Though Blake Shelton has undoubtedly experienced tough times this year, the artist isn’t throwing in the towel completely at the close of 2015. In fact, quite the opposite — he says this year ended up being his best yet.

"All the awful things that happened in my personal life this year, but the way the year has ended is also the greatest year in my life,” he tells Country Countdown USA.

Shelton split from fellow country superstar Miranda Lambert this summer, but began a new relationship with The Voice co-star Gwen Stefani this fall. In his recent chat, he doesn’t admit exactly what or who made 2015 end so well, but he does credit a few special individuals who turned it around for him.

"I better not talk about that just yet," he says in reference to the specifics, "but sometimes you don’t know who’s in your life that can save you. I found some people in my life that have changed my life forever. Some has been bad and some that’s been pretty good."

Aside from wrapping another successful season of The Voice — with two of his outstanding country team members reaching the Top 4 — Shelton says he’s been working on new music lately, which also contributes to his contentment going into 2016.

"I’m doing what I’m supposed to do, and that’s put all I’ve gone through and put it into music, and I never felt more connected to a record before," the singer shares. "When people hear this record, they may not know what happened to me, but they’re gonna know how I felt about it. And that’s exciting for me, to just lay it out there for people."

Shelton tells Country Countdown he hopes to have a new single out in January and a record in May, but it’s “driving him nuts” not to have released the first track yet. The singer was awarded CMT’s Artist of the Year honor recently for his accomplishments this year — just one more reason he’s celebrating 2015. Former Team Blake member on The Voice RaeLynn performed “Neon Light” alongside Darius Rucker and Cassadee Pope at the event as a tribute to his success.

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