Country stars are ready to hit the stage at YQM Country Fest in Dieppe

The YQM Country Fest is poised to take over Dieppe, N.B., this weekend.

YQM Country Fest is set to take over Dieppe Aug. 21-23, bringing some of the biggest names in country music to Atlantic Canada, including Kane Brown, Jelly Roll, Luke Bryan - and Chase Rice.

Before making it big in country music, Rice followed an unlikely path, playing college football, working in NASCAR and even appearing on the reality show Survivor. But it’s music that has given him the biggest rush.

“It’s been a crazy, crazy year,” Rice said in an interview with CTV Atlantic’s Katie Kelly. “We are probably 40 plus shows in right now. We got another 30, 40 to go. So we’ve got a lot going on right now. And then on top of that, the album’s coming. So we’re preparing for that. I’m exhausted, but it’s a good exhaustion.”

Rice’s new album, Eldora, drops Sept. 19 - on his birthday. He calls it a creative reset. The record was written largely during a retreat in Colorado and recorded in one-take sessions in his home.

“We did it here in my upstairs room in Nashville,” said Rice. “And it was all one take. It was just me and a guitar or somebody and a guitar and singing into one or two microphones and this is it. And then we got on the band the next day and that was the process.”

Festivalgoers can expect a mix of Rice’s new material and fan favourites.

“We have a good time. Yeah, I like that fun,” Rice said. “I do play some of the hits to honor the last 10 years of my life. So we’ll be doing that for sure.”

Rice also said he is looking forward to returning to the East Coast, a part of Canada he hasn’t visited in years.

“I particularly love going up to Canada because there’s so many different things that I haven’t seen,” he said. “So that’s just been part of my life - travelling and seeing the world as much as I can with my dog while I can do it.”

He’s also no stranger to sharing the stage with Jelly Roll, who headlines Friday night at YQM.

“Yeah, we toured with him two years ago. We’d always get up and sing Simple Man together,” Rice said. “Maybe we’ll do it again on Friday. Who knows? … It should be a fun show.”

Rice takes the stage this Friday at YQM Country Fest in Dieppe.