Singing sensation LeAnn Rimes hits The O2 stage for the first time this weekend for C2C: Country to Country. She tells us about new material and her plans to celebrate St Patrick's Day in the capital.

How do you feel about coming to London as one of the headliners this weekend?

I have had an incredible fanbase there for years now and I'm excited to come and play.

It's thrilling for country music to be so mainstream now. In the US, it's almost like our new pop music these days. Our top 40 stations here are mostly urban performers but country music is becoming more mainstream - it appeals to a younger set of fans and it's wide ranging, from aged eight to 80.

It's songs of real life, that's what it's all about, and it has spilled over to Europe and the rest of the world.

Will it be exciting to share the stage with fellow country music superstars like Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood?

I have done a lot of festivals like this. I have performed with Tim and we all know of each other from previous American shows.

At The O2 we are all performing as individual acts but there might be some friends joining me, so we will see.

What can the audience expect from your set-list, on the Sunday afternoon?

It will be a mix of some of the hits and also a lot of the music from the new record too.

I'm excited to play that - we have had a lot of pockets over the last several years when we haven't got to play here, so we will do songs we don't do on normal shows.

Any plans to explore the area during your trip?

My husband is coming with me. He's never been to London and we have never experienced it together, so it will be a mini-vacation too.

When I'm done with work, we will be exploring the city.

I'm looking forward to spending St Patrick's Day there. I have experienced pubs in London, but never on St Patrick's Day, so that's where I will be after the show.

Your new album Spitfire is released here on April 1. How is it set apart from your previous work?

It's dealing with new topics. I have grown into a woman and I have had a lot of things thrown at me in the last four years, so it's real.

I'm not the only one who has experienced these situations so I have written a lot of other people's stories too. There was nothing off-limits.

I'm so proud of this record, more so than anything I have ever made.

What else is going on with your music career?

There has been a big change in my life right now.

I have been at the same record label since I was 11 but that's all ended.

Nothing is set in stone, but it's exciting to have all of these opportunities at 30 years old, after years in this business.

It's a whole new world, but I'm still being creative and doing fun stuff and writing a lot of music.

Click here for the original interview by Beth Allcock for wharf.co.uk