Country music is having a global moment and Tullahoma, Tennessee native, Dustin Lynch, could not be more proud.

During his time as a guest on Audacy’s Superstar Power Hour with Katie Neal, Lynch opened up about the current state of Country music and the excitement he feels seeing others embrace the genre he’s known his entire life.

“With the success of Morgan [Wallen] worldwide and Luke Combs and then the album that HARDY made [Quit!] that was rippin’ and rockin’, it's really opened to a lot of these, ‘I hate Country. I'm a Rock fan. I'm a Rap fan’ people,” Dustin shared of the current expansion of the Country music fanbase. “It’s opened the genre up… some guys and girls that probably had always written Country music off as a whole and dip their toe in it. They go, ‘Oh, maybe I like this.’”

While there’s clearly been a major shift in the acceptance from once-skeptical fans, there’s also been a shift on the artist side as mainstream artists are also taking a dip in the Country pool. With unexpected Country albums from Beyoncè and Post Malone this year, Country music is gaining appeal to more artists and Lynch says he’s witnessed the impact first hand with pal and Alternative Rocker/Rapper, Machine Gun Kelly.

Dustin shared he and MGK have been friends for a few years as they’re both part of an annual group trip to Lake Powell, and the the change in his attitude surrounding Country from their first meeting has been monumental. “The first year that I was on that trip, you couldn't get Kells [MGK] to even give Country the time of day,” Dustin said. “Really, he hated it… Since then, it's evolved. I think the genre has, you know, probably in a way made him respect and recognize.”

It’s been quite the evolution for MGK as he went from not giving Country music the time of day to now having his own Country collaboration with one of modern-day Country’s biggest artists, Jelly Roll. In July, the pair gave one of the genre’s most iconic songs the crossover treatment with the release of “Lonely Road,” which samples John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” from 1971.

Mainstream artists like Machine Gun Kelly aren’t the only ones having fun with the shake-up — longtime Country artists like Dustin himself are also enjoying pushing the boundaries of what Country music has always been and that’s exactly what Lynch did with his most-recent single, “Chevrolet,” featuring Jelly Roll.

“I was scared to death of it.” Lynch admitted when he first heard the song which interpolates Dobie Gray's "Drift Away" from 1973. “Interpolation of a classic song that’s been around forever — it's like, ‘Okay, can we do this again?’”

He continued, “I was just nervous. I didn't want to be judged, you know, and that's probably why the conversation ever started [of featuring Jelly Roll]. Like, ‘Should we bring in somebody else in to soften the blow?’”

With the song recently reaching number one on the charts marking a 10th hit record for Lynch, he’s happy he went for it, but says he’s ready to return to a more original Country sound with his new music, which is in the works.

“There's a song on the Killed the Cowboy album that really inspired, I think, what's going to be the next chapter for me,” Lynch revealed. “And that’s, 'Honky Tonk Heartbreaker,' just musically and sonically, that one excites me a lot. It's fresh and new for me, kind of getting back to where I started with, 'Cowboys and Angels,' a little bit. There's no definite direction yet.”

While all the logistics if the next album are still very much in the beginning stages, Lynch says there’s one thing for sure — he wants it to be fun. “I want to keep it light and fun and make music for guys and girls to dance too,” he shared. “I think that's kind of where I'm at in life right now just providing some fun for some people… I think I want more of those moments in our show right now.”

Hear more about his ideas surrounding a new album, his friendship with MGK, his inability to “veg out” and more by checking out Dustin Lynch’s full interview on the Superstar Power Hour with Katie Neal above.

Words by Monica Rivera Interview by Katie Neal