The Blade (Sept. 2nd 2010)

Blake Shelton: Star attraction

Resurging country performer plays Fulton County Fair on Monday

Last week, Blake Shelton squirmed in his chair as he sat next to Hoda Kotb on the set of the Today Show, offering commentary as beautiful models stepped through a doorway to show off "hot" fashions for the fall season.

As a model wearing a faux leopard coat took her turn, Shelton deadpanned: "You only wear one item that's animal at a time so less animals lose their lives."

An hour later as he left the set, headed for the airport and a trip home to Tishomingo, Okla., he lightheartedly defended his debut as a fashion critic.

"Sure, I was uncomfortable talking about fashion, but I know all about talking about girls," he said, chuckling.

His favorite girl is country music star Miranda Lambert, his fiancee who lives on an adjoining farm to him in Oklahoma.

"I won't lie. I think it's cool that she's a rock star," he said. "She's Miranda Lambert on stage, but she's also my girlfriend. But that's not what keeps us together. It's the fact that I know she's at home right now, and I'm getting ready to get on an airplane and fly there and be with her, and I can honestly say I'm looking forward to that time with her more than being on an awards show or anything else."

His fans would probably be surprised by the sentimentality coming from the sarcastic and always joking Shelton, but he quickly returned to form.

"She's blowing up," he said. "I don't think we've seen the tip of the iceberg as far as how popular she's going to get. I'm an old man. I'm ready to quit and let her take care of me."

While Lambert is quickly becoming country music's fastest rising star, Shelton is at the peak of his career right now. Yesterday he was nominated for Country Music Association male vocalist of the year.

(For more on the awards, see Page 26.)

He'll be at the Fulton County Fair on Monday night as the hottest act in the industry. His current single, "All About Tonight," is sitting at the top of the charts for the third week in a row. The single is the first track off the album of the same name, which debuted at No. 1.

"It's the first time I've ever had a No. 1 album, and I've been doing this for 10 years, and this is my seventh album. Who'd have thought that this late in my career it'd have happened now?"

Besides his career success, he's developing a loyal following on Twitter, where you'll find him tweeting often and at all hours. Within two hours of his Today Show appearance, the number of his Twitter followers had grown by more than 800.

"I love [messing] with people. That's a way to do that with my fans. It's important for my fans and fun for me. I'm maybe the only one [in country music] doing it the way I'm doing it," he said.

Whether it's because of his use of social media, the publicity generated from his high-profile relationship with Lambert, or some other factors, Shelton is enjoying a resurgence in his career. Since debuting on country radio with his No. 1 hit "Austin" in 2001, Shelton has piled up seven No. 1 hits - four of them ("Home," "She Wouldn't Be Gone," "Hillbilly Bone," and "All About Tonight") since moving out of Nashville.

"A lot of the success has to do with moving back home to Oklahoma four years ago and getting back in touch with not only myself but people," he said. "Yeah, it's cool to go to the Bluebird [in Nashville] and hear a song that's incredibly written and has cool hooks, but the truth is that the guy who buys records in Tishomingo, Okla., doesn't [care] about that song. He wants to buy a song about beer drinking and working hard."

And maybe, Shelton said, there's an even simpler reason for his success.

"I'm in a good state of mind. I'm thrilled with my personal life. I think if you're not leaning too far one way or another, it's easy to see the big picture and make an album that's a little more round."

Monday night, people will witness Shelton's unique sense of humor first hand and hear his growing collection of hits.

"I see it every night - people mouthing back and forth, 'I didn't know he sang that song.' I think we've had more success than the industry realizes, and I love that.

"I'm to the point with touring that I like to entertain myself as much as I do people I'm playing for, and it comes across as a guy on stage having a hell of a time."