It doesn't really matter to me what the rest of country is doing. I'm not caught up in trying to make a record that sounds like everybody else. That, to me, is a record label's absolute biggest downfall.

I don't think there's anything wrong with singing a song and having fun with it.

Anybody can get lost in themselves.

In my mind, as long as I did what was right for me, I was cool. But that's not the way it works. You have to think about other people and take their feelings into account.

I'm big into fishing, but I've never been much of a hunter. I never was really raised around it a whole lot, so I never got a chance to do it a whole lot.

I wanted to make a traditional record that had a lot of art and showed my vulnerable side and showed things I'm passionate about.

The overall physical demand that Iraq has is pretty amazing. It's 130 degrees, and the soldiers are carrying about 100 pounds of extra gear. It's a pretty rigorous schedule and routine for them.