We sat down with the good ole boy from Louisiana on the day he taped his private serenade for the happy couple and gauged his thoughts on entering the world of daytime dramas. Adkins opened up about how he got his start, getting wrangled into doing the Celebrity Apprentice and what is really important to him.
How were you approached about appearing on Y&R?
"Someone who works on the show [Jack Allocco] is good friends with my manager Ken Levitan and we were already going to be in California so it worked out for us. I am shooting a movie out here and I only worked two days this week and I was going to fly home today but the opportunity turned up to guest on The Young and the Restless and we thought sure, "I'll just stay another day." And I am glad we did because all of the flights were cancelled today and I would probably be down at the hospital cursing and madder than hell!"
"My manager said 'There's an opportunity to be on The Young and the Restless and 85 billion women [he said jokingly] watch it so you ought to do it' so here I am."
Looking forward to meeting any of the cast today?
"Yes!!! Everyone knows there are some serious 'babes' on the soaps. I may have to throw rocks at ole Joshua [Morrow] and compete for Michelle Stafford. But seriously, my daughter watches the show and she's so excited that I am going to be on. My 23 year old, Tara. She just had a baby 3 months ago and she's hooked on soaps now."
Do you think that Soap Fans are your target audience?
"Older chicks dig me. Not so popular with the young ones anymore."
Country songs and soaps have a lot in common. There's a lot of drama in both!
"Everyday life is what we write about. It is what we sing about. We sing about a world that most people can relate to."
This isn't your first acting gig. You have a couple of films under your belt already. Tell us about those roles.
"I did a little tiny part in a little horror flick [Trailer Park of Terror] that is making the rounds at all of the film festivals. It was a good role. I took the role because when I was reading the script and when it got to the part where they reveal my character he is standing in this pasture peeing and it is a big red stream and when it hits the ground smoke comes up. And I thought I'll do it just for that. That's awesome! So in the movie I played the devil and it was cool."
"And the movie that I am filming this week [David Zucker's American Carol] I play the grim reaper so maybe I have been typecast."
Would you consider a short term role on a soap?
"The key would be 'short.' A couple of years ago I was offered a role on a sitcom and I thought it would be just a short term deal and I found out it was going to be much longer. A few weeks are one thing but music is my gig. It is what I do. It is what I am good at. I don't want to chase dreams that may or may not be obtainable."
Your voice is very distinct and it seems to have served you well.
"That is how I got my start in music. That's how I got a record deal. I was introduced to the president of Capital Records at the baggage claim and the airport and he seemed interested. The friend that introduced us said, 'he's playing at a little club outside of town, you ought to come hear him sing" and he said he would. I didn't expect to see him again. But he showed up. Long story short, he told me much later that the reason he came was the timbre of my voice. He said 'I knew if you could carry a tune, I knew we would have something. You have a bass voice but it has an edge to it. It cuts like a tenor.' That's how I got a record deal."
Tell us about the song you are performing "You're Gonna Miss This"
"I love doing this song acoustic. It is one of the songs that lends itself to an acoustic performance. You don't need all the bells and whistles to perform this song. It is an intimate thing. And it is number one right now so I am glad we are performing on the show."
Are you nervous about memorizing lines?
"No! I am a quick study at that kind of stuff. It is like memorizing lyrics. It is not that hard to do."
Let's talk about a charity that is near and dear to your heart"
"F.A.A.N., the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. About six years, we discovered that my daughter Brianna had severe food allergies and we had to find somewhere to go to get some help. We found about F.A.A.N. and they have been a lifesaver ever since. My wife may disagree with me, she always does, but for me it was like discovering you are not in this all by yourself. There are people who are struggling like you."
"You can bounce ideas off these people. Communicate with these people. The correspondence back and forth is helpful, trading ideas and feedback is invaluable, that sharing of information. Education each other and discovering that community that you didn't know existed. The research work that they do is incredible. Hopefully they will find a cure for this stuff one day. They are diligent and they are working hard."
"If you go to my website there is a link to F.A.A.N. and since the Apprentice there has been tons of response from people. They have raised a lot of money. It is so cool."
http://www.traceadkins.com/main/
How did the Celebrity Apprentice come about for you?
"I used to do a show in this building [CBS], Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher. About 10 times I think. The guy that used to book the talent on that show, Chuck LaBella and I struck up a friendship. He has since moved on to other things but we have stayed in touch. And he got a gig on this Apprentice thing. I turned him down and then he went around me and went to Publicist, my manager, my wife and they started beating me up about it, saying I should do it. I didn't even know that it was a charity thing. When they told me it was going to be all about the charity and that is when I reluctantly agreed to do it."
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