{"id":1320212,"date":"2020-05-27T10:21:02","date_gmt":"2020-05-27T16:21:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/?p=1821436"},"modified":"2020-05-27T10:21:02","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T16:21:02","slug":"the-real-story-behind-blake-sheltons-debut-hit-austin-in-2001","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/music-news\/the-real-story-behind-blake-sheltons-debut-hit-austin-in-2001\/","title":{"rendered":"The Real Story Behind Blake Shelton\u2019s Debut Hit \u201cAustin\u201d in 2001"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"byline\">by <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/author\/bonaguroa\/\" title=\"Posts by Alison Bonaguro\" rel=\"author\">Alison Bonaguro<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"date\">54m ago<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n<div class=\"deferred_content\">Embedded from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bb1DTsxBOfE?feature=oembed\">www.youtube.com<\/a>. <noscript class=\"deferred_content\" data-deferred-info=\"{&quot;type&quot;:&quot;iframe&quot;}\"><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bb1DTsxBOfE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript><\/div>\n<p>Remember \u201cAustin\u201d? It was Blake Shelton\u2019s debut single in 2001, and is a throwback all the way back to the times of answering machines and landlines. The long-lost-love song \u2014 penned by David Kent and Kirsti Manna \u2014 was Shelton\u2019s first No. 1 hit, right out of the gate.<\/p>\n<div class=\"photo\" id=\"8beb7d55\">\n<div class=\"deferred_content\"><noscript class=\"deferred_content\" data-deferred-info=\"{&quot;type&quot;:&quot;img&quot;}\"><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.85&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=480\" srcset=\"http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=481 481w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=660 660w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=768 768w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=980 980w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=1200 1200w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=1500 1500w, http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:file:http:shared:cmt.com\/news\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/05\/GettyImages-1128076791-1590594196.jpg?quality=0.8&amp;format=jpg&amp;width=1800 1800w\" title=\"Blake Shelton At Magnum's Nightclub\" class=\"js-srcset-img shortcode-image portrait\" alt><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript><\/div>\n<div class=\"photocredit\">Paul Natkin<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>And now, 19 years later, the song\u2019s producer Bobby Braddock is sharing the story behind the song. Braddock has been with Shelton since the start of it all, producing or co-producing Shelton\u2019s first five studio albums.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought \u2019Austin\u2019 was a little bit hokey at first, but by the end of the song, I thought, \u2018Man, this is kind of cool. This is like one of those Tom Hanks\/Meg Ryan movies,\u2019\u201d Braddock says. \u201cBut Blake pretty much said the song wasn\u2019t macho enough for him at first.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo I told him, \u2019I think you need to listen to it again.\u2019 He did, then came back and \u2014 like I did \u2014 had a change of heart. And he said, \u2019Man, I think this is a pretty cool song,&#8217;\u201d he said. But after some record label shuffling and meetings with all of the big shots, it was starting to feel like \u201cAustin\u201d might not make the short list of potential debut singles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBlake needed something like \u2019Austin\u2019 to keep him alive,\u201d Braddock recalls.<\/p>\n<p>And while they were trying to keep Shelton and \u201cAustin\u201d alive, Braddock shared the song with his female artist friends. \u201cI prioritize what a female thinks over a male with a record,\u201d he said, \u201cbecause of the demographic and because there are more females who listen to the radio and buy records.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery one of them said the same thing: that they shed tears when they heard \u2019Austin.\u2019 So then I called the A&amp;R person at the label and said, \u2019We need to have another meeting.\u2019 And she told me they\u2019d already decided on a single. I told her,\u2019There\u2019s new information and we need to have a meeting.\u2019 I was determined to convince them to change from \u2019All Over to Me\u2019 to \u2019Austin.\u2019<\/p>\n<div class=\"deferred_content\">Embedded from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VjHc_2rYabg?feature=oembed\">www.youtube.com<\/a>. <noscript class=\"deferred_content\" data-deferred-info=\"{&quot;type&quot;:&quot;iframe&quot;}\"><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VjHc_2rYabg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript><\/div>\n<p>\u201cAt first I was met by massive resistance from everybody, but eventually I finally convinced them. They said, \u2019Well, I think \u201cAll Over Me\u201d showcases his beautiful falsetto, but it should probably come later. \u201cAustin\u201d should come first.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In 2010, Shelton <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/1634425\/blake-shelton-recalls-austin-ol-red-and-early-days-in-nashville-part-2-of-2\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">told CMT.com<\/a> that two weeks after \u201cAustin\u201d was released, the label he\u2019d been with since singing in 1998 \u2014 Giant Records \u2014 closed up show. \u201cYou know how Nashville is,\u201d Shelton had said of the label kerfuffle that ultimately landed him at Warner Music Nashville.<br \/><strong><br \/>Braddock\u2019s story appears in music biographer Jake Brown\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Behind-Boards-Nashville-Stories-Greatest\/dp\/1733025103\/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1590595123&amp;sr=8-1\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">upcoming book<\/a> <em>Behind the Boards: Nashville<\/em>, due out on June 23.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"author\">\n<div class=\"description\">Alison makes her living loving country music. She&#8217;s based in Chicago, but she&#8217;s always leaving her heart in Nashville.<\/div>\n<p> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/alisonbonaguro\" target=\"_BLANK\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@alisonbonaguro<\/a><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/1821436\/the-real-story-behind-blake-sheltons-debut-hit-austin-in-2001\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: CMT News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Alison Bonaguro 54m ago Embedded from www.youtube.com. [embedded content] Remember \u201cAustin\u201d? It was Blake Shelton\u2019s debut single in 2001, and is a throwback all the way back to the times of answering machines and landlines. The long-lost-love song \u2014 penned by David Kent and Kirsti Manna \u2014 was Shelton\u2019s first No. 1 hit, right [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[159],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1320212","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-16 06:23:13","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1320212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1320212"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1320212\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1320212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1320212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1320212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}