Brett Young's Next Album Inspired by His Fans

Brett Young is putting the finishing touches on his sophomore album, which he says is being inspired largely by his fans. The "Mercy" singer explains that everything about the way he performs music – whether on stage or in the studio – goes back to how his fans react to the songs, and interact with him.

"I think fan interaction is really important, from how you put together your set list for your show to how you decide what songs you're gonna put on your record,"Young explains. "I think that is one of the biggest advantages you have is, if you're on the road a lot, you do have the opportunity to try out new music before you go into the studio and make your record.

"But also with the old music, you kind of get a feel for which of your songs are working and connecting and you start to get a feel for why," he continues. "And so I think paying attention to your fans and what it is that they're gravitating towards is really important and it's definitely affected the song selection in the making of the second record."

The 37-year-old hints that his next set of tunes will show a lot of growth since his 2017 self-titled freshman album, while still staying true to his unique sound.

"I think the first album was pretty clearly a very deep insight into me and my life and I never want to stray too far from that," says Young. "But the opportunity that I've gotten after the first album to write with some of the bigger, better writers in Nashville, made me want to really dig into what their skill sets are, and what it is that they're good at, and what's made them so good.

"And so, I found myself having to, rather than writing my life story, find ways to take maybe their idea or their concept or their story and still put my DNA on it and find a way to connect to the concept that we're writing," he adds. "There's still a lot of vulnerability and emotion in these songs but there's a cool twist on it because it's influenced heavily by some of the best writers in Nashville now so it's a lot of the same with a little bit of tweaks and differences."

Young is currently serving as the opening act on Thomas Rhet's Life Changes Tour. Dates can be found on his website.