Jerrod Niemann, Lee Brice Share Hits of a Different Kind

Jerrod Niemann and Lee Brice are such close friends and have had so many adventures -- and misadventures -- together through the years that when one of them acts up, the other sometimes pays the price!

The two singer-songwriters spent years struggling their way up the ladder toward their respective recording careers, along with Jamey Johnson and Randy Houser. And all four have shared their successes and failures together. Though they have a lot of things in common, there is one thing Jerrod says he wishes he didn't have to share when it comes to his talented buddy, Lee.

"Lee is a wild animal, full of talent and compassion," Jerrod tells The Boot. "He's so animated. He's like [the 'Flintstones' character] Bam-Bam, he takes everything so bad. We have a lot in common, he and I. Both of us have had songs recorded by Garth Brooks. We were born a month apart. And we both have been slapped for girls mistaking us for each other at some point in our lives! I think I've been slapped more because of his mischievous ways than he has for mine, but we are alike."

Jerrod says the thing that really brought them all together in the first place and cemented their friendship was their mutual love and respect for the roots and history of country music. "For lack of a better cliché, we all met and would get to talking about old country music. Jamey and I would talk a lot about our influences, and Lefty Frizzell's influences, who were Ernest Tubb and Jimmie Rodgers, and it's like, 'Wow, he knows that too,' and you realize that all your buddies are the real deal and they all deserve the legitimate shots that they're receiving with the music they're making."

Jerrod and his crew are all spending the summer on the road on different, yet equally impressive, tours. While he's crossing the country as part of Brad Paisley's H20 II: Wetter & Wilder World tour, Lee, Randy and Jamey are trekking with Willie Nelson on his Country Throwdown tour with several other acts.

Jerrod's brand-new single, 'One More Drinkin' Song,' is already flying up the charts on the heels of his second gold-certified hit, 'What Do You Want.' He's already working on material for the follow-up to his debut CD, 'Judge Jerrod & the Hung Jury,' and says he plans on pushing the bar even higher on his next album, in terms of creativity.

"I'm going to take more chances musically," says Jerrod. "[From] instrumentation and textures and some of these things I'm working on, clear down to the microphone we use. There's going to be a lot of vintage instruments and things like that."

Check here for Jerrod's upcoming tour dates.