Country is Tracy Byrd’s true love musically. It’s what he does best.

He’s not a rock singer, not an opera singer — he’s country to his core, and that’s what you’ll hear in his music.

“I grew up in the country, and always loved the country pastimes: messing with horses and fishing and hunting,” the Texas native said. “It’s just who I am — to do anything else wouldn’t be true to who I am.”

The singer will perform his greatest hits at Boot Barn Hall on Saturday. During the concert, fans can swoon to his sweet ballad “The Keeper of the Stars” and dance to his hit “Watermelon Crawl.”

Byrd’s love of music started at an early age — the first time he went to the Grand Ole Opry was at 6 months old. And while he doesn’t remember that experience, he does remember growing up listening to his parents’ extensive album collection of country and Southern gospel.

“I just spent hours and hours of my childhood sitting in my room with my record player, just playing records, and that’s where it really started, the love of it, of the music,” he said. “I could hear a song once or twice and know it backwards and forwards. But even with that, I never back then dreamed of being a singer. That didn’t start till my late teen years.”

Byrd decided to pursue music after dropping out of college, determined to play country and try to get a record deal. About three years later, he did.

But the road to stardom hasn’t been easy. During the first 15 years of his singing career, Byrd found it hard to say no, working hard to find success. Near the end of 2009, he made the choice to take some time off to spend more time with his family. Those two years, he said, were probably the best of his life.

“I had been going burning the candle at both ends since about 1990,” he said. “I’d been traveling for so many years, and that’s really hard on a family, and I knew it was hard on the family, but I didn’t realize how hard it had been on me.”

Then, around 2013, the itch to play music came back. When he returned to the stage, he did so with a stronger focus on balance, able to enjoy his music and spend more time with loved ones.

“I think I’m safe to be successful for years to come, so why not slow down a little bit and enjoy the things that are that are important, and give people that are really important some of my time,” he said.

And while he might be cutting back a bit on his touring, he still knows why he does it.

“Having people sing along and see the excitement when I kick off a certain song, it’s wonderful. I mean, that’s why we all do it,” he said.