Matthew Shafer, aka rock-country musician Uncle Kracker, has been arrested on charges of second-degree sex offence stemming from an incident at a nightclub, authorities in North Carolina say.

Shafer, 33, was being held on a $US5 million ($A6.27 million) bond after being arrested at a suburban Raleigh hotel, said Raleigh police spokesman Jim Sughrue.

Details of the incident were not provided.

Shafer was in Raleigh to perform at an outdoor concert.

He was scheduled to appear in court, Wake County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Phyllis Stevens said.

Shafer was being held in the Wake County Jail.

Shafer's hits include a duet with country music star Kenny Chesney, When the Sun Goes Down, for which Chesney was nominated for an Academy of Country Music Award in 2005.

A former disc jockey for rock musician Kid Rock, Shafer also won acclaim for Follow Me and a cover version of Dobie Gray's Drift Away.

In North Carolina, a second-degree sexual offence constitutes engaging in a sexual act with another person by force and against their will, or with a person who is mentally disabled, mentally incapacitated or physically helpless.