Big 5-Oh
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Blake Shelton
ILLUSTRATION BY SEAN McCABE
(JUNE 18): The country singer has an unmistakable “Voice.”
EARLY DAYS: Shelton was born in Ada, Oklahoma. After high school, he moved to Nashville to pursue a music career.
CHART SUCCESS: The singer has released 13 albums and sold millions of records. Among his hit singles are “Honey Bee” and “God’s Country.”
VOICE LESSONS: Shelton joined NBC’s singing competition series The Voice in 2011 and spent 23 seasons as a coach.
HOME: He married singer Gwen Stefani in 2021.
WITH HONORS: Shelton’s accolades include 11 Country Music Association awards, six Academy of Country Music awards, CMT artist of the year and eight People’s Choice awards.
GOOD WORK: He set up the Blake Shelton Cancer Research Program at a children’s hospital in Oklahoma in 2018.
WISE WORDS: “I used to be almost afraid of my success because I was afraid of losing it,” he told People. “Maybe the worry kept me working hard.” —Whitney Matheson
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Illustration by Sean McCabe; Blake Shelton primary photo: Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal/Getty Images. Clockwise from top right: Trae Patton/NBC/Getty Images; Frederick Breedon/FilmMagic/Getty Images; Lloyd Bishop/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty Images; Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images; Rich Polk/Penske Media/Getty Images; Ethan Miller/Getty Images; David Becker/Getty Images. Cumberbatch: Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty Images; Margulies: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Breast Cancer Research Foundation; Masterson: Jason Mendez/Getty Images; Jackson: Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal/Getty Images; Hanks: Jamie McCarthy/WireImage/Getty Images; Marin: Diego Donamaria/SXSW Conference & Festivals/Getty Images