I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Tracy Lawrence before a show to talk with him about what he has going on in his career right now. Lawrence's girls were with him for the weekend to give their mom a little break, and it is very apparent that they are the light of his life. While we were talking, I really enjoyed watching the interaction between father and daughters. It is great to see that while he may be a superstar on the stage, for two little girls he is simply 'daddy.'
Lawrence recently released a brand new album, For the Love, on his very own label, Rocky Comfort Records. With all the label merges and closures, it seemed like the right move to make to continue making the music. He partnered with his brother and manager, Laney Lawrence, and Rocky Comfort was born. The name reminds them of home and pleasant memories of growing up.
The first artist they signed in addition to Lawrence was Chad Brock and they are currently talking with some other artists as well and looking forward to great things happening in the future. One of the benefits to working with an independent label is the ability to just make the music and get it out to the fans.
His current single, "Find Out Who Your Friends Are," is in the Top 30 and rising.
We talked a little about the making of the album and some of the people who joined Lawrence for the project. Along with the radio release of the single, he also recorded a second version to close the album with. The song had such a powerful meaning to him and he mentioned it to a couple of close friends of his and asked if they'd like to participate. They thought it was a great idea and after working through the three different schedules and the red tape of the different labels, Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney joined him in the studio.
As we continued to chat about his music and what sort of music he listens to for relaxation, it quickly became clear that he has very eclectic tastes. When asked what we might find in his player now, the names ranged from Nelly Furtado to James Brown to Britney Spears to Rascal Flatts.
Some big influences in his music were George Strait and Merle Haggard. And with such a wide range of taste in music, it made sense that another friend was willing to come in and sing along on the title track of his album. Lead singer for the band Three Doors Down, Brad Arnold, sang "For the Love" with Lawrence as a duet.
Lawrence has recorded so many great songs over the years I had to ask him if he had a favorite. I wasn't too surprised to learn that he really doesn't. Different songs happened at different points in his life and had a huge impact when they hit. Some songs that came to mind were "Sticks and Stones," "Time Marches On," "Alibis" and "If The World Had a Front Porch." But probably the one that stands out the most as far as impact was "Paint Me A Birmingham."
Lawrence is also very active in his community and set up the Tracy Lawrence Foundation in order to benefit as many people as possible. Every year he does a homecoming concert in his hometown of Foreman, Arkansas as well as a golf tournament in Texarkana, Texas to benefit both the Foundation and the local chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. The Foundation provides scholarships, has equipped a high school computer lab and many other charitable things for a variety of organizations.
He has helped to raise more than a million dollars for the fight against Cystic Fibrosis and participated in numerous fundraisers for St. Jude's and the list goes on. He is very passionate about helping the people of his community as much as he can.
So does he have time for any hobbies after all this? Absolutely. When he can, he likes to be outdoors. Hunting, fishing and golfing are just a few of the things he likes to do when he has time. He's also thinking about taking his family on a boat this summer and doing some salt water fishing.
It was such a pleasure talking with Tracy Lawrence and we very much appreciate his taking the time out of his busy schedule to do so.
We asked what he would like to say to the fans that would be reading this. He said that his fans are great. They are loyal and always respect his privacy if they see him out with his family. He wanted to thank everyone for their continued support of his career and for helping the latest single, "Find Out Who Your Friends Are," to climb the charts as fast as it has.
You can find him online at TracyLawrence.com or Tracy Lawrence @ MySpace. Drop a comment and let him know what you think of the album.
