Trace Adkins Expected John Rich to Excel on ‘Celebrity Apprentice’
John Rich seems to be following in Trace Adkins' formidable footsteps. Trace was the first country artist to appear on 'Celebrity Apprentice,' and he was still standing when it came down to just two celebrities, pitting the down-to-earth tough-talking country artist against British newspaper magnate/TV host Piers Morgan, who in the end won the show.
This season, John has survived each passing week, even winning nearly $700,000 for his charity of choice, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. But it hasn't necessarily been because of any counsel he received from Trace.
"John and I talked before he went up there," Trace tells The Boot. "As far as advice, I tried to let him know what to expect, but I didn't really give Johnny advice. I knew I didn't need to. At the end of the very first season of 'Celebrity Apprentice,' they asked me who they should go after next, and I said, 'John Rich,' and it took them a couple of years to get him. I said, 'This is the guy you want.' John asked me why. He said, 'Why did you say that?' I said, 'Dude, you're a mover and a shaker in this business, and you have that entrepreneurial thing and I knew that if you brought that acumen with you to the show, that it would work and it would give them what they wanted.'"
"John's a really creative dude. You can just see it," Trace continues. "You can just give John Rich a subject matter, and he'll just sit down and write you a jingle in five minutes. He has that kind of ability. I'm not surprised that John is doing well. I expected him too."
While Trace raised quite a bit of money for the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN), in honor of his daughter who suffers from severe food allergies, don't expect to see him participate in any other reality shows, such as 'Survivor' or 'The Amazing Race.'
"I don't intend to do any more of them," Trace told The Boot. "The only reason I did 'Apprentice' was because of the charitable aspect. My career is fine, and I don't need to do that stuff unless it has some nobler aim. I'm not gonna go run through the jungle and try to survive just to prove that I can. That'd be the shortest show in history, anyway. The first day, I'd take a big stick and say, 'Everybody get off my island or I'll kill you,' and that'd be the end of the show."
One person he believes should appear in another reality show is the outrageous Gary Busey, who was fired from this season of 'Apprentice' a few weeks ago. "He should get his own show," says Trace. "Somebody should follow Busey around with a camera. I don't think you'd have to write anything. You wouldn't even have to make up situations to put him in, just follow him around!"
This Sunday's 'Celebrity Apprentice' is expanded to three hours in which John and the rest of the contestants will have two tasks to complete, and the kicker is three of the celebrities will be fired. Check out all the excitement on Sunday (May 8) beginning at 8:00 PM ET on NBC.
In the meantime, Trace is climbing the country charts with his latest single, 'Just Fishin',' which will appear on his forthcoming album, due out later this year.
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