Rascal Flatts ‘Blast’ Into Summer With Upcoming Tour

Rascal Flatts are anticipating their summer 'vacation' just as much as anyone else. The only difference is that they'll be on their inaugural Flatts Fest tour, which promises fans music, activities and non-stop fun.

"You'll be able to come and hang all day," lead singer Gary LeVox tells Detroit, Michigan radio station WYCD. "You'll be able to win stuff all day long. You can come and shoot archery, we're going to have mobile karaoke that we'll judge. The Army will be there. Mossio [Archery Equipment] is a big sponsor. You can win stuff all day long. We'll have pitching greens, golf course, skate parks for kids. It's going to be a blast."

The tour, which will travel all across the United States and Canada, includes three of music's biggest stars, but their celebrity status won't keep them immune to a few pranks. "Justin Moore's going out with us, Easton Corbin and Sara Evans," Gary says. "They don't know this, but it will be like 'who can break the most window's out of Easton's bus,' and Sara's [going into] the dunk tank."

The Flatts guys -- Gary along with Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don Rooney -- burst onto the country music scene ten years ago, when their debut hit, 'Prayin' for Daylight' went all the way to the top of charts. In the last decade, they've won more than three dozen major awards, sold upwards of 20 million albums and watched each of their 27 singles land in the Top 20.

"It is amazing how fast it went by," Gary admits. "We truly feel like we're a new act still. We've got so much music to make and we're just having a blast. Ten years flew by and I have no idea where it went."

Still, the Ohio native admits it's hard to comprehend how much they have accomplished since their self-titled debut album was released. "There's so many highlights: the first time we played the Opry, doing the National Anthem at the Ohio State game just last year, selling out Wrigley Field," Gary recalls to Washington, D.C. station WMZQ. "I've way exceeded my dreams in the music business. We have another ten years at least left, so I can't wait to see what else we do. We've been able to do some amazing things. We sang for Presidents. As a kid you always dream of doing the Opry."

The big concerts and star-studded audiences have been nice, but one honor will always stand out above the rest. "The Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, our big charity in Nashville, they have the Rascal Flatts Surgery Center, so any child that comes to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, and has to have surgery, has it done in the Rascal Flatts Surgical Center," boasts the singer-songwriter. "That's something, you can't even dream that big, and it's a legacy that we'll always leave behind, and we're really really proud of that."

The credit for all their success doesn't belong solely to them, though. "We've been so blessed," Gary gushes. "We've got the greatest fans in the world, and everybody at country radio has been so great to us, and the publishing community, the songwriting community in Nashville. It goes to show [that] if you put good stuff in at the top, good stuff will come in at the bottom. We've been blessed with great songs, and that's really all that matters. The day starts and ends with great music, and that's what we work so hard at doing."

There is one accolade that the men hope to include in their list of achievements someday. "We'd love to win Entertainer of the Year," he notes. "It would be nice to take a Grammy home. But the main thing is, we love to work, so we are always trying to write the best stuff that we can, and hopefully continue to tour and take it overseas, and try to spread country music all over the world."

Their trophy case already includes six CMA Awards for Vocal Group of the Year, three American Music Awards for Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group, and the recently earned Tony Martell Lifetime Entertainment Achievement Award. With so many statues, the 40-year-old admits he has a room in his house for his prized possessions -- not that they all end up there. "I put them out. That's a lot of blood, sweat and tears when you win something like that, so I want everyone to see it," he acknowledges. "It depends on where my wife thinks they need to be, and where they don't need to be."

Their latest single, 'I Won't Let Go,' which the Flatts performed as part of Oprah Winfrey's farewell episode, is sitting at the top of the chart this week. The Flatts Fest kicks off June 18 in Bristow, Va. See their entire tour schedule here.

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