Interview: DUSTIN LYNCH, C2C Country 2 Country, London

Read on for a sneak peek into the press conferences with main stage acts that happen at C2C Country 2 Country 2019 (Read my review of that here!) We caught up with Dustin Lynch to discuss the dumbest songs he's ever written, playing for UK audiences, and his hats for every occasion - enjoy!

Q: You’re from Tennessee, and somewhere I’ve never heard of. Is it a small place you’re from?

Dustin Lynch (DH): It is, but we’re really good at making whiskey.

Q: You released three new songs recently – how was that?

DH: It’s very cool to see how it ended up. It was very scary at first but it’s now been long enough to see the reaction online.

Q: Is this a sign there’s a new album on the way?

DH: I’m not sure. We had these songs ready to go, especially since Good Girl exploded towards the end of the year. We have a few more songs we’re working on that I don’t know when we’re going to release, but I would love to do another chapter of music. Obviously we’re not going to rush things and I’m on tour with Thomas Rhett all year but we’re off to a good start.

Q: You’ve had a whole run of number one records. It’s strange times in America because some of these records stay on the radio for ages, but we’re in a new world where if you want to put out three or four songs, you can.

DH: Yeah, technology has changed things a lot. It’s tough to say ‘I’m going to not tour and do an album’ – that’s really hard for me to do because I live to be on the road and on stage, so it’s great we can record songs as we write them and as we’re excited about them, and have this little bit of music rather than one big chunk.

Q: And just for C2C, you’ve released three songs just like that!

DH: That’s right!

Q: I’m part of a linedancing community, and the most popular song of yours for us is She Cranks My Tractor.

DH: Which, by the way, is the dumbest song I’ve ever written! But it is my most popular linedancing song. Even yesterday in Dublin, my band was out to get a beer before my show and there was a group of people next to them talking about how they like to linedance to She Cranks My Tractor. It’s a phenomenon. We kind of wrote that song as a joke and it went on to be my second single and we still play it ever now and then.

Q: I watch your vlog and I think it’s quite hilarious and awesome – what was the inspiration behind starting a vlog?

DH: My inspiration to do it is that I was scared to death bringing people into my personal life, and I like challenges. We’ve done a really good job of showing everyone of what it was like onstage and even and little backstage but we wanted to flip the script on me and change things up, so decided to do everyday life stuff too. We discovered very quickly that we enjoyed it because what I do is so fast paced – I have to sit back and go ‘that was only a week ago?!’ Now that we have it all documented, it’s great to go back every now and then and watch what my crew puts together and remember all the amazing things that we get to do, and the amazing people we get to meet.

Q: Are there any British artists or songwriters that really influence or move you?

DH: That’s tough to say. I think just basically rhythm guitar – I never took guitar lessons but hearing those over and over again is how I learned it, and everyone who played that influenced those who grew up with them. Without having a guitar lesson and learning guitar to that type of music has influenced how I write.

Q: Do you have any plans to come to the UK to do headlining tours?

DH: I absolutely do. This is kind of my first toe in the water and we wanted to come over and say hello to everybody, but the intention is to come back as soon as we can and start building from the ground up. I wanted to come over here for years and years and finally we found the chance to do it, so expect more of me over the coming months and years.

Q: This is a good place to start.

DH: Well, I’ve realised that travelling from miles away, it’s a pretty easy commute from Nashville!

Q: You’ve written with a lot of Nashville heavyweights – what is it like to get in a room with these guys?

DH: They’re just really lucky! It’s wonderful. Crazily enough, Rhett Akins and I started writing forever ago, I’m talking right when I got a record deal. The reason we have so much success together, even if I’m not in the room, is because we grew up the same way and we care about the same things. We do the same things when we’re not in the studio or on the road. Now we’ve been doing this about ten years together, it just comes natural. All the writers have been to so many shows that they know what I want to say and the energy I want on stage, and that just takes a lot of the guesswork out when it comes to finding the right fit of a song, melody and lyric. There’s no first date jitters with those guys. For me, that would be why I think we have success together. They’re all unbelievably talented guys and I get to call them friends and mentors.

Q: What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever written a song about or strangest writing process you’ve had?

DH: Okay, dumbest song ever – She Cranks My Tractor. Strangest place I’ve written is probably a random bathroom somewhere! There’s good reverb there. I was coming up with a lot of song ideas when I was mowing yards in Nashville so that would be another pretty strange place to write a song. Melodies come to me whenever I’m doing something mindless than that. Other than She Cranks My Tractor, a song that comes to mind is a song title called I Wanna Make You Wanna Make A Baby. That’s way up there with most ridiculous thing I’ve written lyrics about. We did not record that song.

Q: Do you have different hats for different occasions?

DH: I do! I have a whole room of hats.

Q: Which hat is this?

DH: Honestly I got so excited last night on stage that I went to throw this hat and then realised it was the only one I brought over. I go through these hats pretty often because I sweat a whole lot on stage. They’re like sporting gear, you can only wear them so long.

Q: Who would you like to duet with, and why?

DH: Reba McEntire. One, because I’ve had a crush on her since I could walk, and two, because she’s one of the most amazing singers, three, because she’s one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met in my life, and four, she just inducted me into the Grand Old Opry.

Q: Will it happen?

DH: Ask Reba. That’s not really a phone call I can make!

Q: Kenny Chesney is also quite an inspiration for you. Have you done much with him?

DH: I haven’t. He’s been the one guy I still want to hang out with and get to know. In passing, we’ve shook hands at awards shows and stuff, but I haven’t had the chance to do much yet.

Q: Your first time in the UK and you’re playing the iconic O2 – what are your thoughts on that?

DH: On the way over, me and my band guys were just like ‘is this real?’ I can’t wait to walk up on stage and look up. Back in the States, it doesn’t matter who’s playing the O2, we see it. It’s that big of a deal, whether it’s a country act or not, it makes social media, it makes headlines. It always looks so epic so I’m so glad we get the opportunity to play. My one goal tonight is to put on a great show that people have a great time at and make a memory at, and then we want to come back and do it again. 

I hope you enjoyed reading Dustin Lynch's press conference! What was your favourite question asked? Drop me a message in the comments below and make sure to follow me on Twitter @CiarasCountry for more interviews and reviews coming soon - thanks for reading!