Ryan Gallagher was removed from “The Voice” after breaking the show’s COVID-19 protocols.
The contestant didn’t appear on Monday’s show, with a source since telling ET Canada: “‘The Voice’ has strict COVID protocols in place to secure a safe set.
“Ryan broke those protocols and out of an abundance of caution, we cannot have him continue in the competition and potentially put others at risk.”
Host Carson Daly explained during the latest episode that the opera singer had to “exit the competition” but failed to explain why.
Gallagher referenced his absence on his Instagram Story but only to assure people his family were OK.
He’d previously told the coaches that his mother had been hospitalized with the virus.
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“Thank you everybody for your concern for my family. However, everybody’s fine. That’s not the cause of what happened tonight on ‘The Voice’,” he said. “I didn’t drop out of the show. Details are still to come. I’ll keep you posted.”
The singer later shared a black and white photo of himself, writing, “2020 you are an interesting one.”
It seems Gallagher’s exit took him by surprise, as he asked fans which suit to wear on the show earlier in the day:
“Last Sunday my client Ryan Gallagher, who was a leading contender as part of Kelly Clarkson’s team on the current season of NBC-TV’s The Voice, was dismissed by NBC and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios for an alleged violation of the show’s Covid 19 protocol,” Michael Catalano, Gallagher’s personal manager told People. “In my opinion, nothing could be further from the truth.”
Catalano did add that Gallagher, “understands all too well how serious the COVID-19 pandemic is in this country and around the world.”
He continued to say that in an “appropriate time and place of our choosing” will the singer address the “damaging allegations.” He also thanked his fans for the “outpouring of support.”
In response to Gallagher and Catalano’s statement, NBC and MGM said, “Ryan is a talented artist, however, ‘The Voice’ has strict Covid protocols in place to secure a safe set for our crew, coaches and contestants. We were made aware of a breach in those protocols, and after examining the situation, and out of abundance of caution, we determined that Ryan could not participate in our Monday night show without potentially putting others at risk. Therefore, we made the difficult decision to remove Ryan from the competition.”
Gallagher, who was on Kelly Clarkson’s team, went up against Team Blake’s Taryn Papa, Team Legend’s Julia Cooper, and Team Gwen’s Larriah Jackson for a spot in the top 17 on the November 24 episode.
He previously earned Clarkson’s “save” on the show despite losing out to Team Kelly’s Marisa Corvo as the pair belted out a stunning version of Celine Dion’s “I Surrender”.
