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NBC’s The Voice Season 24 isn’t the same without Blake Shelton, but fans know they can still catch him actively making new music. Shelton is one of the biggest names in country music today. But he won’t make new tunes forever. Here’s what he said about acknowledging his time in the music industry is limited.

Country star Blake Shelton said ‘the clock’s ticking’ in terms of how long he’ll make music

Country music legend Blake Shelton put out his first single in 2001, and over 20 years later, he’s become one of the biggest names in the business. While fans want more music from Shelton in the future, he acknowledges that he can’t produce albums forever. He spoke to Country Radio Seminar about where he stands moving forward.

“I’ve kind of always been prepared for when this ends, and my songs aren’t getting played anymore, and it’s over. It’s always over at some point, you know? And I’ve always been prepared for that, and I’ve braced myself for it. I’ve learned to accept it a few years ago, maybe three, four, five years ago, that it’s coming. And I think because I’ve kept that in my mind like, ‘Hey, the clock’s ticking, you know?'”

Shelton noted that Reba McEntire’s ex-husband, Narvel Blackstock, told him, “The clock’s ticking now,” after he started to win awards. While he didn’t quite understand what he meant at the time, he gets it now. “People are gonna get tired of you winning the awards. They’re gonna get tired of you having no. 1, after no. 1, after no. 1. … How many albums do I need by Blake Shelton, you know what I mean?”

Shelton will know when to step aside as a country artist, as other artists will be vying for his top spot. “When it’s my time to make room for somebody else, the last thing I’m gonna do is kick and scream to keep my spot,” he added. “… Whenever that is, look, there’s not one complaint that I could have.”

He cut his tour down to have more time for himself and his family

Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton posing with her 3 kids for the Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony
Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton with her 3 kids | Emma McIntyre/Getty Images
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After Blake Shelton left The Voice following season 23, he hoped to have more time for himself and his family. Unfortunately, his Back to the Honky Tonk Tour was going to take more time than he wanted. Shelton expressed that he was excited to hit the stage and tour the country but planned to scale the tour down.

“I thought I was getting away from The Voice so that I would have more free time, but you’re making me feel like maybe not,” he said during a Q&A session for Ole Red Las Vegas, according to Taste of Country.

He hits the road in February 2024 and finishes the tour in March 2024.

Blake Shelton doesn’t miss ‘The Voice’ just yet

The Voice fans miss Blake Shelton, but he doesn’t yet miss coaching the show. He was a coach from the beginning of the series and stuck with it through 23 seasons. Now, he looks forward to his other projects that have nothing to do with the reality series.

Shelton appeared on The Jennifer Hudson Show and said he didn’t miss the coaching gig. “Not yet, I mean, I did that show for 23 seasons,” he said. He added that he didn’t even plan on coaching for as long as he did.

“To be totally honest about it, I wasn’t even planning on being there that long,” Shelton told Jennifer Hudson. “I was planning on wrapping it up around 20 seasons or 21 seasons, and then obviously COVID hit, and then I didn’t want to walk out on the show in the middle of COVID and them trying to scramble and figure out what to do, so I stayed. I didn’t have anything else to do anyway, so I stayed a little bit longer. But I stayed too long for me to now miss it, I can promise you that.”

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