Song is released to country radio and digital outlets
The riches of love don’t come with a price tag attached. It’s a classic theme in music and certainly a hallmark of the country genre, from Charley Pride’s “All I Have To Offer You Is Me” and John Anderson’s “Money In The Bank,” to Alan Jackson’s “Livin On Love” and Chris Stapleton’s “Millionaire.” Warner Music Nashville superstar Blake Shelton taps into that storied tradition with his new single, “Minimum Wage,” available everywhere now and impacting country radio immediately.
“I heard ‘Minimum Wage’ over a year ago and connected with it immediately,” says Shelton. “It’s the timeless truth that you don’t need a lot of money or possessions, you just need love.”
Written by Nicolle Galyon, Corey Crowder and Jesse Frasure, “Minimum Wage” builds on the foundation that love is priceless. “I relate so much to the lyrics of this song. I have a lot of great memories playing dive bars in Nashville and then driving back to Oklahoma to play a gig,” Shelton continues. “I gravitate toward songs that feel like the stories of where I’ve been and where I am currently in my life, and I’ve got a lot of happiness in joy in my life these days.”
Shelton premiered the song during NBC’s New Year Eve to which many called Shelton “tone deaf” on social media due “insensitive lyrics” while in the midst of a pandemic that has cost thousands of jobs. Shelton, who’s known for speaking candidly on Twitter, never publicly responded to the negative comments, and he tells CMT in a new interview that one wasn’t warranted.
“We’re at a point now where it doesn’t even deserve a response,” Shelton says. “That’s why I didn’t come out initially and say anything, because they’re not entitled to a response from me. This is absolutely ridiculous. I looked after the first day when those headlines were popping up, and then for the next week after that, I didn’t see any more. It was hard to find anything negative. If it was something negative about me, it had to do with ‘I hate Blake Shelton’ because of some other reason. Most people were saying, ‘I don’t get what’s so offensive about this song.’ And that made me so happy that Ronnie Dunn came up and spoke out about how he puts his money on the common sense of the common hard-working people out there. And I do, too.”
Dunn made headlines defending Shelton and the song, claiming country music has always been relatable. “The ‘beef’ is yet another of those misguided social issue (cultural scams) that are concocted to further divide this country. I’m putting my money on the common sense of the common man to call bullshit on the forces at work to keep this country divided. Now, they want to attack country singers for being successful,” Dunn shares.
“Minimum Wage” follows back-to-back love songs with his fiancé and fellow The Voice coach, Gwen Stefani. “Nobody But You” and most recently “Happy Anywhere” both reached No. 1 on the country airplay charts, giving them consecutive No. 1 singles together and bringing Shelton his 28th career chart-topper.
2021 is already proving to be another busy year for Shelton as the Opry member gears up for a special show at the Opry House Friday night (January 15th). Meanwhile, Shelton is hard at work on season 20 of The Voice as he records new music to be released later this year.
