Blake Shelton has nothing but admiration—and affection—for Trace Adkins, and much to Adkins’ dismay—it shows.

Adkins, along with Craig Morgan, Deana Carter, and Emily Ann Roberts, are on tour with Shelton for his Friends & Heroes tour, which launched Thursday night in Lexington, Kentucky. Friday night, the group stopped at Knoxville’s Thompson Boling Arena, and Shelton had a surprise for Adkins when they finished their duet, “Hell Right.”

Adkins and Shelton hugged on stage, and Shelton jokingly planted a massive kiss on Adkins’ cheek. Adkins gruffly shoved him off and acted like he was going to walk off stage.

“Take it, take it all,” Shelton quipped before repeatedly asking him to stay to sing their signature hit, “Hillbilly Bone.”

“Don’t kiss me no more,” Adkins growled.

Trace Adkins: Don’t Kiss Me No More

It’s not the first time Shelton has puckered up for Adkins. The friends have a long history of back-and-forth, Shelton heaping affection on Adkins in public and Adkins prickling at the attention. But it’s all in good fun. Adkins came back to the spotlight, and the men whipped the audience into a chaotic frenzy with their raucous cover of “Hillbilly Bone,” one of the songs that helped catapult Shelton into superstardom.

While some headliners are hesitant to share their stage and spotlight with the other acts on the tour – Shelton steps aside every chance he can to allow his band and fellow touring artists to shine. Roberts opened the show, but the other artists were built in throughout the night. Shelton opened with his chart-topping Post Malone hit “Pour Me a Drink,” then “I’ll Name the Dogs,” “All About Tonight,” and “Neon Light” before stepping aside for Morgan to play his three-song set. Shelton came back to the stage for lively versions of “Guy with the Girl,” “Nobody But You,” “Happy Anywhere,” and “Honey Bee.” Then it was Carter’s turn before Shelton stepped back out for some of his classics – “Home,” “Some Beach,” “Ol Red,” “Austin,” and his new radio torpedo, “Texas.”

The crowd roared when Adkins walked out for his “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk,” “You’re Gonna Miss This” and “Ladies Love Country Boys.’  Then Shelton joined him for their “Hell Right” and “Hillbilly Bone.”

Blake Shelton Shares Spotlight with Friends & Heroes

There was an acoustic section toward the end of the night that Shelton structured specifically to let his friends and heroes shine. He initially positioned it as a best-song-wins competition but ceded the idea, acknowledging the others had better songs than is.

Shelton built covers including Alabama’s “Mountain Music” and George Strait’s “All My Exes Live in Texas” and closed the show with “God’s Country,” “Boy’s Round Here,” and “God Gave Me You.”
While it is expected that headliners build their shows to celebrate them and their music, Shelton discovered a way to do it while keeping the spotlight on his heroes and country music. Shelton looks like he’s having more fun than anybody. He’s the first to admit that he’s competitive and wants to be at the top of the genre. But Shelton’s love of people, country music, friends, and fans shines the brightest – with his infectious, impressive catalog of hits as the soundtrack.