Country star Lee Brice has orange in his blood, too

Lee Brice has one of the most dynamic voices in country music and he's "bringing it to you in all shapes and sizes" on his new co-headlining tour with fellow country singer Chris Young. 

Best known for tracks like 2009's "Love Like Crazy," 2012's "I Drive Your Truck," and 2014's "I Don't Dance," the year's fastest platinum-selling country hit, Brice said he's looking forward to having a great time touring with Young.

Photo: ChrisYoungCountry.com

"It's going to be one of our first shows together, me and Chris," Brice said in a phone interview. "So, we're trying to work up something to do at the end of the show. We're going to probably wing it, but sometimes, that's some of the best shows ever."

Brice, who attended Clemson University, promised to make Thursday night's show one to remember for his Syracuse fans, especially after Clemson's basketball team beat the Syracuse Orange by 13 points last week.

 "We all have a little orange in our blood," he joked about the game.

Since he released his debut album Love Like Crazy in 2009, the South Carolina native has continued to take country music by storm. The title track for his debut album reached No. 3 on the Billboard Country chart and set a record as the longest-charting song in that chart's history. His second album Hard 2 Love, which went Gold, earned Brice three No. 1 country singles, including "I Drive Your Truck," which won Song of the Year at both the CMA and ACM Awards.

For his most recent album, I Don't Dance, Brice took on the role of producer, writing almost all of the tracks for the album and its deluxe edition. With a romantic ballad like "I Don't Dance" alongside an anthem like "Drinking Class," Brice admitted the challenges behind writing and producing songs are entirely different from one another.

"It's very hard to keep all of this stuff straight and balanced because I listen to so much music," Brice said. "I want a whole record that's acoustic, then I have another whole side of me that wants to go do some crazy stuff in the studio. I want to do it all, so the production gets a little spread out, but that's the way I really like it."

"Drinking Class" is the second single off Brice's latest album and his most recently released music video. A salute to working class Americans, the video takes the audience through a day in the life of blue-collar workers, some of Brice's most supportive and appreciated fans.

When asked how his Northeast fans differ from those down South, Brice reminisced on the earlier days of his career.

"It's so crazy because when I started out, I had no idea that I'd go to the Northeast," Brice said. "It's blue-collar and that's what country music is all about. Folks busting their tails every day to get by and to pay the bills. We have great fans down south that are crazy, but it was almost even more overwhelming to come up north and to feel the same, if not more, energy come from the fans."

Brice, who opened for Luke Bryan's That's My Kinda Night Tour last year, went on to recall how his show last September at Madison Square Garden was "mind-blowing".

"I just couldn't believe all the energy that was coming," Brice said. "It was really special."

In addition to touring with Luke Bryan, Brice has toured with country stars Brad Paisley (Beat This Summer Tour), Dierks Bentley (Locked and Reloaded Tour), and Miranda Lambert (Locked and Reloaded Tour), among others.

"We have such a great time," Brice said. "It doesn't get any better than hanging out with your buddies."

When asked who he'd like to tour with that's not a country singer, Brice immediately responded with "Bruno Mars."

"His music is so real," Brice said. "I've seen him in concert a couple times and he blows my mind every time. I'm a fan of his, so that would be awesome. I'm about a foot taller than him, but hey," he laughed.

In the meantime, Brice and Young, who share a love of music and whiskey, will hit nine cities together over the next two months, but it may not end with the scheduled last stop in Hawaii.

"I really feel like we may end up adding shows onto this tour through the end of the year," Brice said.

On top of his One Night Live Tour with Young, Brice is making several solo stops in cities like Nashville and Westbury, New York, as well as an upcoming college tour.

"So far we have Chase Bryant and The Cadillac Three to open up and it's going to be a really cool time through college arenas," Brice said. 

Brice will hit many cities from Syracuse to Honolulu this year, but there is still one place in particular he has his sights set on for the near future.

"I'll tell you one thing I haven't done is play in Europe," Brice said. "That's been one thing I've been really looking forward to doing."

"I would get to see that area and get to play that area, which would be really cool."

Tickets for the One Night Live Tour are available on Ticketmaster.

Listen to the full interview with Lee Brice: