In order to get hired as a judge on The Voice, you had better be a very good singer. And while every judge on that program has proven that they know what they’re talking about and how to make the human voice sound as great as possible – they were hired to coach their singers and not to make political statements. But recently, Kelly Clarkson alongside legendary singer John Legend has come under fire because they offered criticism to “God Bless The USA,” which not one person asked them for.

It is common for the coaches on The Voice to share their opinions. They have to coach their singers through troubling times and push them through the wringer so they can rise to the next level in their performance careers. They have to do this without letting their personal feelings get in the way, and have a lot of challenging situations they need to deal with.

But when Kelly Clarkson and John Legend shared their views about a particular song, things got a bit too personal with the fans. That’s why thousands of people bashed Clarkson and Legend on Twitter following their harsh criticism of singer Gyth Rigdon who performed “God Bless the USA.”

Because the song choice was, understandably, a controversial decision – given how divided the country is around politics and even the National Anthem itself – Gyth was asking for controversy. And as Clarkson and Legend slammed Gyth for the performance, with completely reasonable criticisms related to the voice and the singing presentation, things got a bit heated when they also questioned the song choice itself. Nevertheless, they commended Gyth for choosing a song that meant a lot to the singer.