Blake Shelton

Few country careers have opened with a more decisive stroke than Blake Shelton's. His 2001 debut single, "Austin", went to number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and stayed there for five weeks, announcing a singer from Oklahoma with a plain, Oklahoma-tinged baritone and a knack for songs that sound like they were written in a bar at closing time. Born in Ada, Oklahoma, in 1976, Shelton learned guitar from an uncle as a boy and wrote his first song at fifteen before heading to Nashville after high school. That apprenticeship shaped everything that followed.

His self-titled debut album earned platinum certification, and its follow-up singles "All Over Me" and "Ol' Red" both reached the top 20, with the latter becoming a concert favourite that Shelton regards as his signature song. The Dreamer, released in 2003, gained gold certification after its lead single "The Baby" reached number one, and Blake Shelton's Barn & Grill, from 2004, brought the number-one hit "Some Beach" and a cover of Conway Twitty's "Goodbye Time". Shelton has since released a long run of albums, including Startin' Fires in 2008, Based on a True Story... in 2013, Body Language in 2021 and For Recreational Use Only in 2025. He has also worked as a television judge and coach, including on NBC's The Voice, which he joined in 2011.