With help from some respected music industry veterans, Blake Shelton, a young country singer and songwriter from Ada, Okla., has gotten his big break.

Blake Shelton was only 17 when his attention was steered east from Oklahoma toward Nashville by legendary songwriter Mae Boren Axton.

While many of today's young country artists pay lip service to the legends, Warner Bros.' Blake Shelton has already worked with several of them.

When Warner Brothers released his debut single to radio, Blake Shelton was stressed. His musical aspirations hinged on the success of one song. If it fizzled, his career might have been next.

As we head into the summer of 2001 with Country’s official summer kick-off event Fan Fair, we asked several artists to share their fondest (or not) memories of summers pasts or to recall their visits to Fan Fair before they were country stars.

Country Weekly first sat down with then-newcomer Blake Shelton in the conference room at Warner Bros. Nashville on May 16, 2001, to interview him for the “Who’s New” profile that would run in the July 10 issue.

On February 22, IFCO (the International Fan Club Organization) teamed up with CountryCool.com to present an online chat with Giant Records artist Blake Shelton. Here's a transcript of the event.

Blake Shelton recently signed a writing deal with Gosnell Music and a production deal with Sony/Tree.