Down-Home Facts About Blake Shelton

November 9, 2023 | Scott Mazza

Down-Home Facts About Blake Shelton


When Blake Shelton was recently named People magazine’s "Sexiest Man Alive," the Internet lost. Its. Mind. In honor of the People’s sometimes popular, sometimes controversial (depending on who you ask) decision, here’s a list of 26 facts on the American singer with a pretty nice face and a whole lotta heart.


1. Man Alive!

Let’s start with the obvious: on November 27, 2017, People magazine named Blake Shelton as their Sexiest Man Alive. That's right, Blake Shelton joined the ranks of 25 white men, plus Denzel Washington and the Rock, as the holder of the now-iconic title.

Blake Shelton Facts

 

2. Regrets

Shelton drew one of his own tattoos: a depiction of deer tracks to represent his love of hunting. People, however, often mistake the tracks for ladybugs! Shelton had the tattoo redone with barbed wire around the tracks, but he still thinks it's a pretty bad tattoo now.

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

3. Don't Ruin His Black Tie Affair

Shelton has said that his two biggest pet peeves are under-dressed people and bare feet. As he said, "somebody standing on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry or some formal place and they're wearing a T-shirt and baseball cap" really get him going, as does "stinkin', nasty feet" in music videos. He even hates flip-flops! Shelton is definitely a no shirt, no shoes, no service kind of guy.

Blake Shelton FactsShutterstock

4. From Rags to Sexiness

How does one become People’s Sexiest Man Alive? Well, for Shelton, it all started in Ada, Oklahoma, a small town of about 17,000 people, where he was born in 1976.

Blake Shelton facts Wikimedia Commons

5. Papa Wasn’t a Rolling Stone

Shelton was the son of a used car salesman, Richard, and a beauty salon worker, Dorothy. Does it get much more country that that?

Blake Shelton factsShutterstock

6. Pageant Queen

When he was a child, Shelton's mom put him in two or three pageants in a row. He did not take well to the experience at all, but he did get to perform songs like Ted Nugent's "Cat Scratch Fever" and Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock 'n' Roll". Maybe his mom was onto something!

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

7. Young Shelton

Shelton began singing at an early age, and by the age of 12 knew how to play guitar. By age 15, Shelton had written his first song, and by 16 he had won a Denbo Diamond Award.

Blake Shelton facts Getty Images

8. Simply the Worst

Shelton has said this first composition, "That Girl Made a Fool Out of Me," is "in the top 10 of worst songs ever written in the history of the earth". We'll take his word for it!

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

9. Leavin’ Time

After graduating high school, Shelton left Oklahoma for the Athens of the South: Nashville, Tennessee.

Blake Shelton factsFlickr, Domenico Convertini

10. Startin’ Up

Once he arrived in Music City, Shelton was able to get a job at a music publishing company. This would lead to a contract with Sony and, later, with Giant Records.

Blake Shelton FactsFlickr, Fort George G.

11. Giant Single

On April 16, 2001, Giant released Shelton’s debut single, "Austin". The song would spend five weeks at the number one spot on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, tying a record previously held by Billy Ray Cyrus.

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

12. Huge Album

On July 31, 2001, Shelton’s self-titled debut album was released by Warner Bros (Giant had gone under). Featuring his hit debut-single, the album has been certified platinum.

Blake Shelton factsGetty Images

13. Shampoo

Shelton has claimed to treat himself to a unique haircare regimen: he says that he uses a combination of eggs and ketchup to keep his locks up to snuff.

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

14. Like Son, Like Mother

Shelton’s mother, while not a participant in his unorthodox haircare, has recorded a song with him. Dorothy appears on his Christmas song "Time For Me to Come Home".

Blake Shelton factsShutterstock

15. Write What You Know

Shelton’s mother was so inspired by her familial collaboration that she went on to write a holiday-themed novel, also called Time For Me to Come Home and based on real holiday memories, with Travis Thrasher.

Blake Shelton factsShutterstock

16. Gobble Gobble

In 2003, Shelton described a pet turkey that he owned, and claimed that he wanted to bring him to an awards show to expose him to different things. The turkey was named Turkey, and Shelton apparently also fed him turkey scraps once by accident. Turkey unfortunately succumbed to heat stroke later in 2003.

Blake Shelton factsGetty Images

17. Fairy-tale Romance

Before divorcing his long-time girlfriend and short-time wife Kaynette Gern in 2006, Shelton met country music darling Miranda Lambert at CMT's 100 Greatest Duets Concert! A few years later, the two would be singing their own duet.

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

18. Putting the "Bro" in "Bromance"

Shelton has professed to have several public bromances. He has jokingly posted a picture of himself and Carson Daly not-really-but-kind-of kissing, and a Today show website describes his other objects of celebrity brofection, Adam Levine and Usher, as "lucky fellas".

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

19. Second Marriage

After doing the right thing and asking her father if it was okay, Shelton proposed to Lambert, who accepted. The two were married in Texas in 2011.

Blake Shelton FactsFlickr, Walt Disney Television

20. His and Hers

Shelton and Lambert received His and Hers flasks and hunting gear as engagement gifts; they went out almost right away to try them out. "It's truly a hunting-wedding!" Lambert joked.

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

21. Earp on Screen

Perhaps as beguiling as being in the same looks category as Chris Hemsworth, Brad Pitt, Keanu Reeves, and Tom Cruise is the fact that Shelton has played Wyatt Earp on film (in The Ridiculous 6), thus joining the ranks of Jimmy Stewart, Kevin Costner, Kurt Russell, Henry Fonda, and Burt Lancaster.

Blake Shelton FactsShutterstock

 22. Ska Mitzvah

Shelton once wrote a song, "“Go Ahead and Break My Heart,” for his current love, Gwen Stefani, and sent her the demo, which she then finished from her own perspective. Shelton later told Today, "We could not be on paper, any more different. I mean, I’m a country singer and she’s a ska, rock, pop, whatever it is… and it’s just an odd idea. But man, It’s a lot of fun".

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

23. Iie Arigato

When pal Jimmy Fallon heard that Shelton had never tried sushi before, he took him out to New York’s Nobu on his show. Unfortunately, Shelton wasn’t a fan of the dishes, describing pickled ginger as looking like "pre-chewed gum," and comparing tuna to a "human tongue".

Blake Shelton FactsGetty Images

24. Second Divorce

Everyone knows that Shelton got together with Gwen Stefani right after his split from Miranda Lambert, but the divorce papers are sealed, so the reason is actually unknown to the public.

Blake Shelton FactsFlickr, Walt Disney Television

25. Not on a "Bare Skin Rug?"

In 2012, Blake Shelton openly discussed his intimate life with the striking blonde, Miranda Lambert, confessing that they had been adventurous in their choice of locations. When asked what the craziest place was, the singer responded, "Probably just, like, in the truck, back home -- back in the woods".

Blake Shelton FactsShutterstock

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, homecarechoices.org


More from Factinate

Featured Article

My mom never told me how her best friend died. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery.

Dark Family Secrets

Dark Family Secrets Exposed

Nothing stays hidden forever—and these dark family secrets are proof that when the truth comes out, it can range from devastating to utterly chilling.
April 8, 2020 Samantha Henman

Featured Article

Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark history—or the chilling secret shared by her and Louis.

Madame de Pompadour Facts

Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress

Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark history—or the chilling secret shared by her and Louis.
December 7, 2018 Kyle Climans

More from Factinate

Featured Article

I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life.

These People Got Genius Revenges

When someone really pushes our buttons, we'd like to think that we'd hold our head high and turn the other cheek, but revenge is so, so sweet.
April 22, 2020 Scott Mazza

Featured Article

Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIII’s rejected queen—but few people know her even darker history.

Catherine of Aragon Facts

Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s First Wife

Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIII’s rejected queen—but very few people know her even darker history.
June 7, 2018 Christine Tran



Dear reader,


Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? We’re always looking for your input! Please reach out to us to let us know what you’re interested in reading. Your suggestions can be as general or specific as you like, from “Life” to “Compact Cars and Trucks” to “A Subspecies of Capybara Called Hydrochoerus Isthmius.” We’ll get our writers on it because we want to create articles on the topics you’re interested in. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Thanks for your time!


Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? At Factinate, we’re dedicated to getting things right. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. We want our readers to trust us. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. However, despite our best efforts, we sometimes miss the mark. When we do, we depend on our loyal, helpful readers to point out how we can do better. Please let us know if a fact we’ve published is inaccurate (or even if you just suspect it’s inaccurate) by reaching out to us at contribute@factinate.com. Thanks for your help!


Warmest regards,



The Factinate team




Want to learn something new every day?

Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter.

Thank you!

Error, please try again.