Blake Shelton Makes ‘Minimum Wage’ Video a Family Affair

Blake Shelton leaned on soon-to-be-family for the making of his latest music video, enlisting a future brother-in-law to create the energetic clip for “Minimum Wage.”

Directed by Todd Stefani — the brother of Shelton’s fiancée, Gwen Stefani — the music video was filmed right in the country superstar’s proverbial backyard … and it’s sure to make fans think back to better days. It uses some good old fashioned Hollywood smoke and mirrors to resemble an actual live concert performance, with a packed dance floor and everything, but sadly, it’s all movie magic. Shelton and his crew put his Ole Red bar, restaurant and music venue in Oklahoma to use for the clip, safely imagining a wild night that was all-too common before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We had a lot of Covid protocol in place for this video,” Shelton says in a statement. “I really felt like the video needed to be a live performance, so we had a few fans at Ole Red in Tishomingo. Of course, everyone had to be pre-tested and re-tested and temperature checks and social distance. I’m still amazed by the camerawork and how it looks like Ole Red is packed with people knowing there were just a handful of people actually on site. Gwen’s brother Todd captured exactly what I wanted to it to be.”

Written by Nicolle Galyon, Corey Crowder and Jesse Frasure, the treasured-love anthem is climbing radio charts even after inspiring controversy before its release. Some skeptical listeners criticized Shelton for being “too rich” to sing about living on minimum wage, and making light of the massive number of unemployed Americans due to COVID-19. But Shelton has denied any ill intent, and stars like Brooks & Dunn’s Ronnie Dunn came to his defense.

Either way, it won’t stop Blake Shelton from returning to NBC’s The Voice for season 20 on March 1, while he and Stefani just co-starred in a heartwarming Super Bowl commercial celebrating their love.