outlook on life.”
November 29, 2017: Life & Style exclusively reported Blake and Miranda’s feud was still going strong more than two years after their divorce.
“There is still a lot of bad blood and unresolved anger between Blake and Miranda,” a source said at the time. “No one thinks they will ever be able to bury the hatchet and put their issues behind them.” Meanwhile, another source reveals, “A whole new era of warfare is starting for Miranda and Blake.”
December 4, 2017: A source exclusively told Life & Style Miranda hasn’t gotten over the divorce. “The cold-blooded way Blake blindsided her with divorce, drove her out of his life, and then shoved his romance with Gwen in her face is something that will scar her forever,” this insider said. “It still burns her.”
April 15, 2018: As Miranda performed “Keeper of the Flame” at the 2018 Academy of Music Awards, Blake and Gwen were “in her direct line of sight” but “[sat] still and [did] not exchange glances or words with one another the entire time” as a source told In Touch.
April 25, 2018: After In Touch reported Miranda was supposedly dating a married man, Blake apparently subtweeted her. “Been taking the high road for a long time. I almost gave up,” he wrote. “But I can finally see something on the horizon up there! Wait! Could it be?! Yep! It’s karma!”
“Make no mistake — it was a direct shot at Miranda,” an insider told Life & Style of the tweet. “Blake is reveling in Miranda’s humiliation now that she’s been accused of having an affair with a married man because he believes she cheated on him.”
May 9, 2018: Team Miranda fired back at Blake’s tweet. “For Blake to throw shade at Miranda is bulls–t,” one of Miranda’s close palls exclusively tells Life & Style. “Blake is calling her out for dating a married man? Let’s not forget that Gwen Stefani was legally married [to Gavin Rossdale] when she started dating Blake!”
February 16, 2019: Surprise! Miranda revealed via Instagram she secretly married Brendan one month prior. “In honor of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to share some news, I met the love of my life. And we got hitched! My heart is full,” the “Little Red Wagon” artist wrote. Thank you Brendan McLoughlin for loving me for … me. #theone.”
September 2020: An inside source dished to In Touch about Miranda and Brendan’s relationship, expressing that the songstress and her new husband are a “much better match” than she and Blake ever were.
“Miranda doesn’t have many regrets. But now, she’s with the love of her life, looks back and thinks to herself, ‘What was I doing with Blake?’” the source dished about the country star and her evolving love life.
October 27, 2020: “Hey, [Gwen Stefani], thanks for saving my 2020 … And the rest of my life. I love you. I heard a YES!” the “God’s Country” singer gushed after he popped the question to the No Doubt singer.
Luckily, Blake and Miranda’s prior feud is all water under the bridge. “Enough time has passed and they’ve both moved on, so there’s nothing really to be upset about anymore,” an insider told In Touch about following Blake and Gwen’s engagement. “Miranda does believe time heals everything and what good does it do to dredge up the past anyway. Unless she’s writing a song about it.”
March 28, 2021: Miranda looked back fondly on the “special moment” she and Blake shared cowriting his 2011 song “Over You” during an interview on Apple Music’s Essentials Radio.
Blake thought his ex’s comments about their time together was a “nice gesture,” an insider told In Touch at the time.
May 2022: In an interview with CBS News, Miranda reflected on what it was like to go through a highly publicized divorce. “I wasn’t prepared for that,” she said. “Well, I don’t think anybody is. And it’s not nice sometimes.”
November 2, 2022: If it wasn’t clear that both Blake and Miranda are much happier with their current spouses than with each other, Gwen’s November 2022 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show proved that the former couple simply was not meant to be.
Gwen opened up about the special relationship she has with her husband, and told Drew Barrymore that it was divine intervention that brought them together.
“God put us together. It was one of those situations where I didn’t see it coming,” Gwen shared. “I was like, ‘I’m gonna wake up every day. I’m gonna have a coffee. I’m gonna take care of my kids, and then I’m gonna go to bed.’ Like I’m never gonna kiss anyone. I thought my life was over, and then Blake Shelton was like, ‘Hey. I’m Blake Shelton.’”
