Blake Shelton on Adam Levine Leaving 'The Voice': 'I Was Pretty Upset'

Days after celebrating his 43rd birthday, country superstar Blake Shelton sat down with "Extra's" Tanika Ray.

Blake told her all about making his special day into a family affair in Chicago, with girlfriend Gwen Stefani and her boys.

"There is an aquarium there called the Shedd Aquarium," he said. "We got to go meet some sea lions and beluga whales... I got a high-five from a seal." The celebration continued at her private show that night.

The couple splits their time between Oklahoma and Los Angeles, he said. "Gwen probably didn't realize what a hillbilly she truly is — she's not just a Beverly Hillbilly, she gets to Oklahoma and goes a day without makeup."

Her favorite country thing right now is wildflowers. "The last time we were there for a few days, just her and I, we spent the better part of a day one day and she's like, 'Get that one, take that one.' The house was just covered... Everything she could stuff these flowers in, all different kinds."

Blake also talked about Adam Levine leaving "The Voice," admitting, "I didn't expect it. I didn't expect Adam to pull the trigger like he did... We all knew he was getting to the point — it was 16 seasons he had been doing the show, and it's hard to keep him focused on anything. He was ready to move on."

Gwen will be coming back to the hit NBC show for Season 17, which Blake said would "soften the blow for me. I was pretty upset that Adam was gone."

Reminiscing about how he joked around with Adam, Blake said, "I can't go head-to-head with Gwen like that."