Matt Giraud made his debut on Nashville's Grand Ole Opry radio show Tuesday night, appearing with local jazz singer Anna Wilson to perform their duet of You Don't Know Me.
"It was quite an experience," the American Idol Season 8 finalist says. "It was pretty cool meeting Connie Smith, Diamond Rio." He also met Country Music Hall of Famer Little Jimmy Dickens, an 89-year-old entertainer who joined the Opry cast in 1948.
"He leaned in, real quiet, and said, 'You just have a good time, son. It's just another place to play,'" Matt says.
Today, Matt recorded a second version of You Don't Know Me with Wilson. "It's like a broken-down acoustic version of me and her sitting comfortably and recording it," he says. Tonight, he'll go in the studio with producer Doug Grow to record a song for Matt's forthcoming EP.
"I recorded [Jim Brickman's] Thank You with him, so we'll see what he can do with my own songs," Matt says.
"It's a busy little day for me. I try to stuff in as much work -- and good food -- as possible when I'm here."
Tomorrow, Matt returns home to Michigan to prepare for his Dec. 11 Christmas concert at the Rockford Fine Arts Auditorium.
Matt has yet to set a release date for his EP but says, "I think we're going to be getting a single out by Christmas -- or at least by Valentine's Day."
Nashville-based Brian Mansfield began writing about music for USA TODAY in 1997 and took over Idol Chatter just before the start of Season 8. He co-authored Make Me a Star: Industry Insiders Reveal How to Make It in Music, and while he has never auditioned for American Idol, he did sing Boot Scootin' Boogie at Disney World's American Idol Experience the day the attraction opened (he lost). More about Brian | E-mail Brian