When Brad Paisley was a child, his father was president of the fire department in his small West Virginian hometown.

Every Fourth of July, there was a parade, and Paisley would ride on the town's fire truck alongside his father, tossing candy to the crowd. It remains one of the country singer's fondest memories.

When David Archuleta was a child, he and his family would go to Murray Park and watch the fireworks explode "five miles in the air," said the Utah recording artist and 2008 "American Idol" finalist.

Paisley and Archuleta will share a July 4 experience this year: performing for an estimated crowd of about 50,000 at America's Freedom Festival at Provo's Stadium of Fire.

Both performers talked to The Salt Lake Tribune before the big show at LaVell Edwards Stadium about Independence Day and their music.

Brad Paisley • The 38-year-old Tennessee singer, songwriter and virtuoso guitar-player released his eighth studio album, "This is Country Music," on May 23, the same day as Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" came out.

Paisley finished second in album sales that week, but don't feel bad for him.

"This is Country Music" has produced three chart-topping singles so far, including the current hit, "Remind Me," a duet with last year's Stadium of Fire headliner Carrie Underwood.

Starting with the release of his 1999 debut album "Who Needs Pictures," all of Paisley's albums have been certified gold or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America. Paisley also has 25 singles that have charted on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, with 16 hitting No. 1, including "Ticks," "When I Get Where I'm Going," "Old Alabama," and "Waitin' on a Woman."

"This is Country Music" is an ambitious album, serving as a definitive summation of where country music is at in 2011. It's also a traditionalist look at the past. Among the traits that country music embodies, Paisley said during a conference call with other Utah print media outlets, is patriotism.

Country musicians are "not afraid to wave the flags and salute the troops," he said.

The title track to "This is Country Music" makes that clear:

Are you haunted by the echo of your mother on the phone

Crying as she tells you that your brother is not coming home?

And if there's anyone that still has pride and the memory of those

that died defending the old red, white, and blue,

This is country music and we do

Country music also engenders "the loyalty factor." He said that at one of his most recent concert appearances at Usana Amphitheatre, lightning was seen in the distance and thunder resonated throughout the venue, in the midst of a driving rain storm.

"Nobody cared," he said. "They were hard-core fans."

Paisley said he enjoys Utah because it is full of "down-to-earth" people who share his desire for good entertainment. As a father, he said he wants to take his young children to entertainment that isn't "junk" — shows that become "something they remember."

Perhaps that's why on Nov. 10, 2010, Paisley won the Entertainer of the Year award at the 44th annual Country Music Association Awards — the highest honor a country singer can receive.

David Archuleta • In his first interview since he parted ways with Jive Records, the 20-year-old singer told The Tribune that the February decision was mutual.

He recorded three albums on the label. The first was his self-titled 2007 debut album, which reached as high as No. 2 on the Billboard charts, sold 765,000 copies and spawned the hit single "Crush." He followed up in 2009 with "Christmas From the Heart" and in 2010 released "The Other Side of Down," which in February had sold only 67,000 copies, according to Billboard magazine.

Leaving Jive Records was a freeing experience, said Archuleta.

"Since 'American Idol' I never had the time to think about what decisions need to be made," he said. "I thought [leaving] was a great opportunity. A great new door had opened."

Archuleta said he has talked to other record labels since then, but has resisted the urge to sign. "The goal this year is to take the time I need to know what I want to become."

Too often in the past, he said, producers would give him songs that didn't fit his vision or voice. "I want to make my voice come through more," Archuleta said. "I want to do songs that are more vocally driven, so I can be emotional."

Archuleta said he is spending time with family and friends, and he said "no" when asked if he had a significant other. He also is writing songs on the piano as he figures out where his path will take him. He still wants to pursue pop music, but doesn't want to be a "classical pop singer."

He has been listening a lot to Adele and The Civil Wars, the latter a country-folk duo that includes former writing partner Joy Williams.

Immediately after the Stadium of Fire, Archuleta will embark on a short tour of Asia, where interest in him has not abated.

For stateside fans, Archuleta's 2010 Christmas performances with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir will be released on CD and DVD Sept. 6. Singing with the choir was a dream come true for him.

"It was one of the most amazing experiences I'll ever have in my life," he said. I was honored."

dburger@sltrib.com

Facebook.com/sltribmusic

Twitter: @davidburger —

America's Freedom Festival at Provo's Stadium of Fire

P Brad Paisley and David Archuleta headline.

When • Saturday, July 2, at 8 p.m.

Where • LaVell Edwards Stadium, Brigham Young University, Provo

Directions • Drive east on University Parkway (I-15 exit 269). After crossing University Avenue, LaVell Edwards Stadium is one block ahead on the left

Tickets • $30 to $120 at www.freedomfestival.org/sof/

Also performing • Three Stadium of Fire Talent Search winners: Amy Whitcomb with her alternative rock band of fellow BYU students, The Whits; country music quintet Artie Hemphill and the Iron Horse Band; and 11-year-old prima donna Eve Asplund