Brett Eldredge on Giving Back, Dressing Up and 'Bringing Some Joy' on His Holiday Tour

Hayley Gjertsen

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, thanks to Brett Eldredge. The singer and songwriter has begun his holiday Glow Live Tour and is making sure to give back along the way.

"Mr. Christmas" is teaming up with Minted to raise funds for the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee; starting on Giving Tuesday, shoppers will be able to support the hospital when choosing from Brett's favorite holiday cards and gifts, as 20 percent of the proceeds will be donated.

"A long time ago when I first got to Nashville, I went and did a visit there and played for some of the kids at the hospital," he tells PEOPLE. "It grabbed at my heart so much of just how tough these situations that the kids and the families are going through, especially during the holidays."

He continues, "Ever since then, I have jumped on board and tried to help out in every way I can to continue to bring support to the families and the kids there. It's something that is near and dear to my heart, and really makes all this music stuff worth doing. It's my favorite part of my job."

Giving back at the holidays is a longstanding tradition for Eldredge.

"Growing up, I used to do the food pantry in my hometown and it just kind of stuck with me that there are people that are just trying to get by at this time and if you can lend a helping hand it's so, so powerful," the singer, 36, tells PEOPLE. "Knowing that if you just help one person, that's a major thing — I want to do that for many years to come."

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Hayley Gjertsen

Of course, giving back is not Eldredge's only holiday tradition: He's now got an annual Glow Live holiday tour, where he performs songs from his 2016 Glow album and 2021 Mr. Christmas album. (It kicked off over the weekend in Nashville!)

"I've been listening to this music since I was a kid, and I got to make my own version and my own spin on this music," he says. "And it's just a special kinda confidence I have in it of just bringing some joy and some much-needed comfort at a time of year where we all certainly need it. I'm just glad that I get to be a part of people's tradition and continue to grow that."

And to really maximize the Christmas cheer, Eldredge says, he relies on his audience to be in the spirit too.

"There are nights when I need just as much as the crowd does, and I'm gonna go out there and reach for it from them," Eldredge tells PEOPLE. "When you're able to be vulnerable in these situations and be like, 'Hey, I could really use that support and love from the crowd' ... that's what the holidays and just community, in general, is all about, is being there for each other."

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Mickey Bernal/Getty Brett Eldredge

Getting on stage and being vulnerable with his audience only works for Eldredge if he is taking care of his mental health, which is something he is very passionate about.

"I try to be really open about mental health with my fans and pressures of life and everything," he says. "To be able to have that support from your fans and then it gets them talking about their mental health, I think it's a beautiful thing. I think that [the fans] really made me see parts of myself that I didn't always see, and feel a sense of acceptance of myself."

Eldredge can't wait to kick off the tour, where he is excited to see "how people are dressing up [in] whatever it is that makes them feel in the spirit ... It makes me smile and it makes me think of the traditions I loved growing up."

Andrew Eccles Brett Eldredge

And he loves being part of their traditions too. "To see the tradition grow in front of me, in front of my eyes from when I started this Christmas album and these Christmas shows in a basement in Nashville for 100 people, and now it's going to multiple sold-out nights at our venues is the craziest thing. It just makes me think, you know, I can do this for another 50 years and I couldn't even imagine where it grows from there."