![]() “When the sent “Big” to me (another song Trace recorded of theirs) TJ said, ‘ I heard your voice on this song.’ He has commented to me that I was a bit of an inspiration to him and that is quite an honor. I’m gonna leave when I’m ready to, and that’s the way I feel. If I never got a chance to record another song, that’s the song I’d want it to be. They are 20 years down the road from singing this song and I’m really glad to get the chance to record it. They are too young to sing this song and I am so glad because that’s how it ended up with me. “TJ and John write most everything they record but every once in a while they write something I want to record. The title track, “The Way I Wanna Go,” was written by Barry Dean, Troy Verges, TJ Osborne and John Osborne ( The Brothers Osborne). Snoop did the same thing, he wrote his verse with no direction from us, he just wrote it.” We sent the song to Pitbull and he wrote that verse with no input from us. When they ask what will the single be, I say write the titles on the wall and throw a dart.”Īs for the first single, the Luke Bryan/Pittbull collaboration, Adkins says, “I didn’t know what to expect. When Scott Hendricks (label executive) told me every cut should be a single, that’s the way I’ve approached it ever since. I know what I want and I don’t cut it unless it’s a possible single. “Over the years I got to where I don’t over cut. “We recorded 27 songs and that’s it, we didn’t over record, and we used those other two on exclusive things that someone wanted,” Adkins explains. It’s amazing we got a track that didn’t have laughter on it because we all laughed through the whole thing.”Ī post shared by Trace Adkins are 25 songs on The Way I Wanna Go, but unlike many artists who cut double or triple the number of songs that actually end up on an album, Adkins only cut 27 for this one. Blake begged me (laughs) and Luke lives down the road from me and we’re good friends. They asked me if that was okay and I said yeah, he can sing on it if he wants to! I would never have allowed myself to dream I could record with Stevie Wonder. My attorney in New York is Stevie Wonder’s attorney and he took the Keb Mo track and played it for Stevie and he wanted to do harmonica on it. “Keb Mo and I have known each other for years and I finally had the song I thought Keb would be perfect for. It is one of my favorite cuts on this record. I think she took it to a different place, and I was appreciative and honored that she did that. Melissa’s voice is perfect, it blends better than any other woman I have sung with. When I got that track back, I thought I should have been singing with her for 20 years. “I’ve done very few female duets because my voice is so low and Melissa Etheredge’s voice is perfect with my voice. I said, “He won’t do it because I don’t know him at all.’ The producers reached out to him and the fact that he would agree to do it blew my mind. All the collaborations made sense to me except Pitbull. Snoop he owed me one because I sang on one of his records a few years ago. Blake and Luke were no brainers, they are friends. I was going to make another record and then the producers made suggestions. ![]() When Adkins started recording this album, he had not planned for the duets that are on it. We recorded the album throughout the last year and (because of Covid) it’s the first time I’ve not had to come in off the road and record an album. ![]() My voice is strong on this record, more than anything I’ve ever recorded, because I’m rested. ![]() With a cast of characters including good friends Blake Shelton, Luke Bryan and Keb Mo, rappers Pitbull and Snoop Dogg, Melissa Etheridge and Stevie Wonder on harmonica, the stage was set for what Adkins says is “the best record I ever made. It’s obvious when listening to Adkin’s just released album (8/27/21) The Way I Wanna Go, he had a lot of fun recording it. I’m in a place in life where I can make decisions based on that and that’s what I’m gonna do.” “Rodney Carrington said to me one day, we were doing a video together, and he said ‘You and I are pretty much at the same place in life, we can make decisions based on the answer to the question, would that be fun to do? I don’t look at money or logistics, but if the answer to that question is yes, I’m gonna do it.’ I took that to heart and that’s the way I’ve looked at it ever since. “That’s what It’s all about in this business – having fun,” says Adkins, who has sold 11 million albums, racked up more than two billion streams, and delighted his fans with hits including “Every Light In The House Is Home,” “Songs About Me,” “Arlington,” “Honky Tonk Bedonkadonk” and “You’re Gonna Miss This.” It is a philosophy that he learned from comedian Rodney Carrington, and it has carried him through a quarter century of great music, sold-out concerts, Grand Ole Opry membership and numerous awards.
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