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The hardest part, for me, is being in the band and knowing the way I want certain things to sound, but also having to listen to opinions, and very valid opinions, of my bandmates. So, sometimes, I'll have to have conversations with them as a producer and then conversations with them as a bandmate.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I guess, somewhere along the line, when we first came out, somebody thought it was a crime to be young and not wear a cowboy hat and sing country music.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts
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When you first start out in the music business and hope that you have a couple hits, the ultimate payoff is to be standing in front of all those people who are singing it back to you at the top of their lungs. And you know by the way they're singing it back that it's affected their life in some way. That's the ultimate reward as an artist for me.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I think the 360 deals are what stands out to me, first and foremost. I never would have dreamed that record labels would be taking a piece of touring, merchandise, and everything else. The world has changed so dramatically from when we first started.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
We were just hoping 'Prayin' for Daylight' wasn't a complete flop. Selling a million records wasn't even in our wildest thoughts.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I'm surprised at the loyalty of the country music fan. People that started out with us at 'Prayin' for Daylight' still come to multiple shows a year.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
Are there people's music that I don't like? Sure, there are.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I grew up in the church and loved contemporary Christian music. I go back to the early days of when it first started with the likes of Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith. Those people that really pioneered are heroes of mine.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts
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We live in the Bible Belt. I was born and raised in church. That's something that was really, really important to me, to build that foundation with our kids so they at least went to church.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
We write songs that hit different people at different ages where they live.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I draw inspiration from everywhere, whether it's country, R&B, gospel.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
It's no secret that anybody who knows the music business knows that the numbers are substantially different in Christian music than they are in country music.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
It's hard to get to the point where you feel motivated and energized to go back in and create new music when you feel like you've just drained yourself by pouring everything you have into the previous project. It would be nice sometimes to take a longer break in between projects.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
It's always a wonderful time to be able to settle down by the fire, enjoy the Christmas tree and the decorations, and just spend time with the ones you love and surround yourself with the people that you don't get to see enough throughout the year.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts
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The lines have definitely blurred between country and pop music.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
When you get new people around you, the excitement is new because they have different take on your music. They play it in a different way, and that's always exciting to be around. It elevates everybody onstage.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
It's no secret that my favorite part of the process is making records; if I'm not making them with Flatts, then I'm out producing them on other folks.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
Typically, every 14 to 16 months, we're putting a new album out. To be honest, I wish it was slower.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I want to be a part of bringing more visibility to the Christian music genre and give it some platforms that it may not have had before. I feel like, as blessed as we've been with Rascal Flatts, I might be able, through some of my own connections and avenues, to give them some visibility in arenas they've never had before.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
We've always prided ourselves on the fact that we're a band that the whole family can enjoy together.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts
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It was such a whirlwind for us for about three to four years there that, every time we turned around, we were pulled in 90 different directions, and I look back on that now, and they're such wonderful memories, but you kinda wish that you would've taken the time to savor them a little bit more.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I think that anybody can go home, put the record on, and listen to it note for note, but there's very little entertainment value in that, I believe. When you give people something visually entertaining to watch along with presenting the music, I feel it makes it a lot more interesting.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
With a band like Shenandoah, you don't want to take things and deconstruct them to a point where you don't recognize them.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts -
I remember as a little kid watching the Opry from the nosebleeds, so to stand onstage and be invited to be a member was really, really cool.
Jay DeMarcus Rascal Flatts