'Barmageddon' Stars Blake Shelton, Carson Daly's Best Quotes About Their Friendship

Blake Shelton and Carson Daly are turning their friendship into a business relationship by co-creating the upcoming USA Network competition series “Barmageddon,” where they’ll no doubt put their close bond and playful rivalry on full display. 

Over the years, the duo has gently roasted each other in public while working on “The Voice” as well as in various appearances that Shelton made on the “TODAY” show where Daly acts as co-host. That’s not to mention the countless times they’ve interacted together on their respective social media accounts.

While their love language tends to be one of competition (which is perfect for their new show), there have been a handful of times in which they’ve offered a peek behind the curtain and been genuine with the public about their friendship.

Carson Compliments Blake’s Music

In September 2021, Shelton appeared on the “TODAY” show to discuss his new album “Body Language.” Daly opened the segment by joking that Shelton’s music wasn’t good before he met his now-wife, Gwen Stefani. That said, he noted his family absolutely loves to blast the country star’s music every day. 

"We listen to Blake in the Daly household every single day," he said. "We ask Alexa, 'Play Blake Shelton Essentials,' and we hear some of the greatest country songs ever."

Later in the segment, Daly noted that his family recently saw Shelton perform live and he couldn’t help but marvel at his friend’s showmanship. 

“We went to your show in Connecticut two weeks ago and it was great. All joking aside, he puts on one of the greatest shows,” Daly said. “I’ve never seen him work hard but his show is incredible.”

Blake Finds Love In Daly’s Honesty  

In the same 2021 interview, Blake also put joking aside for a moment to tell a story about Daly being brutally honest with him in only the way a best friend can. 

“Here’s how you know that Carson is one of my best friends. He texted me when ‘Come Back As A Country Boy’ came out and he’s like, ‘Man this is seriously … This song is killer. This is my favorite song you’ve ever put out.’ Then, flash forward to about two weeks ago, because I knew he liked the song I said, ‘Hey, what do you think about the video that just came out?’ He said, ‘Yeah, I don’t really like your video.’”

Shelton began laughing and noted that he appreciates having someone willing to tell it like it is and keep him accountable.

Carson Officiates Blake’s Wedding

“The way he handled those wet T-shirt contests back in the day when he was hosting those Spring Break specials, we knew he had to be the guy for us,” Shelton joked in October 2021 on “Late Night with Seth Meyers.”

The late-night host spoke with the country star all about his private wedding to longtime girlfriend and former “The Voice” coach, Stefani. Specifically, Meyers wanted to know about the duo asking Daly to officiate the ceremony.

“I don’t know who was more excited. When we called Carson, I mean, we were a little bit nervous to even ask him because the guy’s so — I mean, he’s so busy,” he said at the time. “I don’t even know how he does — literally, he has a radio show. He has the ‘TODAY’ show. He has ‘The Voice.’ And he used to have a show that came on, I guess, what two shows after your show, you know what I mean? Like, when nobody was watching,” 

Shelton was referencing “Last Call with Carson Daly.”

“But he jumped on the opportunity, and he ended up staying there with his family for a few days with us," he added. "It was awesome. It really was.”

Daly Talks Surprising Friendship

While reflecting on the 10th anniversary of “The Voice,” Daly discussed how far his relationship with Shelton has come. 

He noted that, when the show first started, Shelton was the coach whose career he was least familiar with. All these years later, he’s the only coach that’s consistently been on every season of the show (take that, Adam Levine!). As a result, they’ve gotten to know each other very well. 

“He’s become one of the closest people in my life, to be honest with you,” Carson said at the time. “We're very close, which is ironic because I — obviously, you know, I’m a producer on the show, I'm involved in recruiting coaches. I've talked some people into doing the show. And he was the person I knew the least.” 

He added: “So, it's just ironic that 10 years later, he's the one that I'm definitely closest with. Our families vacation together at this point, and so I'm very grateful. Aside from what the show, from an employment standpoint, has done for me and my family, you know, my friendship with Blake is probably the next best thing I've yielded by being on the show.”