Billy Currington – Interview

Raised in Rincon, Ga., about 30 minutes outside of Savannah, Billy Currington notices fewer dirt roads every time he goes back. He’s a star on the rise and whether you like country or not remember we told you so.

When did you record the album?

About two years ago. It was sitting for a while.

Was it weird to have it sitting for so long?

It is. It just takes so long, man. You start and sit around and wait for everything, but when it finally comes out it’ll be great.

What do you do during that time?

I always work. I wrote a bunch of songs and kept writing. And I played some clubs.

What is your songwriting process like?

Every song is different. We never sit down and try to write a song. I get sparked by something someone said or another writer. We sit around and work on that idea.

Is it great to see something start and see the finished product?

That is my favorite part when you carry an idea around for four or five years and you find the right person to finish a song with and then record it and get it out to the public. It’s a pretty neat process.

When did you know you could do this for a living rather than just singing in the car?

It was the summer after my eleventh grade of high school. I got let go from the football because I didn’t make the grade and playing football was my dream, playing in college and the NFL. But my grades dropped and that summer I bought a guitar at a pawn shop and the whole direction of my life changed.

Did it feel natural?

Yeah, I saw others playing and I wanted to do the same thing. I didn’t know if I was born with it or what, but when my other dream feel through I found my other dream, the guitar.

Did you ever know you wanted to do it before all this happened?

I’m sure it was there, I used to go to concerts. I thought I might want to do that, but while in High School I never thought about what I’d be doing.

Did you ever think that music was something too far out of reach?

I never even knew what Nashville was and never thought that way. But when I got older I figured out what Nashville meant.

How fast did you learn to play guitar and realize you were good?

I remember those days. I started singing around to people in school and they encouraged me and then everyone would tell me that I should move to Nashville. And then I met this preacher and he had me singing at his church and he wanted to take me to Nashville. I tried out and didn’t make it, but it was his encouragement that kept me going for my dream.

Were you writing your own songs?

I have been writing songs forever. When I was young I was writing songs, but I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t set out to be a songwriter. I never finished songs back then and wrote a verse or a chorus and stopped.

Were the songs written for the record after you signed?

I actually had most of the songs done and had a bunch to choose from, but when it came time to record the record I decided on my own material which was nice. We just went in and in two days we cut eleven songs, ten that I wrote.

Are the songs about you?

Most of the songs I write are about one of our lives or maybe something we heard someone say. Most of it is real, if not all.

In country music it seems like its own world. Is it really this closer knit community?

We deal with our fans differently. We do meet-and-greets and sign autographs. Most pop artists never get that close to fans. We are more connected to our fans.

I think that is why Country music and NASCAR are put together. Because they can meet those guys, whereas other sports you don’t meet those people like you could a driver or country music singer.

You know I always hear that country music and NASCAR go hand in hand.

Also when a country artist is really big they seem to still be genuine. No huge ego.

They always say that about Garth Brooks. No matter who he is dealing with the person he is dealing with is all that is important. I was taught that by my grandma. No matter what level of life you think you are own you treat everyone right. Otherwise it’ll be harder to get through life. We are so connected to fans and they’d turn against you. It’s not like in rock ‘n’ roll. They don’t care if you kill somebody, they’ll still buy your records.

Is it crazy now that you had two years and you have to talk about this record like you made it yesterday?

Because the songs were written so long ago that you have to put yourself in a different place and have to look at it like its brand new, but you have to look at it like this, that for everyone you meet the record is brand new.

It’s like seeing a relative you haven’t seen in over two years and telling them about your daughter who they never saw.

(Laughs) Exactly. It’s the same thing. (Laughs)

What has your schedule been like?

In the country world it’s different than in the pop world. To get dates you need a top ten record, until then you can’t go out because you can’t afford it. For a new guy if you aren’t banging on the top 10 or 5 you don’t tour.

So is the goal to get more radio?

Yeah, those radio guys have to get together. They are all corporate controlled and they report to Billboard. If you can get them to like you and to add your song and in a certain rotation that is the only way to get up the charts. If someone doesn’t like you then you aren’t going anywhere.

When you were playing your guitar in your room alone, singing to the wall, what were you dreaming about?

It’s the live show. It starts off when you are young, you go to a concert and there are thousands of people and you dream of playing in front of them. You never dream about recording an album or sitting in a conference room on the phone all day doing press and playing at radio stations. You focus on the live show. But over the years my goals have changed. I really just want to be financially stable and my grandma has always lived in a trailer, that’s what we lived in, and now she still lives in that same little trailer and my new goal now is to move her here to Nashville and buy her a cabin on a hill somewhere. That’s all I’m focused on now.

+ Charlie Craine