Chase Rice Says He Was ‘P—ed’ After His ‘The Bachelor’ Appearance
Chase Rice felt punked by producers of The Bachelor, so he decided to do something about it. The "Lonely If You Are" singer says by the end of the week, he hopes he can call them up and say, "Thank you."
Talking to Taste of Country Nights, Rice (whose new The Album Part I album was released Friday) shared all of the details of an encounter with Bachelor Peter Weber that reality show gossip sites have been running with for months. Photos (and speculation with source) from places like Reality Steve tell how Rice went on the show to perform, only to learn that the woman Weber was on a date with during that episode was a former girlfriend. That's mostly true, he tells ToC Nights of an appearance that will finally air on ABC on Monday (Jan. 27).
“I turn the corner and it’s a girl I’ve hung with in Charlotte before,” Rice says, downplaying how serious the relationship actually was. “I didn’t think they would do that to me, to be honest with you. I knew going in that she was gonna be on the show, and I told my publicist, manager that and they were like, ‘It’s fine. They’re not going to do that.'"
Victoria Fuller is the woman Rice is seen in clips having a tense moment with, and talking to Taste of Country, he says he has no issue with her. "Hell, I was laughing off stage," he shares (Since the episode had not aired, he was not at liberty to share what happens).
“I was pissed at first," he says, "and then I was like, ‘I gotta figure out a way to turn this positive for myself, mainly because I had no desire to be a part of any reality TV show. I was just going on there to promote 'Lonely Who You Are,' promote my music. And that was it."
Thus why Rice — who does have reality show experience as a runner-up on Survivor (2010) — chose Jan. 24 to drop his new, seven-song album, the first of two collections of songs expected in 2020.
“Maybe I can call them by the end of the week and say, ‘Hey, thank you for the No. 1 album,’” he says.
"Messy" and "Forever to Go" are two additional highlight tracks from The Album Part I. Rice talked in depth about the album and how battling depression led to some of his most creative work yet. He also revealed that the second verse of "Lonely If You Are" wasn't written about Fuller, the woman he encounters on the show, but it is about a girlfriend.
"I didn’t write that to try to get on the show. I just thought it was a cool picture," he says of his new song. "My ex-girlfriend, who a lot of these songs are about, loved The Bachelor and watched it religiously. I always sat there and was like, ‘This is ridiculous.’ But when she was watching with her girls, it’s like ... it’s kind of that story. It’s like, ‘Once it’s over, come hit me up.’"
And because we know you're curious, yes, Rice is single and yes, he will be watching on Monday night. As for if he'd ever become The Bachelor himself?
"Not a chance in hell," he says.
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