Aaron Lewis: Drastic Genre Crossover | Arts & Culture

Questions for Staind Lead Singer & Country Artist Aaron Lewis

You're best known for your melodic alternative rock songs like "It's Been Awhile" and "So Far Away," but now you're doing country music. What's the deal? 
I grew up with country music around me all the time. My grandfather, wherever he was there was country music playing. It was a permanent fixture. When my grandfather passed away and we moved away from Vermont, the people I was hanging out with at that point were listening to rock music, so I forgot about it for a long time. When I was out on tour with Kid Rock for our very first tour ever, I rode the bus with him a lot because we're pretty good friends. All that he played on his bus was old country music. It all seemed extremely familiar and I haven't been able to get away from it since my re-introduction.

Why did you decide to do it solo?

I've been playing solo shows for about nine years now. I'd sell out pretty much every solo show I'd play, even without having a record to be working. The opportunity had almost presented itself two or three times in the past, and I finally made sure I didn't give up until all of the obstacles were out of the way. I finally got it to come out.

How was it recording with country music legend George Joneson your new CD?
When you just said it, it still gives me goose bumps a little bit. That's one of the voices I remember from my childhood. That was one of my grandfather's favorites. I'm sure he's looking down and smiling on the whole situation.

Did some Staind fans not appreciate the country record?
Well, there's Staind fans that don't like the fact that we've put out ‘It's Been Awhile,' ‘Outside,' and ‘So Far Away' - all of our biggest songs. Those Staind fans probably aren't very happy about it. But they're…

…READ MORE