Blake Shelton stopped by The Bobby Bones Show to talk about his first song release in years as well as share the story behind some possible myths about his life.
It’s been over two years since Shelton released new music. He was doing The Voice for 12 years and 23 seasons, but decided to finally walk away when he needed a break from the “TV machine.” He admitted he needed to do nothing for awhile after quitting, and really didn’t know what he wanted to do anymore. He didn’t record or write anything for several months, then last spring he got a call to do a duet with Post Malone. Shelton was shocked by the call even though they exchanged phone numbers at the Super Bowl one year. Shelton said that in those instances you never expect to hear from someone despite saying they needed to get together, but Malone was different and followed up. Being around Malone, his energy and shooting the video, it was the “kick in the ass” Shelton needed. Adding that very few people get to be recording artists, and he felt like he was wasting time. Now Shelton is on a new record label and is turning a new page in his music career, crediting Malone with firing him back up. Shelton fell in love the first time he heard his new song “Texas,” and he feels it has a connection to him and who he’s been as an artist. The song pushes the envelope musically for him and he likes the nod to George Strait. Noting his favorite Strait song is “Ocean Front Property.”
Amy asked Shelton about some fun facts that Google brought up and hoped he would share the story behind some of the crazier ones.
• Shelton isn’t into bare feet, they freak him out. He admitted this one is true, but it’s not as much about someone’s foot. It all started because there was this trend of country artists who would perform barefoot, like walk out on a festival stage without shoes on. As he got older, this issue evolved further with flip flops. He hates when guys wear flip flops because people who wear flip flops are never going to be the person who will help out in an emergency like someone in a cowboy boot. He doesn’t even own one pair of flip flops for this reason.
• He likes to do workouts on a treadmill. This is true, he does a combination of walking and running sprints.
• Once caught a drunken intruder at a family member’s house. His uncle is special needs and called Shelton to say there is a guy in his house, sitting on the couch saying he lived there. So Shelton went over and the guy answered the door like it was his house. Shelton told him to leave and the guy said “what are you talking about?” So Shelton proceeded to entertain the guy until the cops came. He may have sang the guy a song, but he doesn’t really remember. He just tried to keep everything calm because he thinks the guy was on a bunch of things.
• His mom put him pageants when he was younger. Back in the day, Shelton would sing in the cassette tape microphone, so his mom thought she should enter him into the pageants for the talent show part, but he told her one day he didn’t want to sing anymore if that’s what he had to do to make it happen. Adding that he was 12 or 14 years old before he started singing again in his hometown.
• He has been confused for Joe Nichols. It started that he got confused for Terri Clark one day. During Fan Fair in Nashville, fans were all lined up waiting for artists to leave and he only had one song out at the time. Some of the fans saw him from the back and started yelling “Terri!” He stopped thinking Clark was out there too, but then he realized the fans thought he was Clark. He told Clark about it, and they don’t know which one is more offended. Then later on he got confused for Nichols because they had the same haircut at one point. People would even get mad at him for not playing songs like Brokenheartsville.
• Gwen Stefani says having him in her life is a miracle and meeting him gave her a second chance at life. He said that’s a stretch, but he thinks it’s the sweetest and nicest things she says about him in her interviews. He thinks it’s amazing to get to this end of life being 48-years-old and to have only met his best friend 8 or 9 years ago. Everything she says, he feels the same way. Noting that it took both of them hitting rock bottom before they found each other.
After some much needed time off, Shelton is about to have a busy 2025. He is doing the Friends and Heroes Tour again, which is his favorite way to tour. He started it 5 or 6 years ago, he remembers having a conversation with Trace Adkins about coming on tour with him in a Kenny Chesney/Uncle Kracker fashion because at the time they had “Hillbilly Bone” together. Adkins agreed to it, and from there Shelton has had artists like John Anderson, Bellamy Brothers, Tracy Byrd and Martina McBride out with him. In 2025, Craig Morgan, Trace Adkins, and Deana Carter will be headed out on the road with him.
