 Courtesy of the Artist Tennessee native Travis Rice has shared the stage with Craig Morgan, Randy Travis, and Travis Tritt, among others, and this year participated in his first-ever CMA Music Festival. Garnering new fans alongside critical praise, including the DisCovery Award from music critic Robert K. Oermann, Rice, who recently released his touching new single, "When The Fish Didn't Bite," kindly took the time to talk about his roots, the single and much more. You played basketball and graduated college with a business degree, so when did you know that music was what you wanted to pursue professionally? I played ball my whole life and when that was over I had no idea what I want to do - that’s when music took a hold of me in a much more serious way. A friend asked me to play a benefit and when I stepped out on that stage in front of an audience for the first time, it was like a drug to me. I put myself outside my comfort zone and honestly, I was hooked. I never felt anything else that made me feel that way, except when I was on the ball court, and I figured that if I was that passionate about it and got that much enjoyment from it, then I should see where the road would take me. Did you always gravitate to country music? As far as songwriting, yes, but I didn't grow up in a musical family. Dad’s radio broke in his truck when I was little and he didn’t get it fixed for ten years – but music was something I always gravitated to. As I was growing up I always had music playing and as cliché as it sounds, I wanted to learn to play an instrument in high school because I thought it might help me get a date (laughing). Initially, when I got into the guitar I wanted to be the lead in a rock band, but I realized pretty quickly I didn’t have the natural ability for that, so instead, I focused on writing songs and found out that I had something I wanted to say. I didn’t write in a journal or talk about my feelings, so music became my journal, the place where I put my emotions and wrote about what I was going through. I wasn’t performing those songs yet, it was my way to deal with things, which eventually turned into a desire to perform. And in time, I found that people connected with my songs. It all happened very organically.  In late October you released your new single, “When The Fish Didn’t Bite.” Can you talk about the story behind the personal song?
I had the idea for the song way before the song ever took form. Initially, I had struggled with it, but knew that if I tried to force it, it wouldn’t work. Then one day, God smiled down and said, “Ok, you’re ready, it’s time.” Once it came to me, I wrote it in about an hour and a half. It's a song that came together in its own time and when it did, it flowed so easily and naturally - just the way it’s supposed to - and as a songwriter, that makes me very happy. The song is obviously about my Dad, who is caring, patient and always focused on what you are really getting out of a situation whether it is fishing, working on a vehicle, hunting ,or driving down the road talking because the radio was broken in the truck. He was always looking for life lessons and I am so thankful to have had experiences like that. Music is all about the connection with people and we really feel like this song has the ability to do that. From a songwriter’s perspective, it’s one of those songs that comes around every once in a while. I was able to say exactly what I wanted to say without compromise. It’s pure and real. And the fact that we can turn it into a single is the cherry on top. I’m thrilled. Will this song and your previous single, “Women, Water and Beer,” be on an upcoming release? There’s an upcoming project, but it’s a work in progress. We’re still changing and adding things, making sure that we get everything we want on it. We’re fortunate to be able to do that in this digital world we live in, where we can keep new music coming without having to wait until we're done [with an EP/LP]. As the year winds down, what are your plans for the remainder of 2016 or early 2017? We have another single, “Don’t Waste the Rain,” coming out at the first of the year and we’re now in the process of getting the music video together for it. It’s a super sexy, sleek, rainy day song and without taking away from the current single, I’ll just say to be on the lookout for it. This is a journey and it’s cool to finally get to do some of the things I’ve seen my heroes do. We’re going to up our game, continue to grow, and connect with new fans, because that’s what it’s all about for me. Country Music is an escape and comfort for people and it’s nice to know that we’re able to do that with the music and bring a smile to people’s faces. It’s a dream come true. Finally, I always like to know if there is one recent release that you cannot stop listening to and recommend people check out? Blake Shelton is always a solid go-to for me. The thing I respect about him is that no matter how progressive he gets with singles and albums he always has a couple tracks that give respects to his roots. There’s tons of good music out there. I just try to keep up with it. For more information visit his official website Find him on Facebook, Twitter & Spotify Purchase "When The Fish Didn't Bite" here
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