By: Allen Foster
If you tried to imagine the perfect guy, there’s a good chance Scotty McCreery would come to mind. He’s kind-hearted, talented, charismatic, and genuine. The type of person you want in your life. Luckily, he’s also a famous artist, so we all get to know him a little bit through his music.
When AXS was in the initial stages of setting up a backstage interview with Scotty at iPlay America in Freehold, New Jersey, he asked if we could involve his fans. So that’s what we did. A week before the event, we reached out… and we were flooded with questions from the artist’s devoted followers. So many, that we only had time to get a fraction of them on video.
However, being the kind of guy that he is, Scotty went above and beyond. Before checking out the video of him answering your questions [see below], make sure you read the bonus print responses that follow…
Question: When you first auditioned for “American Idol,” did you ever think at that point that you would make it to the finale and win the whole thing? – Zachary, Scotty McCreery Fans 4Life!
Answer: No, Zachary, I did not think I would ever get to this point. You don’t ever think it’s a realistic thing. There are thousands of people auditioning and you see a lot of talented people. I don’t really know how it worked out, but it did and I’m glad it did. We have a lot of fun. I was just auditioning to go see Jennifer Lopez, that’s all that was.
Q: If you weren’t a great country singer, what would you choose as a career? – Sarah @emtlove16
A: If I was not a country singer, Sarah, what would I be? Well, before this, I was bagging groceries. Hopefully, I would’ve moved on from that. Hopefully, I would’ve graduated college and pursued a career in something… Communications was what I was majoring in, so maybe I’d be a sports reporter. I don’t know. I’m glad this all worked out because I really don’t know.
Q: My little sister goes to school with you at NC State, I was just wondering how you manage college while you’re on tour so much? – Angie Keilhauer, “The Voice” (Season 10)
A: Hey Angie, thanks for the question. College and touring are two tough things to do together. I’m not currently there, but for about two and a half years, I was going to college and touring. It’s just one of those things where you’ve got to commit to doing both. I would literally finish a show, some nights at 10 o’clock, and have a paper due at midnight. You’ve got to get on the computer and start typing an essay… or hopefully finish an essay, not just start one… I never did that (laughing). It was tough, but it was a fun balance. It just got to be a little bit much and hopefully I’ll end up going back, eventually.
Q: Is there a special young lady in your life??? – Elizabeth, Scotty McCreery Fans 4Life!
A: Elizabeth, thanks for the question. Yes, there is a special young lady in my life. I’ve known her since kindergarten. Her name is Gabi. We’ve known each other our whole lives, but we’ve only been dating for about four and a half years. I’m a lucky guy.
Q: Why did you stop making ScotTvs and will you make them again? – Kelso @Kelsey_McCreery
A: Kelsey, we still love doing the Scott TVs and we will get back to doing them again. We ended up bringing on another person to tune guitars and to make sure things on the road were going good, and that took up a bunk space. It’s already 12 guys on one bus. The camera guy would make it 13 and that’s a little much. We’ll get back to it once we have a little more bunk space open up.
Q: Favorite Blake Shelton song? – Sarah @aniBSer
A: Sarah, Blake Shelton has a lot of great songs, so that’s tough! I’m probably going to throw back and do one of his earlier ones like “Ol’ Red.” That’s one of my all-time favorite country songs in general, but definitely my favorite Blake song.
Q: Who inspired you to be a country artist? – Roxanne, Tucson, AZ
A: Roxanne, good question. I had a lot of influences, a lot of people inspired me to be a country singer. But you know, my biggest influence growing up was Elvis Presley. He was a guy I listened to all the time. But guys like Brad Paisley and Josh Turner… a lot of those guys were great influences and big inspirations to me.
Q: Do you get tired of being on the road? – Elena, Wilmington, DE
A: Elena, as far as getting tired on the road… not really. We’ve got a great band and a great crew out here and were all like a second family. If you get us out there for 2 to 3 weeks at a time, we might want to go home and see our family, but most the time we’re only out for 3 to 5 days and we just love it!
Q: I’m going into my senior year of High School! Any tips or advice? – Arianna @AriannaAshton
A: First of all Ariana, good luck with senior year! Second of all, just enjoy it. At college, as far as the workload goes, it’s a lot more work than high school. And the real world is even more work than college. So, enjoy high school while you can. Take in all your experiences, whether it’s sports, arts, or whatever, and just have a good time. That’s what it’s all about.