Courtesy | Sony BMG Nashville

Country music is what Chris Young does best. After impatiently waiting for his break at country stardom, the 23-year-old from Tennessee was praised for his 2006 self-titled debut album and earned the title of country’s best-selling new male artist that year. Now, Young is touring the country opening for Martina McBride while he prepares to put out his sophomore album, Voices this fall. From Nashville, he chatted with 210SA before his performance at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater on Thursday, July 17.

A lot of your songs are down-to-earth. What are some of the simple things you’ve gotten inspiration from?

You know, with the stuff that I’ve written, especially with the first single, it’s a very family-oriented song, “My dad saying work that job, don’t work your life away.” When family says stuff, gives you a little advice like that, it sticks in your head. ..... Then “Gettin’ You Home” is another song I wrote with them on the record, which is completely different. It’s really kind of a love song. For example, if you’re in love with somebody, you look at them and kind of everything else disappears. ..... We really just draw on life experience.

So what piece of advice would you pass down to your kid?

Until I get to the point where I can give advice ..... hopefully, one day down the road, probably what I’d say is that you really have to love what you do for a living. I’ve been really blessed that this is something that I love to do. ..... I still work really hard at it every day. It’s always changing. I’m always trying to add more stuff and do new things. ..... I’m just really happy that I wake up every day and do something that I really enjoy.

You grew up near Nashville and wanted to pursue music from early on. Was it hard to live so close to the epicenter of country music and wait for your big break?

The nice answer would be, “No, absolutely.” The real answer would be, “Oh, yeah,” especially when I was a kid. ..... Growing up in Nashville, I always felt like I was really close. Patience, unfortunately, is not my virtue, which is what I’m having to slowly learn. It’s something that I’m learning with the music industry. ..... 95 percent of it is working your butt off, and the rest is just timing. ..... I really think that everything happens at the time it’s supposed to happen.

When you moved to Arlington to perform with the house band at the Cowboys Dancehall, you said that Texans were the most discriminating country fans around. What made you rank Texans as “most discriminating?”

They can be. Yeah, I think any crowd can be. To me, when I go out there I want to give the same show if there’s two people or if there’s 200,000 people. Sometimes that’s hard to do because we’re flying everywhere. ..... But before we get onstage you kind of just have to put that stuff aside. ..... What I like about Texans is that when they don’t like somebody, they’ll let them know.

Your career really took off after you won the TV contest, “Nashville Star.” How is performing for television different from a stage performance?

That’s not even just because of the TV show I was on, I think performers will tell you that anywhere. ..... It’s always a little bit different when you have cameras on you because you have to constantly be aware of the audience that’s in front of you, but also the audience on camera. You can’t chase the red light around the room but you have to find it sometimes. ..... If you start trying to find it everywhere, then you’ll snap your head around. ..... It’s kind of tricky.

You’ve said you hope people who listen to your sophomore album get to know you a little better. Has there been a point when it felt like the public knew a little more than you wanted?

I’m not one of those people that really just tries to block anything off from anybody. There are things like family stuff and personal life, I tend to not throw that out there and like, “Oh look at what I’m doing.” But I’m really open with my fans. ..... I think it’s cool that music can kind of connect me with my fans that way.

On your upcoming album, you’ve got a duet with Willie Nelson called, “Rose in Paradise.” We love Willie around here. Tell us what it was like singing with him.

That freaked me out. Everybody is like, “He’s done a lot of duets. He’s collaborated a lot.”..... But I remember, growing up, I thought he was the guy that sings “Crazy.” ..... I still love his version. He’s such an icon, not just in country music, but in music in general. He, like, transcends genres, which is what’s cool about him. ..... I really didn’t know what to expect from him. ..... He comes out and is like, “Hi, I’m Willie Nelson,” and I’m like, “Yeah, I know.” (chuckles) ..... It’s something that I’ll take with me, without being morbid, to the grave.

Jennifer Lloyd | 210SA