| If I'm Honest | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 20, 2016 | |||
| Recorded | 2016 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 50:31 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. Nashville | |||
| Producer | Scott Hendricks | |||
| Blake Shelton chronology | ||||
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| Singles from If I'm Honest | ||||
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If I'm Honest is the tenth studio album by American country music singer Blake Shelton. It was released on May 20, 2016 via Warner Bros. Nashville. The album was produced by Shelton's longtime producer Scott Hendricks and features collaborations with Gwen Stefani and The Oak Ridge Boys. [1]
According to Shelton the album is very personal and addresses his high and lows of 2015 from his divorce from Miranda Lambert in July 2015 and met and started dating Gwen Stefani in November 2015. [1]
One of the album's tracks, "Green", was previously included on Shelton's 2008 album Startin' Fires .
The album's tenth track "Friends", is the theme song to the 2016 film The Angry Birds Movie , which was released on the same day as the album. The song is also featured on its corresponding soundtrack.
"Came Here to Forget" is the album's first single, and it was released on March 8, 2016. The song debuted at number one on the Country Digital Chart and has sold 136,000 copies as of March 2016. [2] [3]
The second single from the album, "Savior's Shadow", was released on April 8, 2016. [4] This song impacted Christian radio on April 11, 2016 in addition to the country format. [5]
"She's Got a Way with Words" was released on June 6, 2016 as the album's third overall and second promotional single. [6]
"A Guy with a Girl" became the album's fourth single on September 26, 2016. [7]
"Every Time I Hear That Song" was released as the fifth and final single on February 20, 2017.
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 58/100 [8] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [9] |
| Consequence of Sound | C [10] |
| Entertainment Weekly | C [11] |
| Knoxville News Sentinel | [12] |
| Newsday | B+ [13] |
| Rolling Stone | [14] |
If I'm Honest was met with generally mixed reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 58, based on 5 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [8]
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that the album "is at its core a balladeer's record," and that Shelton pulls off "these romance tunes with a sly, masculine grace that complements the album's sleek modern surfaces." [9] Jim Farber of Entertainment Weekly stated that, "What's more: the album’s breezy Nashville-pop tunes never strike below the surface. Small wonder the toss-off songs seem more credible." [11] Rolling Stone 's Keith Harris reported that "Shelton's warmly confident delivery makes those romantic twists and turns sound both lived in but universal". [14]
Glenn Gamboa of Newsday opined that the bulk of the album "is a mix of letting old relationships go and starting new ones." [13] In a review for the Los Angeles Times , Mikael Wood suggests in the home of country music, "the default setting is polished professionalism; rawness actually takes time. And here Shelton seldom pushes beyond that finesse to reach something less smooth." [15] Erik Ernst, writing for Milwaukee Journal Sentinel , opines that "this disc's balance of modern verve, emotional introspection and country inflection is where Shelton is supposed to be." [16] In its review for Consequence of Sound , Janine Schaults commented that "The Country pop star's post-breakup album flounders under too many glitzy, cheesy pop flourishes." [10] Chuck Campbell from the Knoxville News Sentinel said that "Blake Shelton sounds more like a savvy marketer than any kind of artist". [12]
The album debuted at No. 3 on US Billboard 200 chart, selling 153,000 copies (170,000 album equivalent units) during its first week. [17] It also debuted at No. 1 the Top Country Albums chart. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on August 23, 2016. [18] It became the eleventh best-selling album of 2016 in the United States with over 522,000 copies sold that year. [19] As of November 2017, the album has sold 627,300 copies in the U.S. [20]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Straight Outta Cold Beer" |
| 2:45 |
| 2. | "She's Got a Way with Words" |
| 3:11 |
| 3. | "Bet You Still Think About Me" |
| 3:55 |
| 4. | "Every Time I Hear That Song" | 3:35 | |
| 5. | "Came Here to Forget" | 3:40 | |
| 6. | "Every Goodbye" | 3:10 | |
| 7. | "It Ain't Easy" |
| 3:31 |
| 8. | "A Guy with a Girl" | 3:10 | |
| 9. | "Go Ahead and Break My Heart" (featuring Gwen Stefani) |
| 4:25 |
| 10. | "Friends" (from The Angry Birds Movie ) |
| 3:03 |
| 11. | "One Night Girl" |
| 3:41 |
| 12. | "Doing It to Country Songs" (featuring The Oak Ridge Boys) | 3:02 | |
| 13. | "Green" |
| 3:11 |
| 14. | "You Can't Make This Up" |
| 3:30 |
| 15. | "Savior's Shadow" |
| 2:45 |
| Total length: | 50:31 | ||
Credits adapted from the liner notes of the standard edition of If I'm Honest. [21]
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Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada) [32] | Gold | 40,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA) [18] | Platinum | 627,300 [20] |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Edition(s) | Catalog number | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | May 20, 2016 | Warner Bros. Nashville | Standard | [1] |
Gwen Renée Stefani is an American singer-songwriter. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include "Just a Girl", "Spiderwebs", and "Don't Speak", from their 1995 breakthrough studio album Tragic Kingdom, as well as "Hey Baby" and "It's My Life" from later albums.
Blake Tollison Shelton is an American singer, songwriter and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin" from his first album, Blake Shelton. "Austin" spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The now Platinum-certified debut album also produced two more top 20 entries.
American singer Gwen Stefani has released four studio albums, two extended plays, 34 singles, six promotional singles, one video album, and 28 music videos. She has sold more than nine million albums as a solo artist. Stefani is also the lead singer of the rock band No Doubt, with which she has released several albums.
American country music singer Blake Shelton has released 12 studio albums, four extended plays, five compilation albums, and 54 singles. According to Recording Industry Association of America, Shelton has sold 52 million singles and 13 million albums in the United States. He also has achieved 14 No. 1 hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. Billboard ranked him as the 31st Top Artist of the 2010s decade.
Red River Blue is the sixth studio album by American country music artist Blake Shelton. It was released on July 12, 2011, via Warner Bros. Records, and is Shelton's inaugural No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart, debuting at the top spot on July 30, 2011. Four singles were released from the album: "Honey Bee", "God Gave Me You", "Drink on It", and "Over". All four singles peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard charts for Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay. "God Gave Me You" is a cover, written and originally recorded by Christian rock singer Dave Barnes. Red River Blue's title track is a duet with Shelton's then-wife and fellow country singer Miranda Lambert.
Cheers, It's Christmas is the first Christmas album and seventh studio album by American country music artist Blake Shelton. It was released on October 2, 2012, through Warner Bros. Nashville. Shelton co-wrote three tracks for the album.
"Make Me Like You" is a song by American singer Gwen Stefani for her third solo studio album, This Is What the Truth Feels Like (2016). The record's second single, it was released digitally on February 12, 2016, and distributed to contemporary hit radio on February 16 in the United States by Interscope. Mattias Larsson and Robin Frediksson produced the song, which was co-written by Stefani, Larsson, Frediksson, Justin Tranter, and Julia Michaels. A pop and disco recording, "Make Me Like You" incorporates light rock, with guitars and digital harps over an uptempo melody. The lyrics, which were inspired by Stefani's relationship with singer Blake Shelton, explore finding and renewing love after a fractured relationship.
This Is What the Truth Feels Like is the third studio album by American singer Gwen Stefani. It was released on March 18, 2016, by Interscope Records. Initially, the album was scheduled to be released in December 2014 with Stefani working with a handful of high-profile producers, and Benny Blanco serving as executive producer. However, after the underperformance of her 2014 singles and the writer's block Stefani suffered, she did not feel comfortable curating an album and scrapped the whole record in favor of starting again. The album's release was scheduled after Stefani hinted at it on her Twitter account.
"Go Ahead and Break My Heart" is a song that was written and recorded by American singers Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani for the former's tenth studio album, If I'm Honest (2016). Shelton's longtime producer Scott Hendricks produced the track. It was released as its second promotional single for digital download on May 9, 2016. The song is Shelton and Stefani's first collaboration. The ideas behind the song began after the pair shared similar insecurities with each other, leaving Shelton to write the first verse, followed by Stefani analyzing it and writing her own.
"Straight Outta Cold Beer" is a song recorded by American singer Blake Shelton for his tenth studio album, If I'm Honest (2016). It was released as its third promotional single for digital download on May 13, 2016. The track was written by Marv Green, Ben Hayslip, and Justin Wilson, while production was solely handled by Shelton's longtime producer Scott Hendricks. A country song, Shelton sings about his youth, where everyone partied until the beer was gone.
"Every Time I Hear That Song" is a song recorded by American country music artist Blake Shelton for his tenth studio album, If I'm Honest (2016) and would be used for Shelton's other album Fully Loaded: God's Country. Released to radio as the album's fifth and final single on February 20, 2017, the track was written by Aimee Mayo, Chris Lindsey, Brad Warren and Brett Warren, while production was handled by Scott Hendricks.
"A Guy with a Girl" is a song recorded by American country music artist Blake Shelton for his tenth studio album, If I'm Honest (2016) and would be used for Shelton's other album Fully Loaded: God's Country. Released to radio as the album's fourth single on September 26, 2016, the track was written by Ashley Gorley and Bryan Simpson, while production was handled by Scott Hendricks.
"Savior's Shadow" is a song recorded by American country music artist Blake Shelton, taken as the second single from his tenth studio album, If I'm Honest (2016). It was released digitally on April 8, 2016, before being sent to Christian and country radio on April 11. The track was written by Shelton, Jessi Alexander and Jon Randall, while production was handled by Scott Hendricks.
"Christmas Eve" is a song by American singer and songwriter Gwen Stefani from her fourth studio album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas (2017). The song was written by Stefani, Justin Tranter, and busbee, with the latter of the three handling production alongside Eric Valentine. It was the first song conceived for the album, and "originated from a run Stefani took in rural Oklahoma. Details about the song first emerged in August 2017, when its title appeared as a registered work on two global music databases. The song a slow-burning Christmas ballad with lyrics that reference the holiday season.
You Make It Feel Like Christmas is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Gwen Stefani. The album, which is Stefani's first full-length Christmas-themed album, was released on October 6, 2017, by Interscope Records. The record was executively produced by Stefani and Busbee, with additional production coming from Eric Valentine. The standard version of You Make It Feel Like Christmas contains twelve songs, featuring six original songs penned by Stefani, Busbee and Justin Tranter, and six cover versions of Christmas standards. While going on a nature walk near the Oklahoma ranch house belonging to boyfriend Blake Shelton, Stefani felt inspired to record a Christmas album and began writing what would later become "Christmas Eve". Recording sessions took place in the summer months of 2017; several of the tracks' titles leaked in August, leaving Stefani to confirm the project in September. The album's original songs make references to Stefani's newfound love and relationship with Shelton.
"You Make It Feel Like Christmas" is a song by American singer Gwen Stefani from her fourth studio album of the same name (2017). It features guest vocals from Blake Shelton. The song was written by Stefani, Justin Tranter, Shelton and busbee, while production was handled by busbee and Eric Valentine. It was recorded during the summer months, with the song title leaking in August 2017. The song was eventually released for digital download and streaming as the lead single from the album by Interscope on September 22, 2017. It was influenced by popular holiday music from Stefani's childhood and marks Stefani and Shelton's second collaboration following their duet "Go Ahead and Break My Heart" in 2016. A Christmas track, the song includes country and pop music elements, with lyrics describing a romantic holiday season.
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Fully Loaded: God's Country is a 2019 compilation album by American country music singer Blake Shelton. It was released on December 13, 2019, via Warner Records Nashville. The album includes his most successful singles from Shelton's two previous albums, If I'm Honest and Texoma Shore, along with four new songs and a cover. Among the new songs are "God's Country" and the Trace Adkins duet "Hell Right" and also Gwen Stefani Duet "Nobody but You" both released as singles. Fully Loaded: God's Country reached the number-one position on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.
"Nobody but You" is a song recorded by American singers Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani for the former's fifth compilation album, Fully Loaded: God's Country (2019). It was produced by Scott Hendricks and written by Ross Copperman, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne, and Tommy Lee James. Following "Go Ahead and Break My Heart" (2016) and "You Make It Feel Like Christmas" (2017), "Nobody but You" marks Shelton and Stefani's third collaboration. The song was first revealed in October 2019, although Stefani's contributions remained a secret until a week prior to its release in December of the same year. It was sent to United States country music radio outlets by Warner on January 21, 2020, becoming the third single from the parent album. Promotional acoustic and live versions of the song were released to the public in March and June 2020, respectively.
"Happy Anywhere" is a song recorded by American country music singer Blake Shelton that features guest vocals from his wife, American singer and songwriter Gwen Stefani. It was released in July 2020 as the lead single from his twelfth studio album Body Language. It was produced by Scott Hendricks and was written by Ross Copperman, Josh Osborne, and Matt Jenkins. Their fourth collaboration and released directly after their duet "Nobody but You", "Happy Anywhere" was released as a single via digital download and streaming on July 24, 2020, by Warner Records. To promote the song, Shelton's official website launched a contest where fans could upload pictures of themselves with their loved ones.
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