Blake Shelton closed out the 2026 ACM Awards with a stunning performance of Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler.” Shelton performed “The Gambler” in tribute to the song’s writer, Don Schlitz, who recently passed away.

“I always love it when these award shows take time to honor someone that we’ve lost,” Shelton tells Country Now. He goes on to say that, since the ceremony aired on Prime Video, he was able to do the entire version of the song.

“I was excited that I [got] to do the full version of ‘The Gambler,’ because we lost Don here four weeks ago or something like that…It was sudden,” Shelton says. “It’s really sad. And we lost Kenny four or five years ago.”

By his own admission, Shelton is a big fan of “The Gambler.”

“That particular song is like two legends came together and made one of the most important pieces of music in country music history…I would say it’s in the Top 10,” the superstar adds. “At least it’s in my Top 10 of all time.”

The Story Behind  “The Gambler” by Kenny Rogers

Schlitz wrote “The Gambler” by himself when he was still working as a computer operator. He had just left a meeting with Bob McDill, also a hit songwriter, when Schlitz had the idea for “The Gambler.”

“I walked from his office over on Music Row to my apartment,” Schlitz previously told American Songwriter. “And in that 20 minutes, I wrote most of it in my head. I didn’t write a last verse, had no idea what was gonna happen. [I] thought it was an interesting story but it was a throwaway. I spent about six weeks trying to figure out what was gonna happen after the chorus.”

Schlitz intentionally decided to leave the ending open to interpretation. After he wrote it, it took a while until it found a home, fortunately with Rogers.

“I finally settled on the eight lines of the last verse. … It’s assumed the gambler dies but isn’t so stated,” he adds. “And nobody would touch it.”

The Story Behind “Let Him In Anyway” by Blake Shelton

Shelton has another hit of his own at country radio, with “Let Him In Anyway.” The song, written by Hardy, Zach Abend, Kyle Clark, and Carson Wallace, is on Shelton’s latest For Recreational Use Only record.

“‘Let Him In Anyway’ is one of the more powerful lyrics and just overall pieces of music that I’ve ever gotten a chance to work on,” Shelton says. “I heard the song; Hardy is actually a co-writer on the song. He’s a friend of mine, and I just never heard a song quite like it. I don’t think this song’s ever been written before, anything like it. Whenever I heard it, and got a chance to record it, I was honored, and I’m really proud of the record that we made on it.”

Photo Credit: ACM / Rich Polk