Blake Shelton Recalls Billy Ray Cyrus' Advice For 1st TV Appearance: 'Toughen Up!'

Blake Shelton
Rick Kern/Getty Images for iHeartMedia

Like any other artist, some people look up to other public figures who have been veterans in a certain field as they inspire them to become the best version of themselves.

More recently, Blake Shelton revealed that Billy Ray Cyrus, who has been prominent in the country music genre for decades, gave him a piece of advice back when he was about to appear on television for the first time in his career.

At the time, Shelton was not known publicly that much, he was only a young man who had dreams of breaking through the music industry.

Speaking in an interview with "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," the former "The Voice" coach revealed that his first CMAs was in 2001.

"I remember I had a song out that had done pretty good, good enough that they asked me to come do one of those commercial bumper moments," he said. (via Taste of Country)

During that moment, Shelton was able to present himself to a massive audience as it was national television, and one of his songs was played before it was the commercial break. Even though it was a big opportunity for him to promote his music, he felt terrified.

Blake Shelton Recalls Billy Ray Cyrus' Advice to Him Before Going on Stage

Before the big moment 22 years ago, Blake Shelton had a chance to speak with Billy Ray Cyrus, who was the first person to approach him.

At the time, the country musician said he was standing on to the side and Cyrus just presented an award on stage and when he went backstage, he went straight to Shelton and introduced himself.

Shelton's initial reaction was shock, but he was able to share his feelings that he was scared to face millions of people who were watching television.

"And he goes, 'Hey man, listen. Even if you do great, this is the music industry. Most of those people are going to make fun of you and roll their eyes, anyway. It's like, this is the music industry. You need to toughen up a little, man,'" Shelton recalled.

Billy Ray Cyrus' Advice Struck to Blake Shelton

Blake Shelton considers the musician's words as "peop talk" to him as it made sense because Cyrus was right all along.

Following that moment, the singer rose to fame and took over country music charts through the years. Throughout his career, he was able to perform in different venues for his tour and even became a coach on "The Voice."

According to Billboard, Blake Shelton has won a total of 10 CMA Awards ever since.

Tags
Blake Shelton, Billy Ray Cyrus, Country, Country Music, CMA, CMA Awards, News, Music
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