When Brad Paisley‘s first single, “Who Needs Pictures,” came out in 1999, the world was still anxiously awaiting Y2K. Social media was non-existent, as were phones in everyone’s pocket, unlimited streaming music services and living room concerts able to be seen around the world.

The 47-year-old has remained consistent in the music business for more than two decades, but he admits the younger generation is already way ahead of him, at least with the way they do business –– something he applauds and supports.

“It’s really encouraging in that these are people that have a set of tools that we didn’t have — they’re all social media savvy,” Brad told Kix Brooks on American Country Countdown (via Nash Country Daily). “And, some people would see that as a hindrance towards the way it used to be, but I don’t care . . . When they’re all so good at things like Instagram and putting new songs online and getting their fans engaged, it’s exactly the thing we were doing back when we were making music videos for CMT and back when we were showing up doing certain little events in stores.

“Now, they do that on Instagram, and it’s a lot more people and they can immediately impact and its quicker and it catches fire quicker,” he continued. “They are affecting people and its really fun to watch, and I’m a fan of what they’re doing, and musically speaking, too, they’re great, but, you know, I think overall it’s fun to watch a new generation reinvent this business.”

Brad previously also praised the younger generation of high school and college graduates, especially those who were forced to forego their celebrations due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“People who take adversity like this, and become the agents of change that keep this from happening again, are maybe the answer,” Brad acknowledged. “That’s going to be on this generation to do a better job than we’ve done. So maybe they will. I think you’re going to have kids decide to be nurses, scientists, vaccine developers, pharmacists, and there’s a calling … Use this as inspiration is what I would tell this class.”