80’s Pop Soundtrack “Footloose” Goes Country with Blake Shelton

A “Footloose 2.0” remake in 2011 was made with Blake Shelton singing the soundtrack. On October 8, 2011, the country singer premiered the music video of the classic soundtrack “Footloose” in Shaun Silva’s direction. Along with Shelton’s chart-toppers, the song was featured on his sixth studio album, Red River Blue, as a bonus track. This charted at No. 63 on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs. 

When the trailer for the 2011 reboot of the legendary film made its rounds, many 80s fans were dissatisfied. The news of a country remake of Kenny Loggins’ original soundtrack also left a bad taste in their mouths, but it wouldn’t hurt to give Shelton’s rendition a chance. 

Veteran The Voice coach singer put his country twist to the 80s hit with a smooth, twangy performance in an upbeat tune. “In this instance, you have to remove yourself from it and step into the role of what’s best for the movie and that particular scene. There’s really only one way to approach it when you think of it that way: a fun, uptempo, catchy version just like Kenny Loggins did,” Shelton explained.  

Shelton’s version received varied reactions when fans listened to it for the first time. So, he took it upon himself to post on X, previously called Twitter, in 2011 and said, “Ha! I can’t sleep, so I’m reading comments and reviews on my version of “Footloose.”… Man, it’s so polarizing… I love it!! I hate it!! Well, either way, it was SO fun to sing it.”

Fans may not have liked it, but icon Kenny Loggins himself approved the country version. “I always thought of ‘Footloose’ as a country song. Blake makes it even more so. His production updates the sound, especially the drums… If anything, … it’s maybe a bit too perfect. But no matter… It’s still a fun tune and could go all the way. I wish them much luck,” Loggins responded on X.

Shelton and Loggins performed the song at the 45th Annual CMA Awards on November 9, 2011, in Bridgestone Arena, Nashville. With a dynamic stage of amazing dancers behind them, the show was quite the spectacle, similar to its music video. 

Get ready to lose your country feet and dance to Blake Shelton’s country rendition of “Footloose.”