Just in time for summer, Luke Bryan has released the perfect summer track, “Country On.” To celebrate the release, Bryan stopped by Apple’s Country Radio to chat with Kelleigh Bannen about the upbeat tune and how he feels the song changes up his sound.
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Bryan shared that the single was really spurred on by the “tremendous anxiety” he felt about having a song out in the summer.
“We thought that we were going to come with something new in the latter part [of summer]. And so, I started playing this particular song, “Country On,” to people in my circle,” he said. “I just always love having a summer song out and knowing that people are out on the lake and on their boats [playing the song].”
He added, “I started thinking, ‘I’m going to go the whole summer playing amphitheaters and arenas, and [I don’t] have anything excitingly new to play.’ So, I started spreading it around and letting some tastemakers hear it and we realized the song has a very patriotic ‘let’s all get together and country on‘ kind of thing. I felt like it really works around 4th of July.”
For Bryan “Country On” marks a shift in his sound. After countless hits, albums, and performances Bryan said he is constantly looking for something to speak to him in a different way.
“I can kind of say what I want to at this age,” he said. “I’ve thrown the parties, I’ve done the emotional songs. I’ve done the love songs, I’ve done the up-tempos, I’ve done the tailgate songs, the truck songs. So, it’s hard for me to find something that really speaks to a new avenue.”
He continued, “With ‘Country On,’ I’ve never heard me sing on something in that baritone deal. This is a different sound for me and that’s what you have to start kind of trying to look for and attempt.”
Ultimately, Bryan says, the track is a way for the country icon to tell himself to “keep smiling. To keep staying true to what I do, hopefully spreading a lot of happiness and love and positivity and fun just being me.”
The full interview with the country heavyweight is available on-demand HERE and you can watch the conversation below.
Photo Courtesy of Apple Music
