CMT News

Trace Adkins' voice and tastes are stone country, so it might seem strange that he's working on his next album with producer Dann Huff. Known on Music Row for molding the country-pop sound of Faith Hill and SHeDAISY, Huff is a former rock guitar player who has produced projects for acts as diverse as metal band Megadeth. "The very first time we sat down and talked, he said, 'I'm not going to try to change your sound. I'm not going to try to make you sound pop. Let's just see how we jibe together in the studio, and we might come up with something really cool,'" Adkins told country.com. "And that's exactly what happened. He has a really fresh sound on stuff, and he's really laid back in the studio. The creative juices were just flowing." The five Huff-produced cuts are slated for Adkins' fourth Capitol Nashville collection. The album's first single is due in April.