Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker Voice Concern for American Politics

Dierks Bentley was one of a handful of country stars who was invited to perform at the White House last week, for a country concert as part of the 'In Performance at the White House' series. While he was thrilled to accept the invitation and perform for the President and First Lady, the Arizona native adds that the nation, and its leaders, have a long way to go to achieve unity.

"'We're the greatest country in the world,'" Dierks explains to the Washington Post of the sentiment shared by millions of Americans. "Well, that's an easy thing to say but clearly there's work that has to be done to make that actually happen ... There's a real sense of working toward the common good that has to happen, and I don't really sense that at all in [Washington, D.C.] ... I don't think anyone really does."

The 'Home' singer may be dissatisfied with some aspects of our government, but one thing he is passionate about is supporting the troops who have spent time overseas defending our freedom. "Now is the time that these guys are coming back with health problems, and obviously they're trying to put their families back together. And the economy's crap," the 37-year-old says. "Now is the time to really show your patriotism, your support, and do something ... It's more than just a yellow ribbon ... How do we incorporate these folks back into our society, into our economy, so they can have productive lives?"

Dierks was joined for the evening by Darius Rucker, who prefers to keep politics separate from his status as a chart-topping musician. "Politics is ripping this country apart enough," he maintains. "It's dividing the country right in the middle ... I don't want my music to divide the country. I just want to make music that people like."

Although the 2012 Presidential race is gearing up, there's little chance the 'I Got Nothin' singer will hit the trail to campaign for his dream candidate. "I don't campaign for anybody," he insists. "I don't do that stuff ... Don't vote for somebody because I did. Vote for somebody because you studied the candidates and figured out that's the candidate for you."

Dierks and Darius were joined by Lauren Alaina, Lyle Lovett, James Taylor, Alison Krauss and the Band Perry for the concert. See video clips from the evening here.