Country artist Chris Lane didn’t always think he’d pursue music as a career, but now he’s headlining his own tour. 

Lane spent his whole life playing sports and thought he’d be a professional baseball player after graduating college. However, plans changed after two ACL surgeries.

He started learning how to play the guitar, and soon formed a cover band. Several years later, he began writing his own music and ended up with a record deal.

“I moved to Nashville, had my first songs on the radio, and now I’m on single number five and on a headlining tour,” Lane said in an interview with Whatzup. “Everything’s been really great.”

Playing the diamonds

Lane hit the road on his Big, Big Plans Tour in October 2019 and continues through February. He’ll make a stop in Fort Wayne and take the Clyde Theatre stage on Jan. 16.

Several country stars have had Lane accompany them on their tours. When Lane toured with Florida Georgia Line, Nelly, and the Backstreet Boys on the Smooth Tour 2017, they played in baseball stadiums such as Wrigley Field and Fenway Park. Because of Lane’s baseball history, he said this was the coolest opportunity he’s been given thus far in his career. 

“Coming from playing baseball in college, it was kind of a full circle moment for me,” Lane said. 

Having number one hits is at the top of the list of incredible opportunities Lane has had, but he said that his most special moment was that tour when his two worlds of sports and music collided. 

While opening for Brad Paisley during his 2019 World Tour, Lane performed overseas for the first time in seven European countries.

“I’ve been out with Rascal Flatts and Brad Paisley, and those shows are a lot of fun,” Lane said. “You’re playing in front of a lot of people every single night.”

Headlining his own tour

Though Lane enjoyed being on other musicians’ tours, he found his passion for headlining shows.

“I wanted to see where I was at in my career,” Lane said. “The cool part is when people show up and know all the words to not just the singles, but the album cuts, too.”

There have been some adjustments for Lane going from opening concerts in amphitheaters to headlining shows in clubs, though. 

“The energy is just much different and much higher when you have people compacted into a smaller room,” Lane said.

“I Don’t Know About You” has been his favorite song to perform, primarily because it’s been the biggest song of Lane’s career.

“It’s the song that pretty much changed everything for me,” Lane said.

“I Don’t Know About You” was Lane’s second No. 1 single and topped both the Billboard Country Airplay and Country Aircheck/Mediabase charts. The song’s music video was also Vevo’s most viewed country music video for multiple weeks.

More recently, however, Lane has enjoyed performing his latest single, “Big, Big Plans.” This song was written for his wife, Lauren Bushnell.

“I love it most when my wife is there and I get to point at her on the side of the stage,” Lane said. “The crowd goes crazy.”

The music video for “Big, Big Plans” doubles as the couple’s wedding video. This was born from their proposal video that went viral, featuring the same song.

INspired by Chesney

In 2017, Lane was nominated for an ACM Award for New Male Vocalist of the Year, received a nomination for Best New Country Artist at the iHeartRadio Music Awards, and was named in MusicRow Magazine’s picks for 2017 Next Big Thing Artists. 

He also earned his first Radio Disney Music Awards nomination for “Play it Again! — Radio Disney Country Favorite Song” for his song “Take Back Home Girl.”

Brought up on the music of Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney, and Tim McGraw, Lane is a huge fan of them all, and said they were all big inspirations for him. 

If he had to choose one, Lane said he would pick Chesney. 

“He’s an amazing entertainer,” Lane said. “Everything he does is just my style. He knows how to create a great atmosphere for his show, and he’s just inspiring.”

Lane’s career is nowhere near over. He has big goals for himself and his music, and he’s just getting started. 

“At the end of the day, my goal is to be doing what Kenny’s doing, what Florida Georgia Line’s doing, all those guys,” Lane said. “They’re playing amphitheaters, arenas, and stadiums, and that’s definitely my end goal.”

Lane said he has a while to go, but he’s going to work as hard as he can to try and make it to that point.