Most of my read on America is through looking through the front windshield of a bus and hanging out with country music fans backstage.

When you go to the Opry for a show or hear it on the radio, you get the whole circle of country music.

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.

Only in country music can you compare an old pickup truck and an old guitar to your wife and turn it into a love song... Thank God for country music.

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.

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.