Blake Shelton Recalls a Time When He ‘Resented’ Touring: ‘It Was Just Crazy’

When fans have the chance to see their favorite artists up on stage, it’s safe to assume that they are having the time of their lives, but according to country superstar Blake Shelton, that’s not always the case.

In an interview on Today’s Country Radio with Kelleigh Bannen on Apple Music Country, Shelton reflected on a point in his career when he lost some of the love for his job as a touring artist. 

“It did lose its luster for a minute there, about 2012 or something,” recalled Shelton. “That’s when I was just starting. We went to two seasons of The Voice, The Voice was a brand new show, and I was touring full time, or as much as I could, and it became too much, it was too much for me personally.”

“I mean, there was never a day off,” he added. “It was just crazy, and I started resenting touring a little bit. I was like, ‘Oh my God, what is the point, what are we doing? I’m not enjoying it anymore.’ And so we did the hardest thing probably for any country artists, or a manager, a booking agency you could ever do, is went, ‘We got to pull back as much as we possibly can.’”

Being able to lesson the load a bit left Shelton feeling revitalized and afterwards, he was actually able enjoy touring again. 

“Since about 2013, I probably played, I don’t know, 25 shows a year? And that’s obviously not very many for any artist that is trying to maintain that touring profile. But what it has done is, it’s kept me so excited about when I go on stage now, because it’s been a month, half the time, since I’ve been on the stage, and until we get to that tour. And the tours are exciting, because I’m not rolling into them, burnout from the tour that just ended, like you do amphitheaters, and then you go into arenas. And it’s just that one moment that we have a year, it’s like, ‘Hey, we get to go be country stars this month.’ And it’s so exciting, and it’s something that I look forward to, I really do.”

Shelton continues with his busy, yet reasonable schedule, as he prepares to head back on tour and return to the next season of The Voice, after winning his eighth season as a coach.

His upcoming tour, which was announced just days ahead of the release of his new album, Body Language, will feature special guest Lindsay Ell and special appearances by Martina McBride, Tracy Byrd and Trace Adkins. The Friends and Heroes 2021 tour will have a 16-city, 17-date run, beginning in Omaha, NE.