There are 3.8 billion men who currently inhabit this spinning rock we call Earth, give or take a hundred million or so.
But only one can be called the “Sexiest Man Alive.”
People Magazine has been bestowing the honor upon a male-identifying creature once a year since 1985.
Some choices have stood the test of time better than others…
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
The first award went to Mel Gibson. Yikes.
Brad Pitt nabbed the title in 1995 and 2000. Oh la la.
Denzel Washington and Dwayne Johnson are the only two non-white men to get the call-out from People.
Seriously?
But hey, it’s 2017 and People just had another chance to select the man of their choosing.
You know — supposedly the sexiest of all the 3.8 billion men on the planet.
So who did they go with?
Why it’s none other than country musician and The Voice star Blake Shelton!
And while we’re sure there are those who find the 45-year-old star to be sexy, everyone can basically agree that he is most certainly not the “sexiest man alive.”
Case in point:
I think I can explain why Blake Shelton was the Sexist Man Alive instead of Idris Elba.
They literally ran out of white people. pic.twitter.com/rkXFCSFXjS
— Jules (@jules_su) November 15, 2017
Maybe it's a typo, and Blake Shelton was meant to be named the most Sexist Man Alive? It's the only way my brain can logically make sense of this result.
— Jay Thomas (@ThisJayThomas) November 15, 2017
On a scale of 1 to Blake Shelton's publicist how good are you at your job?
— Jessica Reedy (@jessica_reedy) November 15, 2017
What alternate universe did we collectively slip into that Blake Shelton gets crowned sexiest man alive ? ?
— ? Farrah Moan (@farrahrized) November 15, 2017
Trump is President. Blake Shelton is the Sexiest Man Alive. Snooki better start planning her Nobel Prize speech.
— Susie Meister (@susie_meister) November 15, 2017
Of course Blake Shelton is People’s Sexiest Man Alive, 2017 is the year that mediocre white men were given titles they don’t deserve.
— Sarah (@thetigersez) November 15, 2017
Oh I'm sorry if Blake Shelton isn't sexy enough for YOU, anonymous person who hasn't looked up from their phone in 10 years!
— billy eichner (@billyeichner) November 15, 2017
So whose dick is Blake Shelton suckin
— Kim Chi (@KimChi_Chic) November 15, 2017
But the problem goes even deeper if you consider some of the tweets that Shelton has fired off over the years:
I’m old enough to remember when Blake Shelton was accusing people of being terrorist for speaking a different language – Now apparently, he’s
this years #SexiestManAlive according to @people @BlakeShelton ? pic.twitter.com/j29dxFRK40— Antonio Arellano (@AntonioArellano) November 15, 2017
Here are Some more extremely homophobic tweets by @BlakeShelton . He's disgusting. pic.twitter.com/Qo8UwXQfqF
— THE MUSIC TEA (@MusicFactsTea) August 13, 2016
#Throwback to some of @BlakeShelton 's homophobic tweets poking fun at and insulting gay men. pic.twitter.com/pOPKFscqnH
— THE MUSIC TEA (@MusicFactsTea) August 13, 2016
People are justifiably pushing back against the endorsement:
blake shelton is even less sexy when you find out he’s racist and homophobic and sexist and all around a gross dude
— josh lyman, human disaster (@andlivefromny) November 15, 2017
Ah yes! A homophobe, islamaphobhic racist is always a great idea to have as the sexiest man alive!
— .. (@bachelorworld_) November 15, 2017
Blake Shelton makes homophobic jokes on here, I’m not surprised he’s been voted sexiest man alive in Trump’s America. Despite being a minger.
— Halo (@EatMyHalo) November 15, 2017
Blake Shelton is not the sexiest man alive because he is a racist, homophobic, creep. Before I knew that, I was like "what the problem is?" I'm so serious.
— ADRIAN MARIE JONES (@AJAYNY) November 15, 2017
KaiserVonScheiss
We get it. Leftists hate white people.
JAWIWA
And nazis have nothing better to do than invade places they’re not wanted. Funny, that.
KaiserVonScheiss
@Jawiwa
I’m not the one complaining about a magazine with a majority white market putting a white guy on the cover. I don’t see people complaining when black magazines put black guys on their cover. People magazine is just in it for the money — duh!
This article shows once again that the acceptable form of racism of today is against whites. It’s funny how the neo-nazis and the leftists are complaining about race. It’s almost like they have something in common…maybe they’re both racist?
And I notice you have no argument so you’re just like…”nazi nazi nazi.” Calling everyone you don’t like a nazi gets kinda old. Might wanna get a new game.
Ummmm Yeah
You are exactly right Kaiser and that’s who so many white former democrats voted republican in the last election. The left has done nothing to get them to change their voted back either.
Brian
It’s not racist to call racists racist. That is such a tired argument.
KaiserVonScheiss
@Brian
It’s racist to complain about someone’s race. Duh.
DCguy
We get it, anti-lgbt GOP trolls hate the idea that somebody white night not get everything.
Oh, and I LOVE it when one of your other troll screenames “Ummm Yeah” signs on to your posts and says “Yeah, you’re right!” LOL!!!!!! How sad and embarrassing you are.
Brody
Leftists:
A bunch of rich white people convincing poor black people to vote for rich white people by telling the poor black people that other rich white people are the reason they’re poor.
Craig
It’s People magazine for god’s sake. A 100% meaningless rag.
Jaxton
True. It’s meaninglwss and stupid – and designed for silly women.
Jaxton
People magazine is trash. Hardly anybody buys it anymore.
People is so yesterday and has never had a good record on male homosexual rights.
Esscourt
Isn’t the editor-in-chief gay? Oh, what’s his name… Jess Cable or something?
o.codone
Just for the record, Judge Roy Moore was a registered Democrat when he was molesting young girls. If you’re going to politicize everything, then let’s go ahead and politicize everything, no matter how unrelated it seems. And, Bill Clinton better get his passport ready, and call Roman Polanski to see if he’s got an extra bedroom, because THIS case is what’s going to cause Clinton’s demise. If you can go back 40 years in the Moore case, you can go back 30 because there is new evidence that a blowjob actually IS sex. So, the Dems might win a senate seat but they’re losing the Clinton legacy and everything that goes along with it. Along with charges of collusion from Hillary. The Clinton’s payday has arrived thank’s to the Dem’s playing with fire and not even realizing it. So happy, so happy, so happy.
Stache
Only in the most deluded of minds would anyone equate consensual sex between adults to sex with children.
You do realize the attack on Moore isn’t about going after Republicans? The ones that want him out the most are his fellow GOP.
Heywood Jablowme
You seem confused and on the wrong comment page (is it the drugs?), but:
– Just for the record, Donald Trump was a registered Democrat until 2009. (Gasp!)
– The Hillary uranium stuff has been thoroughly, completely debunked. Ask Shep Smith of Fox News.
– There are of course sex-coercion allegations against Bill Clinton but Monica Lewinsky was never one of them. Lewinsky has always said their sexual relations were consensual.
o.codone
It’s definitely the drugs. Thank God for drugs. Fu*ck, I’d be clean sober if it weren’t for drugs and alcohol. That’s no way to live.
Ummmm Yeah
Yep. The left is now racists against whites. So time to vote for the party that doesn’t hate whites.
terminalose
He’s fat
SnakeyJ
I’m not a fan, but his past comments absolutely were not homophobic. They seem more like an awkward attempt to reach out to his gay fans. People are far too sensitive these days.
Heywood Jablowme
I have to agree with you. These long lists of tweets are tedious to read, but after I read thru them I thought… wait a minute, where were the homophobic tweets? Pretty mild stuff. “Cucumbers turn me on,” really, we’re supposed to get upset about that? Jeez.
Kangol
Blake Shelton under the best of circumstances is not very attractive. Not sure who People is trying to appeal to, but they’ve clearly jumped the shark with this one.
Heywood Jablowme
I looked up the whole list going back to ’85 – looks like they never chose a country music guy before, so maybe they wanted to go there, but I can think of a few who are more conventionally “sexy” than Blake Shelton.
Heywood Jablowme
Brad Paisley for instance!
Bob LaBlah
My guess is he and his agent ponied up what People’s editor demanded to get him on the cover. So help me I never heard of the guy till now.
ingyaom
Sorry, not hot.
Eddie Jr
Worst choice yet! People should just give it up.
Josh447
People Magazine = bored and wrestless = dumb choices.
Ashke113
Are you kidding me with this? All you whiney bitches with chips on your shoulders the size of your egos can just leave well enough alone can you. The gay community says don’t stereotype us as katty hissing body shaming sex addicted fags, or we demand to be treated as equals so don’t calls us names. Yet here we are attacking a man that has done good with his life despite the man he may have been once and you all treat him the exact same way we treat each other. You may not like him and you may not like the choice made, but if you can’t say anything nice the shut the hell up sit at your vanities putting your lipstick on and go sit in front of a gloryhole. Meanwhile those of us fags that happen to like Blake Shelton are happy with the choice, there is more to sexy than looks. Most of you would be hidious without all that maybeline caked on your faces. Get over it or create your own magazine and you use your vain ignorant selfish overweening egos to pick what you think is sexy……sometimes I’m ashamed to be part of the gay community because it’s nothing but a beauty contest with most of us. And in the words of the Great Latrice—GGGGG
Brian
Whoa. Seek help.
jonasalden
Hang on now! You should follow your own advice about not speaking if you have nothing nice to say. You literally pulled out every gay stereotype you could and hurled it his detractors, and then misspelled “hideous”. If you like him, then fine. But don’t bag on those who don’t, although some of their reasons are a bit nit picky. I can understand some of your shame of being gay, especially in the country world. Must be lonely being the only two-step Mary with a cucumber in your mouth! See what I did there? Country, but gay? Oh nevermind, I was just sharpening my claws. See what…ah, eff it. You’re probably a Russian ‘bot anyway.
Josh447
You obviously have panty bunch syndrome. The men picked over the last 17 years have been Hollywood leading men dashing as hell who make your blood pump a bit faster just by looking at them. Blake Shelton is not in that class. Nowhere near it. He is AT THE VERY BEST, average. No attack, just fact. This is the sexiest man alive choice of the year, not the most book-read or Mr puppy dog sweet and nice. Put on a set of glasses next time and check your attitude at the door, maybe you’ll see things more clearly.
Stache
Cute troll. Playing the I’m one of you too games.
You must have just come here to attack (like the good troll you are) since most of the comments were mostly just ambivalent towards him. Actually I saw worse comments on People magazine.
Tête Carrée
I bet your mommy has a lifetime subscription to Poople magazine doesn’t she?
mhoffman953
Again, I thought Queerty said we should find all people and all body types to be sexy lol
Anyways, what men find sexy and what women find sexy are vastly different. I assume Blake won because women find his “dad qualities” and his interactions with Gwen Stefani to be sexy. Men look at things more from a looks perspective to evaluate sexiness rather than women who value personality over appearance, even though appearance still factors into the equation
Kangol
No, Queerty never said that, but clearly that’s your preoccupation. There is a difference between unilaterally ruling out an entire group of people as unappealing or unattractive because of race and ethnicity, and not finding individuals attractive. You know what the former is called, right? Also, there are attractive, heavy-set, Country Western singers. I doubt I’m the only one who doesn’t find Blake Shelton to be one of them.
That said, how do you even know “women” found his “‘dad qualities'” etc. to be qualify him as the “sexiest” man alive? I mean, seriously? Did you speak with People’s editor? This choice just seems lazy.
mhoffman953
@Kangol
“how do you even know “women” found his “‘dad qualities’” etc. to be qualify him as the “sexiest” man alive? I mean, seriously? Did you speak with People’s editor?”
No, I don’t work at People or talk with the editor. I’m simply trying to decide why this was the choice. Lots of the entertainment shows where they discuss Blake and Gwen, all of the female hosts / reporters always gush about Blake
But hey, guess what? WHO CARES! You’re arguing over minutia
Hussain-TheCanadian
I find it hilarious that many on this thread are equating the “Left” with the Democratic party; As an observer, I have no idea how can the democratic party be even be called a “leftist” party. They are as corporate and right wing as the repugnant Republican Party of today.
This tells me that those who equate the two really don’t know politically, economically and socially what the Left really stands for.
Kangol
Thank you, it’s just more inanity. The Democrats as a party are centrist, pro-corporate neoliberals who threw their old economic positions out the window back in the late 1970s and 1980s, but what Kaiserin von Scheiss’s respondent Ummmm Yeah basically admitted is that s/he supports Republicans because they’re the white identity party. But wait, I thought conservatives and Republicans were supposed to be against identity politics? Oh wait, it’s OK if it’s white identity politics, even if those same politicians are rabid homophobes like Roy Moore and Mike Pence!
Knight
OK, to put this into perspective, People magazine named NANCY REAGAN was named the “sexiest woman alive” in 1986. In other words, People magazine’s opinion is as valueless, commercial and meaningless as, well…Queerty’s. So, we can all just relax.
mhoffman953
I got an idea. If Queerty is upset about this choice, they should do their own awards and choose “Queerty’s Sexiest Man Alive”
Tobi
@mhoffman953 – “Queerty’s Sexiest Straight Man Alive”, fixed it for you! 😉
Josh447
It’s time for a sexiest gay/bi man alive (who you can’t tell is gay). Maybe we could attain some “regular guy” representation in the media for a change, get some balance though it’s much better than 10 years ago. Given people that you can tell are gay can be sexy as hell, I’d really like to see some guys who you can’t tell are gay get voted on. I wonder which magazine might hop on the band wagon?
Brody
Josh –
Good idea, until the militant types pipe in and demand cross-dressers be included (for, you know, the sake of diversity, or something).
Josh447
Brody
I hear ya. In the vein of loving diversity, I would whole heartedly suggest they start their own venue, or the mag could do two votes, one for you can tell the guy is Gay and one you can’t. Either way, someone is going to have an opinion that sucks. It’s one of those things gay guys do best. 😉
DCguy
The same reason that “Dancing with the Stars” keeps putting on Republicans. People Magazine probably has higher sales in states where this guy is popular. People in larger cities have probably abandoned that MAgazine, they can get all of their news or gossip online. So People is catering to the Dollar General crowd.
Esscourt
AND the Walmart crowd.
Brody
Once again, Queerty and its readers profess they alone know what qualifies as “sexy,” and you can better believe it all has to do with identity politics.
Garth
What group of morons with a collective I.Q. of 7 elected this guy as Sexiest Man of the Year ?
IWantAFullBeard
FYI: Denzel Washington is not white.
Josh447
It’s odd that Keanu Reeves nor Ryan Gusling never got the People Mag cover shot for this award.
Evji108
This clearly a marketing ploy aimed at Trump voters. He is hot by their standards since he is a True Trumpanzee and with right wingers politics define everything.
People mag is a trash rag bought by downmarket white women who fantasize they might actually have a chance to be with Blake Shelton. Somebody who was actually the sexiest man alive would be way out of their league.
This marks the year that People Magazine jumped the shark.
Buie
I am not a Blake Shelton fan. And he doesn’t even make the top 1,000 men alive. But we do ourselves no favors when we castigate people who may have made homophobic comments in the past. People change, people grow, probably when he learned friends and close relatives are gay. Besides, Adam Levine says Shelton is not a homophobe and that’s enough for me.
He BGB
I have a subscription to People (using FF miles I will never use) and it has become a reality show promotion rag, thus this guy from the Voice. Their covers this year have gone from Hollywood to “celebrities” from Home and Garden Network and Bravo. Guess it reflects what sells magazines.
Terrycloth
A lot of singers on the voice are probably gay..half of hollywerid is too..don’t know about Nashville..I think most of the Shelton
Votes probably come from his down home aw shucks personality on the voice and his Bromance with Adam Levine
..
Musk
I hate it when a scholarly journal gets it all wrong.
Stilinski26
ummm Queerty your most of the pics and guys you feature on this site labelling them sexy are mostly white muscular modelsque looking guys hypocrites
captainburrito
3.8bn men is probably irrelevant when they are almost all american with 3 brits and 3 aus, might be more but this is mainly going to be celebrities with fame in the US. So it’s not like every man is in the running.
adamadam1040
Let’s be clear. A big reason why so many gay men don’t like Blake is because he is older and because he does not go to the gym and have a “gym-body”. Moreover, gay men, especially millennials, are offended by almost everything. Blake makes a joke about his neighbours arguing in a foreign language and saying they are talking about bombs, and millennials are offended. Millennials get offended by … everything. If you go to a University or college, you’ll see millennials shouting down and protesting anyone that they disagree with or are offended by. It’s completely out of control. “I’m offended” is the refrain.
Is this really what you people discuss here? I mean, physicists just discovered another type of family of quarks; Elon Musk created a new electric semi-trailer; and I’m sure there is some homosexual news with some real weight. But THIS is what you choose to focus on: why Blake is not the sexiest man and because years ago he said things that offended you.
Boys, please. There’s a life beyond the gym, grindr, retail, and getting tattoos. Stop being a joke to the rest of society.
https://i.imgur.com/CBKb4Qk.jpg