Jake Owen hit the country scene in a big way with hits like “Something about a Woman” and “Startin’ with Me” — as well as major tours with Brooks & Dunn and Alan Jackson — and Jake talks about doing things in a big way in “Go Big or Go Home!” a feature in the new issue of Country Weekly. Jake takes to the great outdoors for a day-at-the-lake photo shoot capturing him doing what he says may have indirectly inspired him to get into country music: wakeboarding. Jake recalls a wakeboarding accident in college that required him to undergo reconstructive shoulder surgery…and it was during that period of recovery that Jake says he really began looking to music and songwriting as a way to express himself. Check out the backstory and all the fun in the July 28 issue, on stands now. 

• Jake’s hits, “Something about a Woman,” “Startin’ with Me,” and “Yee Haw” are all from his debut album, Startin’ with Me. Fans can be listening for new music from Jake later this summer with “Don’t Think I Can’t Love You,” the first single from his second album, due in 2009.