By James Kelly

For the AJC

Imagine being referred to as a nickname you neither earned nor wanted. For too many years, singer Darius Rucker was called “Hootie,” since he was obviously the leader of Hootie and the Blowfish. You know, like that guy Jethro Tull or the Florida fellow Lynyrd Skynyrd.

But that’s a small price to pay for a lot of fame and fortune.

It was fun while it lasted, and with Hootie & the Blowfish on what appears to be an indefinite hiatus, Rucker has found a new venue to trade his musical wares under his own name: country music.

“I have a second chance at a totally different career in music,” he said, “and at 43 years old, I appreciate that so much.”

Given the current transformation in mainstream country music to a more “soft rock” type of sound, the crossover from Hootierock to honky-tonk is not that big a leap anymore.

“I owe my success to the guys at country radio. That’s where it happens or doesn’t happen,” Rucker said. “What’s great about the radio programming is that you have so much there — the twang of George Strait, Jamie Johnson and Brad Paisley, the pop of Rascal Flatts and Carrie Underwood, and then hard-rocking folks like James Otto.”

The changing sound of mainstream country music and the changing demographic of the radio listeners have been timely and fortunate for Rucker, who simply made a few fundamental modifications to his sound in order to appeal to the new country fan base.

“The biggest difference in the recording experience was that with Hootie, recording was a social event. We would hang out, have fun and tweak the song until we liked it,” he said. “In Nashville, these guys do three takes and they are ready for the next one. And they are so great at it, always trying to do something they haven’t done before.”

Inevitable comparisons to Charley Pride, the most popular African-American country singer in history, do not bother Rucker, but he feels that the issue of race is “always going to be there in some places.”

“It’s not [an issue] for me right now,” Rucker said, laughing.

“There is a world of difference between what was happening when Charley Pride was coming up and now.”

It is interesting to note that Rucker’s 2008 single “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It” was the first No. 1 country song for an African-American artist since Pride’s 1983 hit “Night Games.”

Rucker feels “if you have the songs people want to hear, it doesn’t matter what color you are.”

With commercial success once again on the plate before him, Rucker is quite content in his current career path.

He may never again sell 16 million copies of a single album such as Hootie’s official debut “Cracked View Mirror,” but he gets plenty of other rewards.

“One of the biggest changes I have noticed is the accessibility to the fans. Fanfair is fun and crazy. It’s pretty awesome to be walking down the street and someone stops you and asks you to sign your album cover,” Rucker said.

“I’m going to do a few more country albums, then it may be time for Hootie again.”

CONCERT PREVIEW

Rascal Flatts with special guest Darius Rucker

8 p.m. July 31. $31-$72. Aaron’s Amphitheater at Lakewood, 2002 Lakewood Way. 404-443-5000, www.livenation.com/venue/lakewood-amphitheatre-tickets/.