Luke Bryan II Us Weekly

Luke Bryan Opens Up About Third-Wheeling on Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani’s Dinner Date

Country singers and TV judges Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton have plenty in common, so it only made sense that they recently came together for a night out with Shelton’s longtime girlfriend, Gwen Stefani.

“I had dinner with him and Gwen,” Bryan, 42, told Us Weeklyexclusively at American Idol: The Listening Session in Los Angeles on Monday, April 22. “We speak about the shows [Idol and The Voice], but we’re really just catching up, wanting to know how the family and everybody else is doing.”

Shelton, 42, and Stefani, 49, stepped out for dinner with the “Knockin’ Boots” crooner at Craig’s restaurant in West Hollywood on April 14. The No Doubt frontwoman documented the evening on her Instagram Stories, snapping a series of videos with the guys together in a car. At one point, the Voice coach joked during a phone call that he was “trying to make Luke a little edgier” during their outing.

“It was just fun hanging with them, and anytime I’m able to see them having fun and being happy, it’s great to be around them,” Bryan told Us on Monday of the couple, who started dating in November 2015.

The Georgia native acknowledged that he has “a fun competition” going on with Shelton over their rival singing competitions.

“When I found out that Idol was interested in me being a judge, certainly I called Blake, and he’s like, ‘Man, you’re going to love it. It’s right up your alley.’ He spoke of how much he’s enjoying his role with The Voice,” Bryan told Us. “And he was right. I’ve enjoyed it. It’s a new element in your life. It’s a new challenge. It’s tackling something new, and you learn a lot about entertainment throughout the whole process.”