We’re used to seeing Blake Shelton on primetime TV, with his role as a coach on ‘The Voice,’ which catapulted him to mainstream fame. But his roots will always be in country music. Instead of offering sarcastic and hilarious comments to hopefuls on the reality singing competition or ribbing with his co-stars, Shelton took the stage at the 2012 ACM Awards tonight (April 1) to co-host and to perform. He took a break from making jokes and entertaining the crowd with one-liners to slow things down and perform his new single ‘Drink on It.’

Strapping on his acoustic guitar, Shelton delivered the song with a big ol’ smile on his face, proving that even though he has carefully cultivated his humorous persona, he is also a consummate performer who can get serious when he needs to be.

His deft and solid performance showed fans why he was chosen to serve on the panel of ‘The Voice,’ because he is so talented himself. He can’t believably dole out advice to contestants if he isn’t good at what he does. Tonight, we were reminded why Blake Shelton is one of the very best at what he does.

Shelton pulled double duty and is one of the reasons the show was so entertaining.

Watch Blake Shelton Perform ‘Drink on It’ at the 2012 ACM Awards

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