After 29 No. 1 hits, 11 billion streams, 52 million singles, and 13 million albums sold, Blake Shelton has nothing left to prove. The numbers speak for themselves. But with For Recreational Use Only, his first new studio album in nearly four years, Shelton isn’t resting on that past success. He’s digging deeper and swinging for the fences on a record that’s as relaxed as the title suggests, yet packs some of the most emotional punches of his career.

Anchored by the swaggering Top 10 single “Texas” and the soul-stirring ballad “Let Him In Anyway,” the 12-track record shows the Oklahoma native at his most versatile. The lead single is all boots-on-the-dashboard country cool, but “Let Him In Anyway,” co-written by HARDY, takes things to a different level. It’s a gut-wrenching plea for grace, sung from the perspective of a man asking heaven to make room for a friend who nearly made it right. “It’s one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever recorded,” Shelton says. “I knew instantly it was something special.”

The album was, as Shelton puts it, “years in the making.” Produced alongside Scott Hendricks, For Recreational Use Only captures the highs, heartbreaks, and humor of real life with equal parts honky-tonk confessional and front-porch philosophy. There are party anthems, sure, but also moments of stillness and spiritual weight.

And he’s not alone. The record features guest appearances from his wife Gwen Stefani, country great John Anderson, and tourmate Craig Morgan. It’s a who’s-who of Shelton’s world, both personal and professional, a reminder that behind the hitmaker is a man rooted in family and friends. With For Recreational Use Only, Shelton taps into the feeling of a night around the firepit, with good times, memories, and occasionally gutting confessions. Blake Shelton might be taking it easy, but he’s never sounded more tuned in.