Chris Daughtry Returns With a New Tour, New Album, and Thoughts on the New American Idol

Chris Daughtry has a smooth face again, and fans should be excited.

“We finally wrapped on the new record the other day... and to clarify, we didn’t actually rap on the album; we wrapped with a w,” he laughs. “[This album has] been a while in the making. I kind of made a pact with myself and Instagram to keep the beard going until the album was done. So I got rid of the beard.”

Daughtry’s latest album — the title and 2018 release date have yet to be determined — will be the first for him and his six-piece band since Baptized in 2013. That album included the rock-rooted yet poppy hits "Waiting for Superman" and "Battleships."

With new music in the back pocket, Daughtry will soon trek across the United States on a two-month tour that will kick off at Parker Playhouse in Fort Lauderdale March 5.

“Well, I can say we’ll be playing some songs we haven’t played in a very long time,” he says. “I was sitting down the other day and going through the long list and thought, How can we reward their patience here?"

Amid the hidden treasures will be plenty of hits from the past 12 or so years, including "It’s Not Over," "Home," "No Surprise," and "What About Now."

Daughtry’s rise to stardom began on the fifth season of American Idol in 2006. Since then, he and his band have sold more than eight million albums. So what does he think about the show’s revival on ABC?

“I have nothing but fond memories of being on the show,” he says. “At that time, it was all so new and promising to me. With American Idol coming back, there were some rumors swirling around about me being a judge. And I was like, Well, they haven’t called me yet. I didn’t know anything about that.”

If Katy Perry or Luke Bryan flops, maybe Idol producers will give the man a call. In the meantime, it seems like Daughtry has enough to do, with the new album, a beautiful family, and a big tour. He's surrounded by many wonderful things, some of which surely inspired the lyrics to his classic song "Home": "I’m going home/Back to the place where I belong/And where your love has always been enough for me."

What about when Daughtry really does go home? Does he ever weave those lyrics into daily conversation?

“I have never really done that,” he laughs. “But it seems everyone around me does. My manager does at every opportunity. For me, I feel like everyone is just waiting for it. Maybe I could find a night where that could work.”

Daughtry. 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 5, at Parker Playhouse, 707 NE Eighth St., Fort Lauderdale; 954-462-0222; parkerplayhouse.com. Tickets cost $43.20 to $79 via ticketmaster.com.