Billy Currington Finds His Peaceful Place

Billy Currington, who recently scored a No. 1 single with 'Don't,' has certainly established his place in country music. Yet while many artists feel the need to continue to pound the pavement in Nashville, Currington isn't one of them. In fact, he spends much of his downtime thousands of miles away from the country music capital.

After spending several months in therapy in Hawaii while working on personal issues stemming from an abusive childhood, Currington realized he had found his home. "Being over there is just such a peaceful place for me," he tells GAC. "I've made a lot of friends over there. I joined a paddling team over there to where I'm working out with them once or twice a week. We're a six-man canoe paddling out there."

While it may be a considerable stretch for some to adjust to living on an island, for Currington it just reminds him of home. "I was actually born on an island in Savannah, Ga., called Tybee Island, and that's where I grew up for a while, so the ocean and all that kind of stuff has always been in me," he explains. "But Maui's just a whole different place, you know, and I've seen a lot of things over there that I really fell in love with and I just can't let go of. Any time I'm off, I'm tryin' to figure out how I can get back over there.