Happy album anniversary to Blake Shelton! On July 31, 2001, Shelton’s self-titled freshman album was released. The record includes “Austin,” his debut single, which also became his first No. 1 hit, along with two other singles, “All Over Me” and “Ol’ Red.”
Surprisingly, Shelton didn’t want to release “Austin,” which was written by David Kent and Kirsti Manna.
“When I first heard ‘Austin,’ I thought it was just super cheesy,” Shelton reveals (via Taste of Country). “And I was just like, ‘God, this guy is so desperate. Let it go, dude. It’s been a year, you’re still putting this answering machine message on. What are you doing?”
Fortunately, Shelton listened to people on his team who believed in the song, even when he was hesitant to release it.
“I was just so stupid,” the Oklahoma native admits, “I did, and thank God they stayed on me about that, because otherwise, I wouldn’t be sitting here … 20 years later, probably.”
The Success Of “Ol’ Red”
Shelton had another big hit with “Ol’ Red,” which could have cost him his career. Unlike “Austin,” Shelton believed strongly in “Ol’ Red,” so much so that he made a deal with his record label at the time, Warner Bros. Records.
“I remember telling the head of Warner Brothers that if they’d just make a video for ‘Ol’ Red’ … and if it didn’t work, they could drop me from the label,” Shelton recalls to The Boot. “I talked him into it, which was a big risk at the time because this was in 2001 when there really weren’t any songs about going to jail, killing somebody … or dogs! It could’ve easily backfired. If we hadn’t made that video, people wouldn’t have gotten the song.”
What Other Songs Were On His Freshman Album
There were ten songs in total on Blake Shelton. Shelton wrote four of the songs, including “All Over Me,” which was also written by Earl Thomas Conley and Mike Pyle. John Rich wrote one, “She Doesn’t Know She’s Got It” with Chris Waters and Tom Shapiro.
After the success of “Ol’ Red,” which landed in the Top 15, Shelton moved on to his sophomore The Dreamer album, which had his second No. 1 single, with “The Baby.”
The Song That Wasn’t On Blake Shelton, Which Went To Toby Keith
One song that wasn’t on Shelton’s first record, ended up becoming a hit for Toby Keith instead. Bobby Braddock penned a song, “I Wanna Talk About Me” for Shelton, although he never released it.
“When I heard the song, I was like, ‘Oh my God, this song is so funny!’ Shelton recalls on Audacy‘s Totally Private. “I actually cut the song… I said I wanted to put it on my album, so we went in and recorded it.”
Unfortunately for Shelton, but fortunately for Keith, Shelton didn’t include it on his first project.
“Back then, before streaming and being able to tell which songs were going to be a hit… they used to do these focus groups where they’d get a group of people and play a new artist’s album and everybody would vote on the song,” Shelton shares. “It scored so bad that they said, ‘Not only do we not want this to be your single, we don’t even think you should put it on your album. Why waste a spot on your record if people hate this song so much?’”
“I like to think it was meant for Toby… He was just the one guy that could say that [the lyrics] and we would all laugh about it,” he adds. “I don’t know that it would have worked like that for me.”
Blake Shelton’s Success After His Freshman Record
Shelton’s freshman record ended up being the launching pad for an incedibly successful career, one he is still enjoying 24 years later. Shelton recently celebrated his 30th No. 1 single, with “Texas,” and has another Top 40 hit, with “Stay Country or Die Tryin’.” Both songs are from his latest For Recreational Use Only, released in May.
Even for Shelton, it’s hard to fathom the success he has had.
“I’ve checked every box that I thought was imaginable, for a kid who just wanted to be a country singer,” Shelton says on Q with Tom Power. “And then I’ve checked other ones I didn’t even know existed, as far as what I’ve been able, lucky enough, and blessed enough to do with my career. There’s a peace and a contentment with just going, man, I did it. I did it. And if I get to do it a little more, that’s awesome too, but I can look back and go, man, I really did something. And I had people help me along the way to get me there. And now I want to enjoy that that happened.”