Forget being driven. When country-soul singer Sundance Head is not touring the nation, he’s touring his 12 acres north of Houston, Texas on his John Deere tractor.
But he’s not exactly a farmer.
“I just like cuttin’ stuff down,” he said with a laugh, speaking by phone from his home.
The 40-year-old winner of “The Voice” in December 2016 acknowledged he’s excited about a rural first: playing at a corn field. So it will be Saturday when he headlines the after-party for 450 North Brewing Company’s Corn Maze Beer Fest for a 90-minute mostly original set amid food and fun in front of an expected 5,000 people northeast of Columbus.
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“I have ever done that before,” Head said. “It sounds fantastic.”
His current tour, part of a continuing journey to find his way amid the maze of country music, ranges from venues of a few thousand people to what he calls “dive bars.”
“We’re still very much a working band, regularly doing three or four nights a week,” Head said.
He realizes that many believe his life immediately turned easy and simple after “The Voice.” But the show failed to promote his music or back a record deal. A saving grace: Country star Blake Shelton, his coach on the program, took him on a 13-date tour as an opening act, for which he is extremely grateful.
Shelton taught him plenty about stage presence. The dates, in support of his album “Stained Glass and Neon,” are teaching him perseverance.
“It’s a constant struggle,” said Head, trying to expand a career while raising three children, ages 12, 11 and 5, with wife and manager Misty. “By the time you get to the top of one hill, you realize that you’re just at the bottom of another one, really.”
Yet, now his audience has spread nationwide, instead of merely the deep South as before. He’s happy that Misty will be with him this weekend, manning the merchandise table (where he sells out of CDs nearly every concert) and greeting fans. She appears in his video for the single “Leave Her Wild,” and said they have been accustomed to working as a team for years. And Head mentioned that the business relationship works well between the two for a key reason.
“She’s the boss,” he said. “I work for her.”
He laughed when asked if his spouse has adjusted to female fan attention.
“Oh, she doesn’t worry,” he said with a chuckle. “She knows the chicken comes home to roost.”
Success has changed none of his inner circle. Everyone working around him is a longtime friend whom he trusts.
“That’s the easiest way for us to do it,” he said.
Only his mother calls him by hist first name of Jason. And Sundance is his actual middle name, not a nickname as many online references assume. He’s uncertain of the name’s connection, though his father is half Apache.
“My Dad came up with it, and the story about it varies — I’ve now heard eight or nine different versions — all according to how much he’s had to drink,” Head said. “My mother is a little different being from Mississippi, ‘cuz she’s as white as a cornflake.”
His father is nationally known country singer Roy Head, who occasionally performs with his son. In a salute to Dad, Head closes nearly every show with his father’s tune “Treat Her Right,” which Head also sang on “The Voice.” He has laughed when some have asked if his Dad will grow a bushy beard like his.
“Nah,” Head. “I’ve got him beat on facial hair, but he can outdance me (at age 78) any day of the week. I need to learn more than a few from him. Because I have zero.”
That trademark chin mane occasionally gets special treatment from beard oils.
“But mostly, it’s just sweat,” he said, laughing.
He loves the point in his concerts when he invites Misty onto the stage to let her talk to the crowd.
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “I gotta bring her up. She’s real good-looking. People don’t realize I married up — and married someone who looks like a supermodel.”
For her part, Misty acknowledged that after being with one another 24/7 on the road the two can fight a bit when they grow weary.
“I get a little mad when he doesn’t pick up his cups,” she said.
After the show Saturday, Head’s hoping his cup can overflow a bit with his favorite craft beer.
“I love it, but I have a beer allergy,” he deadpanned. “Yeah. The more I drink, the fatter I get.”
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What: 450 North Brewing Company’s Corn Maze Beer Fest for those 21 and older, featuring more than 80 vendors of craft beer and 12 food trucks, plus wines and hard cider plus live music scattered throughout an 11-acre corn maze. The event is rain or shine.
When: Gate entrance is 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Maze is 1:30 to 5 p.m. for general admission. Free after-party from 5 to 9 p.m. for all ages.
Where: 450 North Brewing Company
Tickets: $45 for general admission; $10 for designated drivers. VIP tickets are sold out.
Information and tickets: 450northbrewing.com/beerfest/
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