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Blake Shelton Says He and Hoda Kotb Nearly Had "a Moment" — But Then She Ran Away
The former Voice Coach dropped this news on Kotb days before her final episode of TODAY.
Never meet your heroes. Or, if you do, don't run away from them! TODAY co-host Hoda Kotb is a longtime fan of former The Voice Coach Blake Shelton, but according to the country star, she took off in the opposite direction — literally — when he approached her at a party. Something she's sure wouldn't happen now.
Blake Shelton called out Hoda Kotb for running away from him during their "moment"
Appearing remotely on TODAY with Hoda & Jenna, Shelton told the funniest story about seeing Kotb out and about years ago. "You talked about Hoda saying I was her first love or whatever. I ran into her in Nashville one time. Off camera, had nothing to do with television or anything. I thought it was going to be our moment. And she completely ran away from me. I mean she ran away from me, like, totally afraid of me," he told the shocked co-hosts.
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"Wait...wait..." stammered Jenna Bush Hager, before the two women asked, in unison, "What!?" Kotb seemingly had no memory of the almost-encounter, but Shelton was certain. "Remember at the number one party?," he prompted, continuing, "I was like 'Hoda, you’re here.' You’re like, 'I gotta go!' And you ran."
But never let it be said that Kotb can't hang. "She’s not leaving parties early anymore," said Hager, to which Kotb added, "I’ve changed. I’m totally not that girl anymore."
Jenna Bush Hager wanted to know if Blake Shelton would've shot his shot
Was a Hoda-Blake hookup ever a possibility? Bush Hager pressed for answers, asking Shelton, "Would you have shot your shot or whatever it’s called? Would you have leaned in and given her — this is before Gwen, let’s just put that out there." (Blake Shelton and his wife, The Voice Coach Gwen Stefani, began dating in 2015, so this was a while ago.)
RELATED: Hoda Kotb Tells Seth Meyers What She Will (and Won't) Miss After Leaving TODAY
But the singer gently stuck to his anecdote. "OK, Jenna. Let’s just slow your roll a little bit. I’m just saying, I saw Hoda in Nashville and she ran away from me at a party. That’s all I’m saying," he said.
Hoda Kotb is a big time Blake Shelton fan
In case you didn't know, these two have a bit of a history. As Shelton alluded to, he is one of her "first loves," though maybe not in a heartbreak sense. She's just a really big fan, and even dressed up as the singer — colored contacts and all — for Halloween in 2017. When Peter Alexander did the same thing six years later, Shelton remarked, "That's pretty damn good, I gotta admit it. I mean, you're no Hoda [Kotb] playing Blake Shelton."
She also admitted to having a "real, authentic crush" on the singer during a chat with Jay Leno in 2013. Oh, the chances not taken.
