Akon is going Nashville. The hitmaker behind classics like “Locked Up” and “Smack That” shared that he’s planning to re-record his entire catalog as country songs. He explained his decision while speaking with TMZ in New York City.

“I’m actually redoing my whole catalog in country,” Akon told TMZ. “I’m not even joking. We’ve already started.”

“This has been an idea for years — like forever. The project has been in motion for the last five years. But starting next month, y’all gonna start seeing all the releases.”

Akon added that he wants country artists to be centered on the tracks while he’s more of a featured artist. “They’re country artists featuring me,” he said. “They’re the ones performing them.”

And Akon himself has already been making excursions into the country audience. According to WSVN, he has an upcoming music video with Rascal Flatts’ Gary LeVox and Latin star De la Ghetto for the single “Hold the Umbrella.”

“International artists as we are, we always look for that moment to where we can collaborate,” Akon told WSVN. “Because I’ve been trying to collaborate like this all my life and trying to find a way to fit country in.”

The country-urban connection has only grown more and more pronounced in recent years via artists such as Nelly–and Beyoncé, who’s Cowboy Carter album took home the Grammy for Album Of The Year at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards back in February.

Last month, Akon dropped the track “Never Really Mattered” with SIMIEN–along with the official music video. He’s prepping his latest album Not Guilty, for a June release.