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.

That's what I love about Nashville and the music community - seeing kids around acoustic music and bluegrass picking parties is the best.

Blackberry Smoke is the real deal!

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

And I'm the biggest country fan there is, but I'm always a little cautious of a slower song or just a song with subject matter.

I like big shows, a lot of volume and a lot of energy. I love electric instruments. But I do love mixing those with bluegrass instruments and cranking those up, too, with a little bit of that rock energy.

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.