Sarasota Herald Tribune (April 18th 2003)

After two big hits, Blake Shelton still wary of success

Look beneath the long, tousled hair and 6-foot-5-inch frame, and there's still a hint of insecurity in Blake Shelton.

This, despite two hits, a gold record, and a recent Country Music Association nomination for Top New Country Artist.

He admits his is still a voice in search of a definitive style -- but what a voice: full and as comfortable with a country rocker as it is with a weeper.

"I've said this before: I'm 26 years old and don't really know who I am as a person yet, much less musically," Shelton said by telephone from a tour stop in Charlotte, N.C. "I think (success) is just now starting to feel like I hoped it would. For the first couple of years until this moment, I was always real insecure about my place in the music industry and how much longer I would be here ... if I was going to be a one-hit wonder.

"To me, what I love about what I've done is I've had a song or two that hopefully will be around years from now, even if I don't have another hit. I can always feel like I've made my mark, at least."

His first hit, "Austin," came from Shelton's 2001 eponymous Warner Bros. debut. It spent five weeks at the top of the country charts.

He overcame the sophomore hurdle with the release of his latest, "The Dreamer." Its first single, "The Baby" also topped the charts this year.

"All I really know is that I love country music, and I love all different kinds of it," Shelton said. "I've got a lot of different influences and some of them are totally opposite from each other."

Shelton is the headliner at the inaugural Farm Fest, but the event will offer a variety of entertainment events. Options include carnival rides, a petting zoo, and more than 100 vendors selling food, arts and crafts, and clothing.

"I hate to say it's only an agricultural event," said Eric