The summertime is typically when most artists do the bulk of their touring, and Curb’s Lee Brice is no different. To catch up with the hitmaker, Billboard found him rolling down the highway.
“We’ve got a night off from the Brad Paisley tour, so we’re doing a show with Kid Rock and Thomas Rhett tonight,” he said. “I’ve got some writers on the bus, and we’re trying to come up with some songs.”
Not that he is doing that bad in that department right now. “I Drive Your Truck” recently became his third No. 1 in a row – going up the charts at a completely different speed than his first hit.
“We had the slowest start ever with ‘Love Like Crazy,’ which took 57 weeks, but they have gradually gotten quicker,” he said with a laugh. Brice’s latest single, the infectious “Parking Lot Party” has become his fastest climbing release to date, sitting at No. 31 on the Hot Country Songs chart. “I think people are ready to party for the summertime because ‘Parking Lot Party’ is just flying for us.”
The new single is a marked departure from the sentimental ‘Truck,’ all about the excitement that takes place out in the parking lot before the big game or concert. “That’s exactly what the song is about. I remember times when I was going to go to an event, and we never made into the event because we were having too big of a ball in the parking lot. There’s no shame in that. It’s always fun.”
Brice recalls some of the music he was having fun to in the parking lot — Alabama, the Oak Ridge Boys, and Hank Williams, Jr. “You can’t beat listening to his Greatest Hits while you’re out in the parking lot drinking a cold beer, especially when it starts to cool off a little bit and you’ve got your jacket and jeans on,” Brice says nostalgically. “It also takes me back to college.”
Brice has enjoyed a varied career so far, hitting with his own records — but also as a songwriter with hits from acts like Garth Brooks and the Eli Young Band. Which does he prefer? “People ask me how it feels to have a song on the radio as an artist, and it feels awesome because you’ve worked so hard. But, when it comes to songs of mine on the radio that other people have cut as a writer, it’s a sense of pride concerning something I’ve also worked hard at, and for anyone else to record my music is such an honor. I’ll take those anytime I can get them.”
The most recent act to cut a Brice tune is HLN personality Robin Meade, who recorded “Get Up” for her latest album “Count On Me.” Of working with her, he said “We had a blast. I’ve gotten to know her, and with Victoria Shaw – someone that who I’ve looked up to for so long producing, I was honored to be in the same room with them, and we came up with some cool stuff, and got a song on her record.”
At the end of the day, Brice is simply excited about everything that is going on in his career. “The goal was to get a number one, then another. Now, we’ve got three in a row. That’s a big deal for us. Now, we’re working ‘Parking Lot Party,’ so we’re just going to keep at it and keep appreciating what is going on every day, and love what we’re doing. I wake up every day and can’t believe I get to do this for a living.”