10 Questions with ... Dustin Lynch

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Born and raised in middle Tennessee, Dustin Lynch loved music from an early age. Lynch has logged a string of hits that includes "Where It's At (Yep, Yep);" "Hell Of A Night;" "Mind Reader;" "Seein' Red;" and his recent multi-week hit, "Small Town Boy." Lynch has been on tour with Brad Paisley and recently completed his own headlining run as he released his third studio album, "Current Mood." Fresh off of a buzzworthy performance at Country Radio Seminar 2018, Lynch sat down with All Access to discuss his creative process, his growth as an artist, his desire to continue taking on national television appearances, and much more.

1. Dustin, thank you so much for taking time with us today! Fresh off of CRS 2018 and your performance at the Broken Bow party, let's dive right in and talk about your music. Specifically, let's start with "Small Town Boy," which absolutely took off in 2017 and felt like another career record for you. Can you tell us about the single and what that success meant to you?

I can say that it surprised us. I knew it was a great song, but no one can predict that a song will blow up like that. It' just one of those things that happens organically. But, that song definitely changed my life in a lot of ways. We've been trying to beat down so many different doors to get us in the national spotlight. We had been trying to get on TV and land those kinds of opportunities that, for whatever reason, I just hadn't had yet that some of my fellow artists had. And, for me, "Small Town Boy" was that catalyst that opened some eyes and ears and doors for us. It got us a presenter spot on an awards show and a performance slot on "Country's Night To Rock." I was able to do a lot of different TV, and I was thankful for those opportunities. After that, it was great to hear people calling up and saying, "Hey, you knocked it out of the park, and you can do this." I felt almost accepted, finally, in a way. It's a great feeling, and a great tip of the hat and pat on the back from all of the other artists and industry people in town.

2. You mentioned the national television exposure, and that also included hosting some red carpet coverage, the awards presentations, announcing awards nominees on morning television, and more. Is television something that you think about as part of you brand and something you'd like to continue pursuing?

I would love to continue to do TV. I love the new challenge and the creative muscle I get to use. There have been some incredible moments, starting with "Lip Sync Battle." Television really allows me to show a different side of myself that I think maybe a lot of people don't know about. You can't really get my whole personality from hearing me on the radio, so I think that TV builds a connection. And, also, still being considered a pretty new artist, I think it's important to be able to put a visual and a face with the sound and a song. That's what TV allows us to do, in a sense, and it also builds a celebrity factor, in a way. I live and die by how many tickets we can sell, and that way they can go out and spread the word that it's an event you can't miss. That's the goal, and I think TV allows the star to rise.

3. That extra exposure has, in fact, led to more ticket sales, especially last year on your headlining "Ride Or Die Tour." Did that tour feel differently to you as "Small Town Boy" took off and you prepared to launch the album?

That tour was way bigger. The energy level was much different. And, the amount of tickets we were moving was bigger, which was a challenge. There were a lot of rooms where, going in to it, I thought there was no way in the world we were going to sell it out. You have all of this self-doubt. But, I was so happy and so pleased with how that tour went, and so was everyone on my side of things. It was great, because we've been on some amazing tours, but being support acts. With a new album coming out, we didn't have enough time to play new stuff as a support act - we just had enough time to play our hits. So, that headlining tour allowed us to play the stuff from the new album for the first time in front of a crowd, and it let us get a really good feel for what songs people were reacting to and what songs were more than just a song. It really showed us which songs were moments. That's what I learned is the key to a big hit. Whenever a song is a moment in a show, and it is its own character, it becomes a different kind of song, and I think it's a bigger hit for me. So, to play all the new stuff and figure out which ones those were was a great thing for me.

4. You also took that opportunity to use the tour to slowly, deliberately, and stealthily unveil the entire track listing for your album, "Current Mood." You wore a different shirt each night that listed the name of a track, but you didn't tell anyone what you were doing until everything was out. Who came up with that plan, and how did you execute it?

Me and my team are always thinking of new and innovative ways to do stuff and roll out info. I think you could see that with "Seein' Red," too. That's when I think you could really start to see that I was doing things a little differently, at least for me. We are always brainstorming ways that we can present things. At this point, there's just so much traffic online that something has to be pretty special to stick out, and that was just an idea I had when I was driving home from the studio one day. I called up Steve at my management and said, "Look, I've got this idea, and it may be freakin' crazy. But, can we pull this off?" We talked it over and decided, why not? It was so obvious, but so under-the-radar, at the same time. We knew no one was going to catch on at first, but that once they did, it would be a pretty cool thing. And, it was! Honestly, selfishly, it gave me something to wear at my shows where I didn't have to think about putting an outfit together, which was also awesome! We designed the shirts, and it was funny, because once the album came out and people put it all together, we had folks asking, "Where can we get that shirt?" But, there was only two of each one! I was so pumped with how that turned out, but now it's like we have to start wondering what we are going to do next to top that.

5. As you were out playing the new material for fans, you mentioned that you were observing which songs raised their hand as a "moment" in your show. Is that how you decided to go with "I'd Be Jealous Too" for the next single? Or, was that part of a team sitting around a table and going over the options for the second single?

It was a lot, actually. It was weeks and weeks of discussions. We can also see now how many people are seeking out which songs, how old they are, and where they are. But, yes, to answer your question, "I'd Be Jealous Too" is such a huge moment in my live show that it is more than a hit song. It is this thing - I guess that's the best word I can use - it's a thing in my show that just stands out. And, having enough hit songs now, I can kind of identify, "Okay, this is a hit song, but THIS is a hit song that's also a thing and a moment." That's what this song is. I remember, way before the album came out, the first time we played it live. I just said, "Okay, shoot. Let's try it!" We didn't even have a mix on it yet, but the band learned it from a rough mix. We played it out in Montana, and I said, "Well, I know it's a little bit of a Pop-y thing for me, so let's try this one out in Montana and see how they take it!" It just blew up, and it was this awesome moment in the middle of a county fair. That was kind of the first introduction for that song, and as we started seeing trends when the album came out, we could see what people were seeking out and talking about, and "I'd Be Jealous Too" was one of the front-runners, for sure.

6. Let's shift gears for a moment and talk about touring. You've been out on the road a lot lately, most recently on a long run with Brad Paisley. With such a talented veteran as Brad taking you out, what have you been able to learn from him, and how has it changed your live show?

I've learned a lot from Brad. What's most inspiring is that the guy is still trying to get better every single day. He's one of the greatest guitar players I've ever had the honor of being around, and yet he still nerds out over amps and guitars. He's always working on something and practicing, and he and his band still soundcheck for hours. It's something you can tell that he stills enjoy. He loves the journey. For a younger guy like me, it makes me glad there's still a fire that burns like that, and that decades in front of me, I still have that to look forward to. It's not something that, after so many years, it has gone away. Brad isn't the only one I've been around that is like that, and I've really taken that from him - the journey never stops. For me, it is really inspiring, and it makes me smile to think that if I do everything right like he has done, in 20 years, I can still have this much fun.

7. You're also playing a lot of festival dates this upcoming summer. What is it about the festival scene that appeals to you, and what do you think it is that appeals to the Country audience as we continue to see more and more Country-based music festivals?

It's all the connection, the party, the stories, and the memories. At these festivals, we are kind of the cherry on top at the end of the day. Festivals are really all about the hang. During the day, the social aspect of being around thousands of new faces and hanging out in the campgrounds leads to going out and playing drinking games or whatever else. The reason we love doing them is that we get to hit so many different people from all over the place. It's a different crowd that you'd find on the MegaTicket circuit; we've done that for three or four years now, but there were several factors that led us to decide to go with festivals this year. I was running in to not being able to play a lot of these festivals because of radius clauses with the MegaTicket. So, it was good for me to take a break and go do my own thing. It will also give me a little longer time slot to play more of the new album and other new music that we will be writing and recording this year. That's important, too. For me, I love getting out in the middle of it. We'll get up early and get the gym out of the way, then we hit the campgrounds and partake of the activities out there and have a good hang before we hit the stage. It's a fun way to get out there and connect with fans and make some great memories.

8. As you're playing this new music, "Current Mood" really is exactly that - something for every mood. This feels like a well-curated playlist of songs for every mood or moment. Was the theme and tone of the album something you planned in advance, or did it come together organically during the A&R process?

I don't want to say it was intentional. Actually, ya know, maybe I do. Because, every song on this album is different - it's a different sound. A lot of moments are unexpected from me, I think, from this community, and it was fun. It came together over about three years, if you go back to the oldest song on there, and it came together song by song. We could have really put these songs out one or two at a time over the course of that window, but that's not the path we went with. Over the course of those years, though, I lived a lot of life. I traveled a lot, I was in and out of relationships, and maybe that's why there's a theme of trying to find love, trying to make love, and falling out of love.

9. That's a long time to be working on an album, especially in the world of streaming and instant gratification for music lovers. Do you see the process of making albums changing? How has your creative process changed since you first started writing and recording music? Do you like the direction we are headed in the industry?

I love where music is going and how people are starting to consume music, because we are starting to consume music as crumbs now instead of the whole sandwich. The "Current Mood" album came together song-by-song. It wasn't like I was out touring, and they said, "Okay, you have to write an album now, and now we are going to record it." My brain has already been working this way for two or three years. I'm excited to write whenever I feel like writing and record whenever I feel like recording. Obviously, strategically, we will put out music whenever we feel like putting out music. That makes it fun for me, because it keeps me in this creative world constantly. It's not like, "Hey, next December, we're going to go in and record this group of songs when you're not touring." It's almost every single day that there's an opportunity that you may write something awesome or record something awesome. I love that part of what we do, and I love going in to town with the hopes of coming back out of town with something that will drive me crazy in the best way and make me excited to share it. I think it's the way we're making music that drives the way people are listening to it, and the way they are listening to it is driving the way we are making it. It's really going both ways now, and it's making things change. I'm excited to be part of that. I like being in Nashville and having a big question mark above me, just wondering what might happen when I go in to the studio to write or record for the day with some friends. Will it be something where everyone is blowing up my phone wanting to put it out next month? We haven't gotten to that point yet, but I think we're close. And, that's cool - it's new. The ability to put out music on a dime like that is amazing, and we don't have to wait for this big, elaborate, year-long roll out for an album. It's exciting. Talking about music, everyone always refers to the album. It's always, "When's the album?" Now, the conversation has to change, because the answer is always, "I don't know if there's going to be one."

10. Let's talk about radio for a moment. A couple years ago, you had the opportunity to work with KKGO/Los Angeles to track their midday show, which has been handled by artists a month at a time for a few years now. Was there anything you learned about radio from being on that side? Did you garner any extra appreciation for radio and the job that on-air talent and programmers do?

Oh my gosh, yes! Lots! It was so exciting to be a part of that, and it really fed that hosting hunger I have. Doing that midday show, I learned that it's a constant battle coming up with content. In a sense, those guys and gals are writing new songs every single day, but it's like writing a song on the fly as you put on a concert in front of thousands of people. They're having to come up with something creative, make sure there's a cool way to deliver it, and keep people's attention every single day. It was an awesome challenge, and I want to do it again at some point. It was very time consuming, though, and I realized very quickly how important vocal rest is. I'm a loud talker! I'm used to not talking during the week to save my voice for the weekend, and whenever I was doing that midday show, I was having to go in and talk for hours at a time every day during the week; it was very strenuous. I already had a lot of respect for radio, but I have even more respect for my radio friends now, because I didn't realize exactly how much content you have to come up with every single day, and it's definitely a challenge.

Bonus question! With Valentine's Day being this week, I thought we might want to take a moment to talk about someone we all know you love, admire, and have a crush on - Reba. Can you tell us what it is you love so much about Reba McEntire?

Yes! Why Reba? That's easy! She's an absolute force in the entertainment industry, and I've had a crush on her since I was a little guy. She just keeps getting more and more beautiful each year. But, on top of that, now being in a place where I've had the honor and privilege of meeting Reba several times - and getting to even hang out with her - she's just so down to earth, sweet, and caring. Gosh, it's just inspiring, honestly. She is so genuine. And, it's funny you asked this, because my mom and I were just talking on the phone last night, and I was saying how incredible it is that Reba knows who I am, and that she recently included me in a small group of artists that she thinks has some longevity in this business. What an amazing compliment from a lady that I just respect so very much. She has dominated Country music, she has a successful clothing line, a successful acting career, a successful hosting career - as a young artist and entertainer, and a dreamer, she is someone that I aspire to be like. I just love her.