Ultimately, these fans that we're blessed enough to have, the ones who pay money for tickets to come see us live, that's the bread and butter. That's the basis of what this is. Before I ever had the chance to record an album, the live show is what it's been about.

I absolutely believe that what you sing and how you act when you're in this position, should be the definition of who you are and where your heart and character stands.

I think if you expect it to do well, you come off a little bit cocky.

When your songs are like your babies, even the one that you know aren't great, you still love.

Obviously the way that I talk and the way that I dress all has to do with the way that I was raised. As far as the drive, when I was 18 or 21 years old, everything I did was because I wanted to go play music simply because that's what I wanted to do.

It wasn't just Willie and Waylon, there were a lot of influences there. The coolest thing about this, is after getting to listen back to all these mixes is realizing that this record is like a bag of Skittles; every time you pull something out, it's a different flavor. But they're all Skittles. They're all Cody Johnson.

I am who I am and I don't think you can put a label on it.