Review: Blake Shelton uses humor at Minnesota State Fair to spice his ballad-heavy concert

Where was she? Where was Gwen Stefani? She wasn’t at the Minnesota State Fair grandstand where her hubby Blake Shelton sounded excited to draw 11,156 country music fans on a Sunday night. In July, he crashed her Minnesota Yacht Club gig at Harriet Island in St. Paul. Why didn’t she return the favor?

Instead, grandstand fans witnessed Stefani on a video screen, duetting on the power ballad “Nobody But You” midway through the show. Too bad her voice wasn’t louder in the sound mix. At least dedicated Shelton followers got to experience Stefani’s surprise appearance at his Twin Cities Summer Jam gig in 2022.

But that was then. This is now. “I don’t do that many concerts anymore,” said Shelton, who has headlined only one other show this summer. “I’m honored to be here tonight.”

The scene: With Shelton, it’s always about drinking. Or at least talking about drinking. Concertgoers seemed to have as many fans-on-a-stick in their hands as beers. This was an older crowd, especially compared to masses of sloppy 20-something revelers at Zach Bryan on Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

When Shelton left muggy Oklahoma on Sunday morning, he was hoping for cooler weather in Minnesota, he said. Not so. The husky 6-foot-5 singer was drenched in sweat by his third song.

The music: Even though he’s landed 28 tunes at No. 1 in Nashville, it was really Shelton’s irresistible, 23-season stint on NBC’s “The Voice” that transformed him into a country superstar and household name. He retired from that gig last year and, as he acknowledged Sunday, doesn’t have much new music except for his new Post Malone collab, “Pour Me a Drink,” which landed late in Sunday’s 80-minute set.

Biggest takeaways: BS aren’t just Shelton’s initials. The letters also describe his playful patter. He lays it on thicker than the smoked sauce at the fair’s BBQ Baked Potato booth. But he spreads BS in a good way.

Like him dissing Luke Bryan, his “rival” on “American Idol,” for asking fans to sing choruses at his concert because “he’s so drunk and high he doesn’t remember the words to his own songs.” Shelton is joking, of course.

The 48-year-old is a charmer, who sold himself with a genuine smile, casual sincerity and straightforward romanticism. “My songs aren’t brain surgery,” he explained. He used his glib, self-deprecating tongue to spice up a repertoire that was heavy on ballads and medium-tempo tunes and mostly devoid of rousing party pieces.

Coolest moments: The standout was 2019′s “God’s Country,” a moody southern-rock declaration with a Native American musical undercurrent. And how can you argue with dog songs? Namely, 2017′s sweet “I’ll Name the Dogs” (“you name the babies”) and 2002′s story-song “Ol’ Red,” his swampy treatment of the old George Jones hit.

Low points: “Boys Round Here” is a bro-country styled anthem from 2013 that didn’t arouse and similarly “Pour Me a Drink,” the Post Malone new entry, was upbeat but not rowdy enough for its title.

Best banter: “Deep fried ranch dressing?” he said of a new State Fair food item. “I ate it and it’s awesome. What is wrong with me? I loved it.”

Opening act: Coached by Shelton, Emily Ann Roberts finished second in 2015 on “The Voice,” which she called an “itty bitty TV show.” In 30 minutes Sunday, Roberts, 25, of Knoxville, Tenn., offered a homey presence and an appealingly twangy voice on original material that has yet to make ripples in Nashville.