Josh Turner just gave one of the best performances of the National Anthem of any country artist. The Grand Ole Opry member performed from his home, ahead of the All-Star Race, which ended with a flyover by the famed Bandit Flight Team from Raleigh, N.C.

The All-Star race, held at the Bristol Motor Speedway, continued with fans, in spite of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 20,000 fans turned out, but were socially-distanced throughout the event. The drivers also wore masks.

 

Josh’s next album, Country State of Mind, will be released on August 21. The record features guest artists, including Randy Travis, Kris Kristofferson, Chris Janson, John Anderson, Allison Moorer, Maddie & Tae and Runaway June.

“I’ve always said that any song you hear coming from my voice, you’re going to hear bits and pieces of those five guys,” Josh said of his next set of tunes. “They taught me how to be Josh Turner.”

It’s Randy who Josh says is one of his favorite singers, and who inspired him to be a country music singer. Randy joins Josh on “Forever and Ever, Amen,” one of Randy’s biggest hits.

“Randy has always been my hero. He was the reason I wanted to become a country singer,” Josh explained. “He’s an inspiring figure, not just to me but to a lot of people, so to have him sing on this record is pretty special.”

Chances are, Josh will someday do a family album, including his four sons on a future project.

“As far as talent and potential, my oldest three, especially, they could do anything they wanted to do if they put their mind to it and their heart was there,” Josh previously boasted. “My oldest [Hampton] is incredible at playing mandolin. Colby, we kind of noticed him turn the corner lately with the fiddle, and Marion is actually playing a ukulele that’s tuned like the top four strings on a guitar, so in essence, he’s learning how to play guitar. They’ve just kind of started incorporating some singing into some playing, so they’re starting the whole singing and playing at the same time kind of thing, and not only that, they’re even learning to play songs together on their individual instruments.

“It’s amazing to see how much they can learn in such a short amount of time,” he continued. “It makes me realize how much I missed out on when I was that age, ‘cause I did take some music lessons growing up and everything, but I think they feed off of each other honestly. I think that’s why they’re getting so good is because they’re all doing it, not just one of them.”

Chase Elliot was the winner of the NASCAR All-Star  $1 million prize.

Country State of Mind will be released on August 21. It is available for pre-order at Amazon.