Travis Tritt connects with fans both old and new

Country star Travis Tritt is coming to The Grand Opera House on Sunday.

The Georgia native is a legend in his own time with five No. 1 singles, seven platinum albums and performances at the 1996 Summer Olympics, two Super Bowls, a World Series and the 2013 NCAA men’s Final Four.

Tritt attributes his success during the past 25 years to his unique voice.

“I think that one of the things that kept me going all these years and has made me recognizable is that my voice doesn’t sound like anybody else’s,” Tritt said in an pre-recorded interview with his publicist.

Tritt’s catalog dates back to his 1990 debut with “Country Club,” which boosted him to Billboard magazine’s Top New Male Artist honors. He said he likes to play music from older records during tours.

“A lot of times I think people don’t really realize just exactly how many hits that we had on the charts from the very beginning of our career all the way through the present day,” Tritt said.

Music, he said, has a power to transport listeners to a specific place in time.

“I think that’s the wonderful thing about music,” Tritt said. “You can always remember certain events in your life by the soundtrack that was playing behind them as they were taking place. To me, that’s the really unique thing about music. It should make you feel something. And it should speak to you.”

But he’s also a modern man who has embraced modern technology.

On May 14, just before his first stop in his home state, he tweeted to his 44,000 followers, “So glad to be back performing tonight in my home state of Georgia! We are gonna rock Hiawassee!”

He said social media has allowed him to stay connected with his fans.

“To have that kind of opportunity in today’s modern world is really something neat,” he said. “And I think it’s something that those of us who are artists can certainly utilize to our benefit, and to the benefit of our fans by engaging them through social media and just kind of keeping them up to speed on what’s going on in the day-to-day life of a touring artist.”

Fans responded after the show by tweeting photos and videos. Just a new memory set to a Travis Tritt soundtrack.

This story was originally published May 19, 2016 at 9:00 PM with the headline "Travis Tritt connects with fans both old and new."