Charles Kelley is nominated for his first Grammy Award as a solo artist, but the date is close to when he gets to meet his baby. Kelley stopped by the Taste of Country Nights studio to chat about how he's going to balance both.

Kelley has released "The Driver," his first solo single, which features Dierks Bentley and Eric Paslay, a song he seems to be extremely proud of. When the Grammy nominations were announced, he got recognition for the song in a bigger way. The title track from his record was given a Best Country Duo/Group Performance nod. Kelley plans to attend the show with his Lady Antebellum bandmates, but he may end up having to leave early, since his baby is due around the same time. His wife is supportive — even encouraging — of his choice.

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“She’s the one that’s like encouraging me to go, but she’s also a little nervous about it and so am I. I’m gonna bite the bullet and have a little private plane ready to go ‘cause there’s no telling," he explains.

He doesn't think he'll win since he's up against "Girl Crush," a song he says deserves the Grammy. Kelley seems okay with losing to such a great song, adding, “To have it nominated is already a win.”

Kelley is already looking forward from "The Driver" to his next single, which may be "Lonely Girl." He calls the track the album's "funky one."

“[That] was a song that we cut really early in the project," Kelley explains. "Ironically it’s co-written with Chris Stapleton. I know everybody’s gonna be like, ‘Oh now Chris Stapleton’s a big star. Everybody’s cutting Chris Stapleton songs.’ Nope. I cut this song last year."

Kelley's The Driver is available now on iTunes. He's taking his solo stuff from the record out on the road this spring with tour dates beginning in April.

Sam Alex is the host of Taste of Country Nights radio, a syndicated night show which airs on more than 60 Townsquare Media Group stations nationwide.

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