FARGO — Country star Chase Rice may be the most interesting man in Nashville, Tennessee.

Before he started making a name as an artist, he was a starting linebacker at the University of North Carolina. After an ankle injury derailed his NFL dreams, he worked in NASCAR pit crews for Ryan Newman and Jimmie Johnson after college.

He made a big splash as a contestant and eventual runner-up on “Survivor: Nicaragua” in 2010.

The following year he was one of five writers of the 14-time platinum, chart-topping country crossover mega-hit, “Cruise,” recorded by his friends Florida Georgia Line.

Another thing that makes him interesting is that as a country musician, he’s moving away from the Music City machinations and the type of bro country he created in the wake of “Cruise.”

Rice will play “Cr

See Full Page