Back in 2016, Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry said he wasn’t buying into his longtime bandmate Steven Tyler’s move to country music, telling USA Today, “Hey, if I didn’t know him when I heard the song I’d go, ‘It’s OK, next’. I’m not going to say anything else about that. Steven is in Nashville doing whatever he’s doing. He’s got a bleeping rhinestone cowboy hat going ‘yippee ki yay.’ I don’t know what else to say about that.”

In a new interview with Fox News, filmmaker Casey Tebo, who has directed two concert films and a music video for Aerosmith, and chronicled Tyler’s journey crossing over to country in the documentary Steven Tyler: Out On A Limb, insists Tyler wasn’t fazed by his friend’s criticism. In fact, he happily embraced Nashville as his home, where he could grow as an artist in a way he hadn’t done before.

“I don’t really put much stake in what those guys say about each other,” explained Tebo. “I think if you put yourself in their shoes, to be in a relationship like that for 40 plus years, they’ve shared hundreds of millions of dollars and fans - all that stuff. There’s going to be bickering and fighting. I really think Steven and Joe are probably each other’s biggest supporters.”

“[And] I think Nashville feels like home for Steven. He’s a country boy. He’s really into animals, motorcycles and some of that redneck-type stuff. I think in another life Steven would have probably been the type of guy that would have made moonshine. I think a city like Nashville is perfect for him."

Read more at Fox News.

The documentary Steven Tyler: Out On A Limb recently had its world premiere in the city it salutes, at the opening of the Nashville Film Festival on May 10th, which Nashville Mayor Richard Briely also proclaimed as Steven Tyler Day in the city. The documentary is now streaming through video-on-demand and digital HD services.

"It shows another side of me," Tyler tells the Los Angeles Times. "It shows how great this band is, shows the vibe at the Ryman and lets folks give their opinions about music. It shows this period of time in my life. I've never done a solo record, and in that, it's pretty cool."

Along with the discovery of Interstate 440, Tyler has developed a keener appreciation for what makes rock rock, and what keeps country country.

"There's a freedom in Aerosmith that I enjoy," he said. "I can write lines [from 'Walk This Way'] like 'I talked to my daddy, he say, you ain't seen nothin' / Till you're down on a muffin,' and use the filthiest words on the planet. Then we could write something [more introspective] like 'Cryin': [he starts singing] 'There was a time I was so broken-hearted….' which could be called a very country song."

Read more at latimes.com

Tyler was on hand for the opening of the Nashville Film Festival on May 10th; check out the short interview clip from the red carpet.

Tyler, along with Nashville's Loving Mary Band, have announced dates for North America and Europe this summer. The tour is set to launch on June 12th at Artwork Amphitheater in Lewiston, NY, and will conclude on August 7th at O2 Forum Kentish Town in London, England. Tickets on sale now.

Tour dates:

June
12 - Lewiston, NY - Artpark Amphitheater
18 - New York, NY - SummerStage in Central Park
21 - Vienna, VA - Wolf Trap
24 - Bethlehem, PA - Sands Bethlehem Event Center
27 - Detroit, MI - MotorCity Casino Hotel
30 - Northfield, OH - Hard Rock Live

July
7 - Naperville, IL - Exchange Club of Naperville’s Ribfest
11 - Calgary, AB - Cowboys Stampede Tent
15 - Sion, Switzerland - Sion Sous Les Etoiles Festival
18 - Trieste, Italy - Trieste Piazza Unita D’Italia
24 - Barolo, Italy - Collisioni Festival, Piazza Colbert
27 - Rome, Italy - Rome Cavea
30 - Madrid, Spain - Teatro Real

August
2 - Marbella, Spain - Starlite Festival
7 - London, UK - O2 Forum Kentish Town