Rogers says he recently read an article stating that country music had 25 percent fewer sales than a year ago. He believes that's because the genre has backed itself into a corner where they're playing a lot of young artists, but not creating any heroes. And, he says, they don't give artists a second chance. He sees country music becoming one-dimensional, with everyone looking and sounding alike.

"I've always thought that was the downfall," says Rogers. "An artform must have expansion and growth, and then has to have rebirth. It's a cycle it must go through."

Despite the hard times, Rogers says that he has always liked himself and what he stands for. He believes there are two sides to everyoneÑa personal side and a professional one. The closer the two are, the longer the life someone has in the business. "I don't think people like surprises," he claims. "I don't think they like to feel you're one kind of person and find out that you're another. I think you're also much more likely to live up to your reputation if you are what you present. What's made my life easier for me is that I try not to be something I can't live up to forever. On a daily basis, when I walk out, I am what I am."

Kenny's love of a challenge has even led him to a new romance. Since his highly-publicized divorce from his last wife, Marianne, he has been involved with Wanda Miller for the last three-and-a-half years. He says they are looking at the possibility of getting married, but while he is not afraid of commitment, he is afraid of failure. He says he wants to be sure that they both know what they are doing, and while he believes he would be happy with Wanda, he understands that she is half his age, and wants to make sure that she is aware of the associated repercussions. Rogers is also very close to his 15-year-old son Christopher (by his ex-wife Marianne), who lives in Kenny's hometown of Athens, Georgia (though Kenny plans on moving to Atlanta). They spend a lot of time together when Rogers is home.

Admittedly, Rogers felt that business hadn't been conducive to a good marriage. "I think in the past, particularly when I was struggling and away so much, that absence didn't necessarily make the heart grow fonder. That may be true to a small extent, but there's a line that you crossÑand once you cross it, you lose the closeness in a relationship. In my last marriage, I think we just grew apart. We had been married for 15 years and she went one way and I went another. We're very good friends and we realized that neither one of us was happy, and that we both deserved to be happy later on. It was a smart move. She's happier, and I think I am, too."

Aside from his children (he also has older children from a previous marriage), Rogers has experienced many wonderful things throughout his long career. He cherishes the Horatio Alger award he received seven years ago, which is given to people who come from humble beginnings, become successful, and then give back to the community. Rogers grew up in the projects, and he has long been associated with the fight against hunger. Among his dozens of awards, he has received more People's Choice Awards (eleven of them) than anyone in the history of the awards.

"I don't put the awards out, but I took them out the other day to make sure they weren't broken, and I thought, wow, there is no one else in the world who can walk by these in their home and see so many of them," Kenny says. "It was very touching."

For the future, Rogers would like to maintain his lofty position in the show business industry. But for right now, the entertainer feels he has it all. "You need three things in life to be happy," he says. "Someone to love, something to do and something to look forward to. And I have those three things in my life."

Where art thou, Kenny? Above all, right here, with his feet firmly on the ground.

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