Blake Shelton's Next Album to 'Bee' Sooner Than Expected

Kevin Winter, Getty Images

With the success of his latest single, 'Honey Bee,'Blake Shelton is set to release his ninth album on July 12, a few months before he had planned. The reigning CMA Male Vocalist debuted 'Honey Bee' on the Academy of Country Music Awards earlier this month, and just one week after its release, the song had more than 138,000 in digital sales. Naturally, Blake felt it wouldn't be wise to wait until the fall for fans to get the album.

"Playing your cards too close to your chest doesn't pay out," Blake tells the Associated Press. "I feel like right now if I've got a single that's exploding, easily my fastest climber, I don't want to do something like wait and put [the album] out in the fall. It's when you rally the troops and say, 'Man, we've got to get this thing done.'"