Kiefer Sutherland On Performing At The Calgary Stampede: ‘As A Canadian Kid You Dream Of Stuff Like This’

By Cat Williams. Published: 9 Jul 2019 3:51 PM Last updated: 9 Jul 2019 5:38 PM

Kiefer Sutherland is saddling up for the 2019 Calgary Stampede.

On Monday, ET Canada’s Carlos Bustamante caught up with the 52-year-old Canadian actor and singer-songwriter, who opened up about headlining the Nashville North Stage with music from his second album, Reckless & Me.

“To be able to come back here and play to this crowd, especially the kind of music I play, kind of country rock, it’s an honour,” he explains. “As a Canadian kid you dream of stuff like this. I think my first dream was to rodeo, but playing here is going to suffice just fine.”

Revealing that he “rodeoed for 10 years through the ’90s” as a team roper in the United States Team Roping Championships, Sutherland says the Calgary Stampede, in particular, is “one of the greatest rodeos in the world.”

Meanwhile, when it comes to stepping off screen and onto the stage, the actor explains, “It’s a very different experience when you’re making a film or a television show. There is no direct contact with the audience.”

He continues, “And so this is a way for me to kind of have a very personal experience with people who have supported me for 30 years and it’s been one of the most moving experiences of my life.”

Sutherland adds that music has been a part of his life since an early age, revealing that his mother started him on the violin at the age of 4 and on the guitar at age 10.

He recalls, “Even when doing a show like ’24’, a lot of these songs were written during that period. When they were setting up shots or working out a stunt sequence, I just go into the trailer and play and write some stuff down. It’s just kind of been the best friend that’s never left me.”