After two months of rumblings of a growing romance, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani's relationship was confirmed on Wednesday.
It was a well-timed announcement, made hours before the CMA Awards where Shelton and his ex-wife of three months, Miranda Lambert, would each make their first appearance at a major event since their split. In other words, it was primed for the media to eat it up.
And, of course, they (The Huffington Post included) did. Shelton and Stefani's new romance checks so many boxes when it comes to a Hollywood relationship. As two freshly divorced co-stars who reportedly are already collaborating on music together, the question of whether it's real or just a rebound looms. And it's also very well-timed with the release of Stefani's incredibly personal song about her divorce from Gavin Rossdale, which is not-so-subtly called, "I Used to Love You."
And let's not forget the fact that their relationship isn't exactly hurting ratings for "The Voice." In May, Deadline reported that ratings for the show's Season 7 finale were at an all-time low -- down 15 percent among viewers 18-49 years of age. Meanwhile, ratings were up on Monday, which just happened to follow photos of the pair looking cozy at a Halloween party over the weekend. Now that the couple have gone public, only time will tell if more viewers will tune in for a glimpse at Hollywood's buzziest new couple.
With all that in mind, it's pretty clear that the publicity surrounding their new romance is mutually beneficial, which is why we should all take statements like the one Shelton tweeted on Friday with a grain of salt:
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