Hard work always pays off, whatever you do.
If I could be involved in the hunting and fishing industry, that would be amazing. That said, I studied biology in college and that led into me being really involved in anatomy and being a pre-med major.
My brain never turns off of songwriting. Every conversation, everything I see, I'm just kind of like a sponge and I soak it up.
With my biology degree, I got this job at an environmental lab. We tested sewage runoff, we tested chemical warfare waste runoff. It's a job I'll never do again and I would never wish upon anybody.
I picked Dad's guitar up when I was 8. It hurt to play, so I put it down and picked it back up when I was 15 and dug in. The guitar helped me come out of my shell and kind of gave me an identity at school.
Mom and sister played piano growing up; my grandma still plays piano in church. They always beat me over the head trying to get me to play piano, but I was more interested in riding dirt bikes and playing in the mud.
I've gotten to go to the Opry a couple of times and stand backstage and watch. But I made it a point not to take a tour or stand in the circle until music took me there. I told myself that was one place I'd never go unless music took me there.
My favorite thing about touring is the new towns and new faces every day.
I draw inspiration from anything and everybody and that's what country music is to me... real life stories and real life emotions.
I was told 'no' a lot when I first got to Nashville, but I'm pretty stubborn! That's one of my faults and qualities.