MOSES LAKE - When country star Kristian Bush takes the stage at the Grant County Fairgrounds on Aug. 12 it will be the first time many hear the Grammy award winner and platinum-selling artist sing.

As half of the band Sugarland, Bush was mainly an instrumentalist and songwriter. After recording his first solo album and releasing his first single Trailer Hitch this week he said he is excited for fans to get to know him all over again.

"There is so much joy in this new beginning, in watching people's eyes when they discover my voice, and in watching them dance when they discover this song. I am thrilled to use this as an introduction to who I am as a solo artist," he said.

Bush has played at The Gorge Amphitheatre and more than a few county fairs and said he is excited to come to Moses Lake.

"Most people when they come to a fair they come to have a good time. I'm excited to be the sound track for that good time," he said in an interview with the Columbia Basin Herald.

Bush said Sugarland did not break up, but that his solo career "is a parallel project" and gives fans one more voice to hear on country radio stations.

Bush writes his own music, which is becoming a rare attribute for popular artists. He bucks the trend that county music fans are ignorant and explains by writing his own music he can better relate to fans.

"Country music fans are smart. They are a lot smarter than a lot of people give them credit for. They can smell B.S. a long way away. If a song comes on the radio and they don't believe you, if they don't believe that it happened to you, forget it. It's over," he said. "It's like the old saying, three chords and the truth. If you're listening to me sing a song, it is because it happened to me."

The single Trailer Hitch was released this week and was named USA Today's "Song of the Week." In it Bush tells his fans to enjoy life because "you can't take it with you when you go, never seen a hearse with a trailer hitch." The official video for the song is available on YouTube.