Blake Shelton Calls Out Fan Wearing Friendly Rival’s Shirt

Country music star Blake Shelton had a string of shows in Las Vegas last month, and in one show, he noticed a fan wearing merch from another country singer, his friendly rival, Luke Bryan.

Shelton didn’t hold back and expressed his feelings on stage, earning loud cheers from the concert crowd.

The two country singers have had a long-standing brotherly rivalry, and they never hold back when it comes to dishing out jabs at each other.

Shelton has a short residency at Caesars Palace’s The Colosseum in Las Vegas, and on January 30, the “God Gave Me You” singer stopped his concert to address something he saw in the crowd.

One of his fans was wearing a Luke Bryan shirt, and he just had to say something, per Parade. “You come to my show wearing Luke Bryan sh-t? What’s the matter with you? That guy’s an idiot,” exclaimed.

Shelton then turned to his crew, telling them to grab one of his merch shirts to give to the fan. That wasn’t all, though, as the singer continued to poke fun at Bryan.

He pointed his microphone at the audience, telling them how Bryan always asks his audience to sing along because “he’s too drunk to remember the words to his own song.” “Drunk and high,” Shelton added, urging the crowd to post his friendly outburst on social media.

Fans of the two stars know that Shelton’s remarks were made in jest. Shelton and Bryan have known each other for decades, as both of them began their music careers in Nashville in the 2000s.

Both singers have been successful in their endeavors, and while they developed a genuine friendship, they have also been friendly rivals for years.

As Bryan jokingly said last year, in an interview with CMT, his driving force to keep making music was so that he could one-up his friend. “That’s the only reason I’m still in the game of country music, is to stay ahead. I thought he was retiring, he’s back putting songs out. It’s not the deal we had,” he joked.

The two often joke about being rivals, but they have collaborated several times, including singing duets and touring together.

It seems Shelton loves poking fun at his rival, something that he has been doing for years. In an interview in 2024, Taste of Country asked the singer who would win between him and Bryan in arm wrestling.

While the “Honey Bee” singer admitted that Bryan could defeat him, his reasons for believing so were subtle jabs at the country singer. “Luke could probably beat me at arm wrestling, because he’s so into his looks and he’s so vain like that,” joking that Bryan uses steroids, so he could easily beat him.

In another playful dig last year, Shelton said he was chosen to host the Grand Ole Opry’s 100th anniversary because he’s the “best reader” in country music, adding, “Because think of these guys, like Luke Bryan. You know, it just comes down to literacy, I think, and a teleprompter.”

Bryan also had teasing remarks for Shelton, at one time saying that Gwen Stefani was the only reason why people listened to his music.

Shelton isn’t the only singer Bryan roasts; he’s also had friendly feuds with other artists, such as Riley Green. He addressed his friendly banter with the singers, comparing it to comedy.

“I think that’s the hurdle in society this day, when you go into comedy, the comedians they gotta go for the big joke,” he explained, adding that he, too, goes for the “big joke.” Admittedly, he says that his jokes don’t always land, but he trusts fans to know that his remarks are never serious.

“The day country music loses that or any of that gets lost, I mean, listen, there’s real beefs that go on, but I don’t know. I don’t have time for beefs. I just wanna grill the beef,” he said.

It seems Shelton’s wife isn’t safe from the country star’s jokes. Shelton has added more dates to his Las Vegas residency, and it will overlap with Stefani’s residency with her band No Doubt.

“That’ll be interesting because I’ll be in direct competition with my wife. I’m excited about that because I know there’ll be probably a little bit of trash talking,” he told People.

Shelton will be at the Colosseum on selected dates between May 6 and 24, and the general ticket sale starts on February 6.