10 Questions with ... Dylan Scott

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Born and raised in Louisiana, Dylan Scott has made a name for himself in Country music by blending his signature baritone vocals and love of Classic Country artists like Keith Whitley with an appreciation for Pop sensibilities and catchy produced hooks. With a rapidly growing fanbase fueled by heavy streaming numbers and single and album sales, Scott is charting his own course through the industry. After hitting the top of the charts with "My Girl," Scott is once again seeing mainstream Country radio success with his follow-up single, "Hooked." With the song safely inside the Top 15 and rising, Dylan Scott sat down with All Access to talk about his influences, his career path thus far, and his hopes for the future.

1. Dylan, thank you for taking time today to answer "10 Questions." First of all, congratulations on your continued chart success. How has your life changed, professionally, in the past two years?

A lot has changed. We've seen the crowds growing, and I've moved up from my old beat-up van to a bus! It's been great to see more and more people out on the road in the past couple years.

2. With "Hooked," you are seeing a steady climb up the charts, safely inside the Top 20 currently. When did this track first raise its hand, and how did you decide to make it a single?

My buddy sent this to me, and I was playing it in my truck driving around with my wife [Blair]. Right away, she was bopping along and singing with it, and we had the windows down. I was just playing it over and over, and it really stuck out for me right away. It is fun, and up-tempo, and that's really what we wanted to come out with after "My Girl" had the success. This one definitely has that fun and that tempo to it, so "Hooked" was really just a natural pick right away.

3. The success of "My Girl" made you one of Nashville's famous ten-year-overnight-success stories. Were you ever discouraged at the time it took to get to the top of the charts?

Oh, of course. You definitely can get discouraged. But, Blair and I have been together since we were 15, and she was always supportive. Even when I first got to Nashville, and I was just working to get things started. I mean, I've wanted to do this since I was a kid. I remember, I'm about the same age at Taylor Swift, and I wanted to move out here to Nashville about the time she was getting started. My dad would just say, "It doesn't happen overnight." And, that's true. There's a lot of work that goes in to it. So, when I did move out here to Nashville, I would be out on the road playing, and I'd see other people's success and wonder why it wasn't happening for me yet. But, she just kept encouraging me. She would say, "You know, you're out there doing what you love, and playing music, and you're making a living at it. Don't give up." And, it really is just a blessing to be able to play music for a living. She was a great support, and she still is.

4. Along the way, you've been on radio tour, played many radio shows, and made friends at Country radio. How have those relationships with Country radio encouraged you along the way?

Absolutely. You're out there on the road meeting people, and everyone is just so nice and so real. We're just real people, and I feel like I'm just a regular guy. And, you make these friends - and they're real friends - and guys will call or text you to say, "Hey, we've got you." It's great. It's been about making real friendships for me, and now I've got these guys that I can just call up or text or whatever.

5. Before embarking on radio tour, many new artists are unsure of what to expect. What did you learn about radio during your radio tour and the ensuing radio shows and visits, and especially since your recent stint hosting middays for Mt. Wilson Country KKGO/Los Angeles during the month of July?

It's hard! It really is. I mean, you think it'll be one way, because you're used to going out on stage and talking to people. But what these on-air guys and girls do behind the mic is different. It takes a lot of work to put together a show. It's not easy at all. I really have so much respect for them and what they do. You just have no idea until you get out there, and you really don't know until you step up and do it!

6. Your father was in the business and traveled the country playing guitar for Freddy Fender and others. Did he give you any career advice? Did he encourage, or discourage, you from entering this business?

He encouraged me. He always encouraged me! This is definitely what I've always wanted to do. I knew from a really early age. So, he encouraged me a lot. And, he has always been great to give me advice or tips. He will come in the room and tell me if I'm over-singing something, or if I should try something a different way or whatever. My dad has always been really supportive and helpful and a big influence on me.

7. Speaking of your upbringing, you're a Louisiana boy! How did the culture and the environment of the area influence your music?

Yeah, you know, I grew up in Northeast Louisiana just out hunting and fishing with my buddies on the river. My first record was about that, a lot. Just about being back home. When you grow up around that, it's what you just know, and I've always tried to write what I know and write things that are real to me. Being in Louisiana, that's just how I grew up. I've been in Nashville a good while now, but Louisiana - that will always be where I call home.

8. You've noted before that you have a wide array of influences, ranging from a deep love of classic Country music to an appreciation of more modern-sounds and varied genres. How did you find your unique style? Who helped you home in on your particular lane of music?

It took a long time and a lot of help from a lot of people. When I first moved to Nashville, I wanted to be the next Keith Whitley; that was my dude. Keith Whitley was my guy. But, you kind of have to work to find your sound and where you fit. I listened to the Classic Country stuff, but I'd also listen to R. Kelly or T Pain or Pop music growing up, too. Writing songs, and getting together on co-writes, that really helped. Then, you start to find your sound when you cut an album. But, what really helped me was being out on the road and performing live. You'd got out there - I was just a 19 or 20-year-old boy when I first started out on the road - and you're playing to maybe 10 or 20 or 30 people...maybe 50 on a full night...and you have to figure out what will get the crowd going and how to entertain them. I really found myself and my sound and my style of entertaining during those times.

9. I've had this conversation with other young artists in the "under 30" crowd, so I wanted to ask - would you call yourself a part of the iPod Generation, or are you more a part of the Streaming/Playlisting Generation? In terms of discovering and curating music you personally like, where do you turn to find new music?

I'm a streaming guy. Definitely. I'll get in there and maybe stream a little bit from one album, then flip over to something else completely. You really can find a lot that way. And, I might go from listening to Drake's new album to moving over and sampling some stuff from Luke Combs' album. There's so much music, and it's all at your fingertips now. I definitely like being able to pull it up on my laptop and stream stuff. But, it's not all that different from when I was younger and cruising around in a truck with my buddies, either, you know? We'd have it on the Country station for a couple songs, but then maybe we'd flip over and listen to the Hip-Hop station for a bit. Then, it'd be back to Country, then over to the Pop station. We were always listening to everything, so now with streaming, it's really the same, just more of it.

10. With a #1 single under your belt and a fast-rising charter with "Hooked," you have a bright future ahead of you in the industry. Additionally, you're still a relatively new father, having welcomed your first child at the end of last year. If you were to look in to a crystal ball, where would you hope to be - both personally and professionally - two years from now?

Two years? Wow. Professionally, I'd definitely like to have a few more hits under my belt. I'd like to see the crowds doubling, even, from where they are now. The ultimate goal is to be playing arenas and stadiums, but that's in the future. So, maybe in two years, just be working on arena crowds. Building up the number of people coming out. Keeping at it. Personally, I'd like to have two buses. I'd like to get my family out on the road, so I can have Blair and Beckett with me out there. I just want to be the best artist and the best dad and the best husband I can be.

We heard a rumor from a little birdie that "Hooked" came about as an answer to another song during a co-write with Morgan Evans. Can you confirm this and share the back story?

Yeah, ya know, I didn't co-write this with the guys, so I only heard the story recently. But, yes, it's an answer to Kelsea Ballerini's song, "Peter Pan." She had that out on the radio, and Morgan went in to write with Seth Ennis and Lindsey Rimes, and Morgan wanted to write a response to "Peter Pan." So, they got "Hooked." Get it? Peter Pan and Hook? Yeah, so that's kind of how the song came about.