Scotty McCreery plays the Louisville Palace June 30th. Get details at Do502.com

Scotty McCreery gives Kyle Meredith a call to dish on his new EP, The Soundcheck Sessions, an acoustic set that strips bare the singles from his 2018 comeback record, Seasons Change. The country star discusses the validating moment of having that LP soar to number one thanks to the single “Five More Minutes,” making him the first artist to do so without a manager or label after having been dropped following his 2013 album, as well as a moment where he took back control over his own songwriting. McCreery also talks about being looked at as a perfect Christian kid after winning American Idol’s 10th season in 2011 and the difficulties of living up to that image, which can be heard in the song “In Between,” a set of lyrics that try to dispel the wonderkid pedestal he was put on. We get an update on his next record that’s in the works and hear about his don’t-call-it-a-biography travelogue, which was just rereleased in paperback.

Listen to the interview above and then check the videos below.