- All Quotes
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Country music is always changing but the Opry is always there to serve as a lighthouse for what country music really is. The past, present and future is all encompassed by not only the physical structure of the building but also the radio show.
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I always say the best applause you can get is when you walk from backstage up to your microphone at a concert. It's also nice to walk up to the mike at an awards show, and that applause is great, too, but the best is when your fans are cheering for you.
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I discovered early on that I was more of a strummer than a picker.
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As soon as I got into country music, it was like hook, line and sinker. I was so focused on country, I ended up leaving all those '80s hair-band CDs behind - which now I still wish I had, but I was done with it.
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The people I always loved listening to had a little bit of dirt under their fingernails because they had done some living and had these stories to talk about.
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I think the great country songs mixed with some of that bluegrass instrumentation - and surrounding all that with a little bit of a rock vibe and energy - is the kind of music I make.
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There should be a whole book written about that one word: country. What does that mean, country? It's such a huge umbrella. I would hope that what makes it country is that it all starts with a song. The story being told in three and a half minutes that is not being told on another station.
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When I got to Nashville, people started asking me about how I got into country music. I'd tell them I came from a place where people wore cowboy hats for a real reason.
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I'm surrounded by all these strong women - my publicist, my manager, and my wife - and sometimes I think that women are more evolved than men, and they are able to process a heartache better.
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If people sneak into my show, that's a sign of a good show, you know? If people want to risk getting in trouble with the law to come see you play music, that's a sign you're doing something right.
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And if I want to get involved in choosing sides, I usually pick hockey or football.
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I love bluegrass music, I love acoustic music, and I try at the right times to push that a little bit.
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I remember somewhere in his 70s, my dad started wearing a nightgown - like an old-school grandpa gown! I can see how that might be somewhere in my future.
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I hung out with Merle Haggard on his bus, which sort of freaks me out. It was him and his wife. We played with Merle in Oklahoma City. I'm from Arizona, and we talked about Arizona, and he remembered playing for two dollars a day down there at a bar.
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When I'm done with all of this, I'm going to write a book on it: have a guide to having a life and being on the road. Especially having a family and being on the road.
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I love singing fun songs; I've built a career on them.
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I want to be free to be any version of me I feel like being. I don't want to be McDonald's that serves the same food every time.
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Music is my first love, and I can't step away from her. I love music, and I love playing and living the dream, but I also miss my family.
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I feel like I've got a nice little niche where I stay just below the radar, which is perfect. I just don't want to be known for anything other than music.
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I'm a member of the George Jones fan club, and I'm a member of U2's fan club.
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I try to make an album that reflects what I love about country music. It's not just all about happy parties all the time. There are some sad songs.
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As a songwriter, you might write every day and throughout the course of a year you might get four songs that are really special.
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It's not that you can do this calculated move to try to further your career. You just follow what's in your heart, and later you look back and go, 'I was either really dumb or really smart, I can't believe I did that.'
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That's how I feel, oddly, when I walk on stage in front of 20,000 people, and it's crazy, the madness: I feel the most relaxed and free, and all of my worries and troubles just are gone. Just I feel the most present in that moment.