Steven Tyler fans will have to wait a little longer for his solo album than they might have expected.

Earlier this year, the Aerosmith singer confirmed his plans to release a country-influenced collection, announcing a solo deal with the Nashville label Big Machine and releasing a lead-off single, "Love Is Your Name," that cracked the Top 20 of Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. But according to Tyler, the rest of the record is nowhere near being finished.

Speaking with ABC News Radio, he predicted a release of "February or so" of 2016, explaining, "I don't even know who I'm producing it with. It's gonna be what it is. There's a couple of songs I've written and they're like rock, and I said, 'Oh, geez.' And I'm not gonna put a banjo on it just to make it country ... I don't know what it's gonna be, but my heart leans [toward] the country feeling and the vibe."

Tyler continued to express his enthusiasm for modern country music, saying, "I think country music is the new rock 'n' roll. I mean, you can listen to the lyrics, you can really get into it, just as you could get into 'Stairway to Heaven.' Country's not just about porches, dogs and kicking my boots up. It's a whole lot more, but it's about being real. You know, the world's gone so far away from that. I hope it comes back."

Even though Aerosmith's annual touring obligations seem likely to keep Tyler from hitting the road too heavily in support of the solo project, he's got at least one date scheduled: an upcoming taping of Front and Center that he says will feature acoustic renditions of his new songs as well as reworked versions of band hits like "Cryin'" which, as he points out, "was originally a country song ... But, of course, we had to rock it out for Aerosmith."

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