Chase Bryant Recorded His New EP “Cayo del Grullo” — and Then He Waved Goodbye to Texas (Exclusive)

The EP "was named after Baffin Bay, an area of Texas not far from my grandparents' farm," the country artist tells PEOPLE

Chase Bryant will never forget his late grandparents' pool house.

"I grew up shooting pool in there with the guys that would come up from Mexico to work on the farm," remembers Bryant, 31, during an interview with PEOPLE. "If you couldn't beat them, you didn't get a tortilla or taco or whatever. So, we grew up busting our teeth in there trying to become good pool players."

Just a few short decades later, the "Little Bit of You" hitmaker returned to the treasured place during the pandemic to not only live there, but ultimately create his new EP Cayo del Grullo, the third in Bryant’s five-part kaleidoscope of music being shared with the world in 2024, with each EP named after a place pivotal to the course of Bryant's life thus far.

“Cayo del Grullo was named after Baffin Bay, an area of Texas not far from my grandparents' farm," Bryant tells PEOPLE.

However, before work could begin on Cayo del Grullo, there was work that needed to be done on that beloved old pool house. "I took that room, and I converted that room and a part of the garage into a studio," Bryant explains. "Ninety-nine percent of Cayo del Grullo happened there. I went to Nashville and did a couple things there, but it was all sort of conceived and finished in there."

Bryant’s commitment to creating Cayo del Grullo in Texas was a strong one for a multitude of reasons. "It was a big come-to-Jesus for me in the sense that I knew I loved Texas, and I knew I loved that house, and all I really wanted to do was just make one record into it before I said bye to that house," says Bryant, who moved to Nashville in 2022 before moving to Charleston in 2024. "So, I did just that."

And from the start, the creation Cayo del Grullo was to remain simple and organic. "This record was my first chance to work with Chad Cromwell, Craig Young and Bryan Sutton," says Bryant of his musical comrades. "All three are heroic characters in the studio, musician and touring world alike."

Certainly, since Cayo del Grullo was recorded roughly two years ago, the underlying meaning of EP cuts such as "Love You My Whole Life" seems to have evolved now that Bryant and wife Selena Weber Bryant are expecting their first child.

"[Selena] and I had only been living together for a couple weeks when I played her ["Love You My Whole Life"], and I just remember how much she loved it," recalls Bryant. "I don't know if I've noted her on the record, but Selena should be, because I think she was the tracking engineer on that song.”"

Bryant laughs, explaining: "I was in another room by myself, and I would have her press record and make sure levels were all goo. I taught her how to do that and how to get drum sounds."

Related: Chase Bryant and Wife Selena Weber Are Expecting Their First Baby: 'A Pretty Surreal Moment' (Exclusive)

Included on Cayo del Grullo are also cuts that Bryant has believed in for a long time, including the irresistible "Small Town." "That one has been around since the Broken Bow days,” says Bryant, referring to his previous label home. "There were certain people there that loved it, but yeah, that song kind of always stuck around."

Cayo del Grullo also gave Bryant the chance to collaborate with longtime friend and country music compadre Jake Owen on the introspective "Where the Good Ones Go," which was written by Bryant, Bob DiPiero and Chris Loocke.

"Jake Owen has always been the absolute nicest, most stand-up guy to me out of any artist in the business, from every level, from anyone I've toured with or anyone I've ever known," says Bryant. "He was just so gracious to come in and be on that song with me. And I have the utmost respect for Jake. I think he's one of the most underrated artists there are in the genre and a walking encyclopedia of country music."

Throughout the entirety of making the EP, Bryant says he could feel the spirit of his late grandparents floating through his mind.

"It was like talking to ghosts in a way," says Bryant. "I feel like I owe that house and those memories in that house, as much credit as I do anything else."

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