If you: A) have an Instagram or Facebook account (which you should because it’s 2019) and B) friends that live in Nashville. . . .then your newsfeeds got inundated Monday night with fan girl screams and shaky cameras, because that is what happens when the Backstreet Boys come to town and take over the Bridgestone Arena. In fact, we’re pretty sure that has happened in every city and country since the launch of the DNA World Tour in Portugal a few months ago. And if you have been to any of the North American shows, then you know something else. You’ve seen that blonde headed, charming and talented special guest own the stage before the quintet can even think about those pitch perfect harmonies and choreographed moves that first made them a national frenzy in the mid 90s.
You may also know that this performing sensation is the son of BSB Bryan Littrell. So, it would make sense that the stage would be his element. After all, he was crawling on it before he was strutting it. And if you do the math, you’ll realize the crawling part was only 16 years ago! That in itself is not a rarity in the industry these days. But do not mistake him for a novice or a spoiled brat that got handed the microphone simply because of his lineage. Unlike his father’s dealings in the pop world, Baylee’s interest has taken that of a different direction. If you ask him, he wants to open for and share the stage with the one and only Dolly Parton. As Chris Young puts it, that boy was raised on country! (good job Leighanne and Brian. . . aka. . . Mom and Dad!)
And what better way to test out the new country tunes, given to him by the guys at Tree Vibez Music (FGL’s publishing company) than to play them at downtown Broadway for a room full of melting fans? That is exactly what happened on a rainy Monday afternoon from the 3rd floor of the Florida Georgia Line House. The hands were up, the phones were recording, and the voices were screaming when Baylee casually took his rightful spot in between his two guitarists hours before the August 26th Bridgestone show. He performed his 2018 fall release, “Don’t Knock It”, with help from his attentive audience. The song has garnered attention with play on both CMT and SirusXM The Highway. He continued to win over hearts with new singles “We Run This Beach” and “Boxes”. The latter (and our personal favorite) has already been added to multiple playlists on Spotify, including Breakout Country and New Music Nashville. Afterwards, Baylee kept up the excitement with an audience Q&A and photo opp that had a line wrapped around the venue like a snake. No matter the situation, Baylee’s impressive mannerisms and humility won everyone over. That’s a difficult task, especially knowing that Nashville shows are a little bit different with the added pressure of industry reps and other artists to the crowd. But Baylee remained calm, collected, and comical in the most goofy, “here I am, take me or leave me” sort of way.
The guy’s favorite movie is Meet Joe Black if that tells you anything about the old soul that lives in him deep down. And his favorite touring location so far is right outside of Vancouver, Canada, because of the beautiful national forest and parks—his words! If you don’t believe us, watch the interview down below!
Baylee Littrell’s relaxed, Georgiaesque demeanor perfectly matches his effortless delivery and smooth vocals. This is a guy who knows who he is, knows what he wants, and knows what he was put on Earth to do. And even though the new single is called “Boxes”, there’s not exactly a box that he fits in. And he is totally okay with that. In an industry that is full of coat tail riders and copy cats, this developing creative is a breath of fresh air. We have a feeling this is only the beginning for Mr. Littrell.
“You’re pouring your heart and soul into your performance and you gotta be yourself,” Baylee told us. Yes, we couldn’t agree more.