Country Countdown USA (June 3rd 2002)
Blake Shelton
Lon's co-host this week will be Blake Shelton. His debut hit, "Austin," spent five weeks at #1. His latest single, "Ol' Red," is in our Top 30. What was his first major purchase after having his first big hit? How did his good buddy Ira Dean celebrate Trick Pony's ACM award? And did he really moon Jamie O'Neal while she was on stage? Blake will tell us the truth, plus we'll get a surprise visit from Brad Martin, this week on Country Countdown USA.
The Moon in June? When Jamie O'Neal was Lon's co-host, she told us that Blake had once "mooned" her while she was on stage. Blake admits he did it: "I remember that night clearly. One night I decided to give her a good dose of Oklahoma, where I'm from, so I climbed up on a road case and "mooned" her. It took a little longer to get her attention than I expected. Finally, they put a light on me, and it got her attention. She was kind of shocked, it messed her up for a second, and then she was able to carry on. I've exposed Jamie to more red-neckness than anyone else. She talked me one day into straightening my hair! It was a big deal to her. She claimed I looked like Lou Diamond Philips."
Blake's unusual pet: Blake is an animal lover, and now owns a pet mouse. "Last year I was in Phoenix, and I walked into a pet store and bought a mouse. I kept it on the bus for a while, and we ended up being off for two weeks so I took it home. I've had him for six months, and didn't know they lived that long. It's grown to the size of a poodle by now. We named it Nasty because it stinks real bad. That's why it's no longer on the bus. My bus driver is a woman named Valerie, and she got to the point where I had to get the stinkin' mouse off the bus. It was either her or the mouse, and they're both kind of expensive so I opted to keep her."
Gentleman Farmer Blake: Blake says the first major purchase he made was a 125-acre farm west of Nashville. "The dream was always to have a hit song so I could attain this property that I wanted someday, so this past January I bought this farm in West Tennessee in a town called Centerville. About a month later, the property that bordered mine came up for sale, and I couldn’t stand the thought of somebody buying that land, cause that was gonna be my animals that I wanted to hunt, so I went to my management company and said I wanted that land too, so now I have 465 acres, and everyday I go out and look at it wondering what I've done. I've just learned how to drive a tractor! It's a big place and I love it. That's what I've always wanted. I bought it to go camping, hunting, and fishing on it. I didn't buy it to work it. However, I bought 32 chickens, 12 turkeys, and six ducks, and they keep my hands full. I have a big cattle trough outside the chicken pen. While I was away, one of the chickens flew out of the coop, and drowned in the cattle trough, so I'm learning as I go."
Blake meets Brad: Newcomer Brad Martin was down the hall in another studio while we were taping the countdown, and we invited him to join us after playing his song in the countdown. Brad's song was ahead of Blake's and Blake kidded Brad about it: "I knew that song had hit written all over it, and I'm just irritated that I didn't get that song first! But I saw Brad doing an acoustic show while I was in LA for the ACMs, and he nails it live, so if you have a chance to see him, do it." Ironically both Brad and Blake moved to Nashville in 1994, yet they never met until a few months ago. As Brad left, he told Blake, "I'm a big fan, especially your current song."
Trick or Treat with Trick Pony: Blake is good friends with labelmates Trick Pony, and they hung out together during the ACM Awards week in LA. "They kidded me about losing in my category, doing what buddies do to each other." Trick Pony's Ira Dean told Lon he has a $16,000 bet with Cledus T. Judd to determine who can stay sober the longest. The question is how did Ira celebrate after they won the ACM Award? "He had a great time, but he went to his hotel room instead of going to the party. He avoided breaking the bet!"
INSIDE STUFF: Blake Shelton has been tapped to perform "Young Country" on a Hank Williams Jr. tribute album. "I invited Trick Pony and Darryl Worley to join me, and we had a lot of fun in the studio." Blake is good friends with Carolyn Dawn Johnson, and hopes to record a duet with her for his next album. "It won't be a sappy one either. We wanna do something fun with a lot of attitude." Blake will take part in Andy Griggs' celebrity archery contest next week during Fan Fair. "Andy, if you're listening, I'm gonna beat you!"
DID YOU KNOW: Blake's first job in Nashville was painting the home of Mae Boren Axton, who wrote "Heartbreak Hotel." She was also the mother of singer Hoyt Axton, who introduced Blake to his current single. "One day I got on the bus, and he sang Ol' Red to me, and it instantly became my favorite song, so I held on to it for 7 years until I was able to finally put it on an album, so now that it's a single, it's just icing on the cake." Tracy Byrd considered recording Ol' Red. "I saw Tracy a couple weeks ago, and he told me." Blake's co-star in the video is NASCAR driver Elliott Sadler. "We met at a Hank Junior concert a few months ago, and we've become good friends. He plays my cousin in the video."