James Otto Wants You to ‘Shake What God Gave Ya’

James Otto jokingly calls himself "the love child between Ronnie Milsap and Barry White." One listen to the single, 'Groovy Little Summer Song,' off his soon-to-be-released album 'Shake What God Gave Ya,' and who could disagree? That and the other songs on the album are country-meets-soul ... Nashville-meets-Memphis ... and to James, they completely define him as an artist.

"This is a declaration of who I am," James tells The Boot of the September 14 release. "This country-soul sound is where we're going, and if you like it, this is for you."

As if to underscore his point, James tells The Boot about his collaboration with Ronnie Milsap on the song 'Good Thing Gone Bad,' that he says was "one of my favorite parts of this record -- being being able to collaborate with one of my favorite artists of all time, a guy I consider the godfather of country soul. He's the guy I point to most often when I bring up my style of music, because he is the guy who bridged the gap between those types of music."

James wrote 11 of the 12 songs on the album, which was recorded in Nashville and co-produced with renowned producer Paul Worley (Big & Rich, Lady Antebellum, Dixie Chicks). The album is a follow-up to 2008's critically-acclaimed 'Sunset Man,' which hit No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart and delivered 'Just Got Started Lovin' You,' which was Billboard's No. 1 Hot Country Song and the year's most played single at country radio.

To hear James tell it, this next song, which he calls a "sexy, sultry, soulful sound makes you wanna move and dance," may be his best record, yet.

Check out James' new music yourself. He's currently headlining plus touring with Toby Keith and Trace Adkins on Toby's American Ride tour. His next concert is Saturday, July 31, in Guthrie Center, Iowa. For complete dates and cities, click here.

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