Call It a Blake-through — Shelton’s Finally Made It to the Top

Blake Shelton has come along way from his early days of playing honky-tonks and growing mullets. The country megastar has had a slow burn to the top, and he finally seems to have found a secure spot in country music.

Now he's hosting awards shows, becoming a three-time winner of NBC's "The Voice" and touring the country to sold-out venues -- and I almost forgot to mention marrying fellow superstar Miranda Lambert.

Yep, Blake's got it all, including a new album. "Bringing Back the Sunshine" hits stores today.

I don't claim to know Blake Shelton well, but I've had a few instances to interact with him early in his career. Blake's dry sense of humor and fun-loving personality were on full display in 2004 when he headlined the Bull Bash at the Yakima Valley SunDome with Trick Pony and Blue County.

I can remember Blake having a battery-powered bug zapper that he was playing around with, zapping his bassist and band leader Rob Byus. Rob was running the tour at the time and sent me on errands for Mr. Shelton. I would bring back whatever they needed, which consisted of Michelob Ultra and I can't remember what else.

Blake was totally cool and I want to believe that he hasn't changed much. He once called the Bull the day after the CMAs to replace a hungover Big and Rich in an interview, and Rik Mikals thought it was Jon Rich playing a joke on us because he didn't think they would replace the talent without letting us know. Well, they did -- and after minutes of questioning Blake he finally got tired of it and hung up.

Wtih the release of "Bringing Back the Sunshine," Blake will be making the TV rounds the next few days. He'll appear on the "Today" show Wednesday morning and "Live with Kelly and Michael" on Thursday.

Go, Blake!