When the show opens, fans can text to a number we flash up on the screen, and then we do a meet-and-greet with 60 to 80 people every night. It's something I love doing, and I would say that's probably more fans than most artists bring backstage after a show.

If I wake up one day and people tell me I'm not sexy, I'm not going to stop making good music and having fun. That 'sex symbol' thing is typically part of being in the limelight. You better be very talented in your music, but it's good to be nice to look at, I guess.

From my dad I learned to be good to people, to always be honest and straightforward. I learned hard work and perseverance.

Nothing is more frustrating to me than putting a song on an album and regret putting it on there. I'm excited that there are no songs on 'Tailgates & Tanlines' that I'm iffy about.

You know, if Kelly Clarkson wants to do country albums because that’s what inspires her, then let her do it. Look at Kanye West or Ludacris ... they aren’t rappin’ and cussin’ like they were on their first few albums, so what does that make them? It’s all in the eye of the beholder and the listener. We all use our outlet to grow ourself.

To have your first No. 1 as an artist was everything I could have ever dreamed for. Now we're keeping our fingers crossed, and hopefully we'll have many more, but there's certainly nothing like the first one.

People hear me talk and they know my background and they immediately stereotype me as being a real, real country guy, and that's the right stereotype. But you also want people to know you're a little broader than that, too.