Luke Bryan defended his small town cred in a new song performed for VIP fans at a recent Huntin', Fishin' and Lovin' Every Day tour stop.
Videos by Wide Open Country
In "What Makes You Country," Bryan boasts his backwoods credentials. He sings of growing up blasting Alabama on the radio and "running bird dogs through the Georgia pines."
Bryan ultimately concludes that the meaning of county as a music and lifestyle transcends a particular listener's experiences and tastes. It's surely a light-hearted jab at critics who dismiss Bryan as somehow less country than roots-oriented acts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKpDmli3KdQ
For fans, the song should further Bryan's South Georgia charm. Critics, on the other hand, might not make it long enough through cliches about dirt roads and wild buddies to access Bryan's argument.
The song premiered at a pre-show VIP get-together. Bryan performs two acoustic numbers each tour stop in "Luke's Lounge," including the occasional test run of new material. It's similar to stumbling into a small town bar's open-mic night. Difference being, a former CMA Entertainer of the Year probably won't play your local watering hole anytime soon.
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Bryan is reportedly wrapping up the unnamed follow-up to 2015's Kill the Lights, an album bolstered by a record six straight number one singles on Billboard's Country Airplay chart. Earlier today, he released his brand new single "Light It Up," which gives fans a taste of what's to come.
