Latest / Inside Country with Wayne D / Cole Swindell is Getting Baby Practice in!

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Cole Swindell is Getting Baby Practice in! · Inside Country with Wayne D

0:00
Speaker 1: It's been a minute since we caught up with this dude,
0:02
Speaker 1: and I was trying to think before you got here.
0:04
Speaker 1: I think the last time we caught up was in
0:06
Speaker 1: Key West.
0:07
Speaker 2: Wow, it's been way too long.
0:09
Speaker 3: That's a year, right, too cool? And I respect that.
0:12
Speaker 3: It's fine at all.
0:13
Speaker 2: I've been meaning to get by here. So when Dell
0:15
Speaker 2: is here, Brother, Howard things man, good, good, Just glad
0:18
Speaker 2: to be here, Bud, how are y'all doing?
0:20
Speaker 1: I can't complain, can't complain. Life is a lot different
0:24
Speaker 1: from the last time we caught up. The music keeps coming.
0:27
Speaker 1: You're enjoying married life. Yeah, that was that balance supernatural
0:31
Speaker 1: for you, Like once you added that element to your
0:35
Speaker 1: personal life.
0:35
Speaker 2: You know, I don't I think it took him in.
0:38
Speaker 2: Maybe I'm still finding that balance, you know, I know
0:41
Speaker 2: that for ten years. I mean, my career is just
0:44
Speaker 2: all focused on and you know, I'm glad I did.
0:47
Speaker 2: But you know, at the when I met Courtney and
0:50
Speaker 2: got engaged, I think I kind of put a lot
0:53
Speaker 2: of things on the back burner and just kind of
0:54
Speaker 2: focused on that and got married and all that good stuff.
0:58
Speaker 2: But at some point I woke up and said, if
1:00
Speaker 2: I don't get back to work and write these songs
1:04
Speaker 2: and find these songs, and I'm never going to finish
1:06
Speaker 2: this album, but I'm glad I had that kind of
1:08
Speaker 2: breakaway from everything to just enjoy that. That was a big,
1:11
Speaker 2: big moment for both of us. And I don't know,
1:13
Speaker 2: I just kind of went back and finally got a
1:16
Speaker 2: chance to get this album done and now here we are. Man,
1:19
Speaker 2: I'm just excited to have this song and this album.
1:22
Speaker 1: And let me say this because you can't anybody that
1:26
Speaker 1: does interviews with Cole Swindell don't ask about babies, don't
1:29
Speaker 1: ask about starting a big old family.
1:30
Speaker 3: Let the man enjoy his life and we're moving on
1:32
Speaker 3: from there.
1:33
Speaker 2: You're good, Hey, man, I'm excited about that.
1:35
Speaker 1: But some of that stuff, like it's like, hey, I'm
1:38
Speaker 1: working on music too.
1:40
Speaker 2: I know. Yeah, no, I get it. But it is
1:42
Speaker 2: finding a balance. And you said the wedding and then
1:44
Speaker 2: now going to be a dad, that's the coolest thing
1:47
Speaker 2: of all. But to have an album and that a
1:50
Speaker 2: kid on the way is just it's gonna be a
1:52
Speaker 2: big year.
1:52
Speaker 1: Man. So yeah, when it comes to pre planning for
1:58
Speaker 1: dad life, yeah, it's like you can you can't, you know,
2:02
Speaker 1: it's it's like a it's like a storm.
2:04
Speaker 3: Yeah, it might rain, it might take the roof off
2:07
Speaker 3: the house.
2:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's what I know. And that's I think. It's
2:10
Speaker 2: just hearing everybody else, all my buddies that have kids,
2:13
Speaker 2: and uh. One thing I've noticed though, is just it's
2:16
Speaker 2: one of the it seems like to be one of
2:18
Speaker 2: those things in life that it's hard to explain it.
2:21
Speaker 2: It's almost fun for me to watch my buddies try
2:23
Speaker 2: to explain how cool it is being a dad, or
2:25
Speaker 2: whether you have a boy or a girl, you know,
2:26
Speaker 2: whatever it is, and I can just tell. I think
2:28
Speaker 2: it's one of those things you have to experience yourself.
2:30
Speaker 2: And you know, I know, Uh, we're having a little girl.
2:34
Speaker 2: She's already already got me rap man, she's not even here.
2:37
Speaker 2: So it's, uh, I'm.
2:38
Speaker 3: In trouble listen, but it's a good trouble.
2:42
Speaker 2: Yeah, no, I know. And that's what I'm saying. It's like,
2:43
Speaker 2: I don't I don't mind that, you know. I think
2:46
Speaker 2: you know, I'm kind of softy anyway when it comes
2:49
Speaker 2: to stuff like that. So having a little girl, I
2:52
Speaker 2: think it's I don't know, it's only gonna make.
2:54
Speaker 3: That worse so a million because I'm a girl dad.
2:57
Speaker 2: In a good way. Like you said, I think it
2:59
Speaker 2: just changes the way you see the world. And yeah, uh,
3:02
Speaker 2: you know, do anything to make sure they're good. And
3:04
Speaker 2: that's kind of all the things. You know. I've I've
3:07
Speaker 2: moved here, want to be a good songwriter and an artist,
3:09
Speaker 2: and and then now it's just like I still want
3:12
Speaker 2: to be that, but but I want to focus on
3:14
Speaker 2: being a good dad. I think this is more important
3:16
Speaker 2: than any of it, and just very blessed and thankful
3:19
Speaker 2: to have a chance to.
3:20
Speaker 1: So So my daughter just turned well she'll be fourteen
3:23
Speaker 1: this summer. They go fast, it goes extremely fast, and
3:26
Speaker 1: fourteen but it's all. But now she's like talking about
3:29
Speaker 1: middle school formal. She'll be in high school next year.
3:32
Speaker 2: Yeah.
3:33
Speaker 1: Her first like big time crush is Maddox Bats and
3:36
Speaker 1: oh yeah. And I'm like and so I'm like, oh,
3:38
Speaker 1: we'll go to.
3:39
Speaker 2: Some shows and that's cool. He's killing us.
3:42
Speaker 1: But I'm also like, if you don't calm down, we
3:45
Speaker 1: ain't coming to this stuff no more.
3:46
Speaker 2: Exactly. Now you've got an artist like that age to worry.
3:50
Speaker 1: But it's funny because you like you get like half like, hey, like,
3:53
Speaker 1: calm down.
3:53
Speaker 3: Yeah, you're still my kid.
3:55
Speaker 1: You're still But then she'd be like, Hi, nice to
3:57
Speaker 1: meet you. You'll be like, hey, I go no, you
3:58
Speaker 1: talk to her. She wants to talk to you.
4:00
Speaker 3: You turn around, exactly. Yeah, Like you like ride the
4:03
Speaker 3: line of like don't talk to boys. Hey, she asked
4:06
Speaker 3: you a question.
4:06
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think you need to talk to her. So
4:09
Speaker 2: I know, man, I can only imagine, and just just
4:11
Speaker 2: hearing those stories, it's it's gonna be a wild, wild ride,
4:15
Speaker 2: I'm sure, but I'm looking forward to it.
4:17
Speaker 1: But you're right too, like everything is different, Like nobody's
4:21
Speaker 1: like having a baby story or raising a kid's story
4:24
Speaker 1: is the same as the person before m or.
4:26
Speaker 2: The person exactly yeah, And I know that. And her sister,
4:29
Speaker 2: she has a little boy, like a year and a
4:31
Speaker 2: half old, So I think Courtney's loving being an ann.
4:34
Speaker 2: I'm glad she had that year and a half to
4:36
Speaker 2: kind of be hands on right there with him till
4:38
Speaker 2: from he was Tommy was born to now. And I
4:41
Speaker 2: think us having a you know, ours on the way,
4:45
Speaker 2: I think her having that practice with him is gonna
4:47
Speaker 2: be a big help in her family as well. And
4:49
Speaker 2: my family. I know they're all gonna be willing to help,
4:52
Speaker 2: so we're gonna need it from what I hear, so
4:54
Speaker 2: I'm excited.
4:55
Speaker 3: Yeah, no doubt. Man, it definitely changes bus life.
4:58
Speaker 2: You might need that's we kind of talked about that,
5:01
Speaker 2: or we you know, we'll obviously make it arrange it
5:05
Speaker 2: to where it's safe for her, but also you know,
5:08
Speaker 2: I don't know how much they'll be out there or
5:10
Speaker 2: how long it'll take to feel comfortable bringing out. But
5:12
Speaker 2: I can't wait. Man, I've already thought about that, Like
5:14
Speaker 2: the first show share it comes to I wonder which
5:17
Speaker 2: one it'll be, what stage I'll be on, but it's
5:20
Speaker 2: going to be special no matter where I am. And
5:23
Speaker 2: that's just a cool part of life. I get to,
5:26
Speaker 2: you know, experience from now.
5:27
Speaker 1: And I got to tell you, it's pretty cool to
5:29
Speaker 1: watch you share stuff like that because a lot a
5:31
Speaker 1: lot of I mean, it's really like fifty to fifty
5:33
Speaker 1: some artists are like, hey, like that's what I'm doing,
5:35
Speaker 1: and like that's over here.
5:36
Speaker 2: I mean it's my first time. I mean, yeah, of course,
5:38
Speaker 2: I just I can't hide. It's like music. You know,
5:41
Speaker 2: there's a few things in life that make you feel
5:43
Speaker 2: like music and like music does for me, and obviously
5:47
Speaker 2: like getting engaged, married, and now this, I mean, it's
5:50
Speaker 2: a common theme. These are all real life, big moments,
5:53
Speaker 2: you know that you know, honestly didn't know whatever happened.
5:57
Speaker 2: And the fact I'm right here in the middle of
6:00
Speaker 2: that with a brand new album. And we always, as
6:02
Speaker 2: funny as artists, we always call songs our babies, you know,
6:05
Speaker 2: and now got a real one. So this is it's
6:08
Speaker 2: gonna be a it's gonna be a fun year.
6:10
Speaker 1: Uh has has the the baby process or the thoughts
6:16
Speaker 1: of fatherhood started trickling trickling into music creation yet for you?
6:20
Speaker 2: Absolutely? You know, I always wondered what that would be like,
6:24
Speaker 2: you know, because you hear these songs sometimes and I've
6:26
Speaker 2: heard so many phenomenal songs about, you know, mentioning kids.
6:30
Speaker 2: But uh, I could I knew it was a great song,
6:32
Speaker 2: but I didn't feel it like I'm gonna feel it now,
6:35
Speaker 2: you know. I was just I was thinking. I literally
6:37
Speaker 2: brought up to Courtney the other day, I was like, remember,
6:38
Speaker 2: you're gonna miss this. I knew for a fact that's
6:41
Speaker 2: a phenomenal song. But I've know, I mean, I just
6:44
Speaker 2: you know, just a few years down the road and
6:46
Speaker 2: that song's gonna hit differently. And that's what's what I
6:49
Speaker 2: love about music, man, it's you know, it's all you know.
6:52
Speaker 2: You write the best songs you can, you record them,
6:54
Speaker 2: and some people were going through it, they're gonna relate
6:56
Speaker 2: to it. Some people are gonna just be like, yeah, hey,
6:58
Speaker 2: two weeks later, your life changes and you think it's
7:01
Speaker 2: you know you the song means everything to you, and
7:04
Speaker 2: that's just, uh, it's crazy how life changes and and uh,
7:08
Speaker 2: you know, songs that just depends on who can relate
7:11
Speaker 2: to it. That's uh, that's pretty amazing.
7:13
Speaker 3: I'm excited for you too.
7:14
Speaker 1: As your daughter gets older or as your children get
7:17
Speaker 1: older in general, you have some especially I mean throughout
7:20
Speaker 1: but especially.
7:21
Speaker 3: Early in your career, some really cool.
7:22
Speaker 1: Stories behind some of your songs, and they'll they'll ask
7:25
Speaker 1: the stories behind songs like you should be here and
7:27
Speaker 1: stuff like that, and you get to relive those moments
7:31
Speaker 1: through your kid's eyes.
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Speaker 3: Now that's gonna be awesome.
7:34
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, that's I wonder what they're gonna think
7:37
Speaker 2: of of. You know, I'm probably not going to be
7:40
Speaker 2: very cool and there for a while, so uh, but
7:44
Speaker 2: you know, just to be able to share that with
7:46
Speaker 2: them and some of the pictures and you know Courtney,
7:48
Speaker 2: she's gotten into scrapbooking and doing all that, and we
7:51
Speaker 2: were looking at stuff just even just since we've been together,
7:54
Speaker 2: my career, from the ACMs, all that stuff. It's just
7:57
Speaker 2: a lot of big memories and to get the them someday,
8:00
Speaker 2: Like you know, I was somewhat relatable back then. You know,
8:05
Speaker 2: it's just we're looking looking forward to just having these
8:07
Speaker 2: memories and being able to, like you said, share the
8:09
Speaker 2: stores behind them. And I can't wait to hear ask
8:12
Speaker 2: about it.
8:13
Speaker 1: Uh, you got an amazing song that's about to do
8:16
Speaker 1: something huge. Now you're working on more new music. I
8:19
Speaker 1: know when you get to step away from music, you
8:22
Speaker 1: you love your roots. You love Atlanta Braves baseball. But
8:27
Speaker 1: I don't want to talk about that because it's been
8:29
Speaker 1: a rough start to the year.
8:30
Speaker 3: So we're gonna move on.
8:31
Speaker 2: Yeah, so we're I was just there last night and
8:34
Speaker 2: we h Yeah, one four in a row. That's a
8:37
Speaker 2: big step forward from the beginning of the year. But
8:39
Speaker 2: I know everybody always talks about how long the season is,
8:42
Speaker 2: and I'm glad. I'm glad it is that long. This year,
8:44
Speaker 2: we got plenty of time to turn it around, but
8:46
Speaker 2: was not not an ideal star. But that's part of
8:49
Speaker 2: being a fan, you know. You can't just like them
8:51
Speaker 2: when when they're playing well. And I think I'd rather
8:54
Speaker 2: just be good at the end of the year than
8:55
Speaker 2: the beginning anyway. So well, I'll keep rooting them on
8:58
Speaker 2: and how to how to blast getting to catch a
9:00
Speaker 2: game recently?
9:03
Speaker 1: How important is that for you to get that downtime
9:05
Speaker 1: and go to a Braves game or go to dude
9:09
Speaker 1: stuff that you did before everybody knew who Colsonwindell was.
9:12
Speaker 2: You know, it's I was thinking last night, you know,
9:15
Speaker 2: the walking up from where we did, the experience. You know,
9:19
Speaker 2: Derek Schiller with the Braves has become a good friend
9:24
Speaker 2: of mine and always takes care of us. And it's
9:26
Speaker 2: just it doesn't matter how many times I've been there
9:27
Speaker 2: in those seats, It's just I'm like, man, twelve year
9:30
Speaker 2: old me would be absolutely freaking out, you know. And well,
9:33
Speaker 2: the only time I ever got to go to braz
9:34
Speaker 2: games were on church trips or whatever, and we'd sit
9:37
Speaker 2: in the nosebleeds and it's fun from up there. But
9:39
Speaker 2: some of these, you know, getting to sit right there
9:42
Speaker 2: by the dugout and interact with the players during the game.
9:44
Speaker 2: It's just as a sports fan. I mean, you can't help,
9:47
Speaker 2: but I try to play it cool as I can.
9:49
Speaker 2: But I'm a huge, huge fan, and it's just amazing
9:53
Speaker 2: to get to do that, like you said, in my
9:54
Speaker 2: time off, because I don't I don't have that many hobbies,
9:56
Speaker 2: just really catching my sports teams and playing as much
9:58
Speaker 2: golf as possible, and from what I hear, I better
10:01
Speaker 2: go ahead and get that in as well before the
10:03
Speaker 2: baby gets here. So I'm playing the best golf I've
10:06
Speaker 2: ever played, but it'll it'll all go away when she
10:08
Speaker 2: gets here. But I'm going to enjoy it while while last.
10:11
Speaker 1: There's still gonna be times where she looks over and
10:14
Speaker 1: is like, get the hell out of here.
10:15
Speaker 2: Yeah, probably, you're right. I don't know that that's if
10:18
Speaker 2: I'm playing too much after that, that might not be
10:20
Speaker 2: a good thing for many reasons. So we're but no,
10:23
Speaker 2: it's it'd be fine. We're find a balance. And just
10:26
Speaker 2: like I said, I just already I'm wondering how I'm
10:30
Speaker 2: gonna feel, you know, when she's here. I just think
10:32
Speaker 2: my whole everything's gonna change. And that's great. I've been
10:35
Speaker 2: been waiting on that for a long time, so it's cool.
10:38
Speaker 2: I got to work hard for ten plus years and
10:42
Speaker 2: now still get to do that, but then also have
10:44
Speaker 2: a family to share it with. I mean, that's what
10:46
Speaker 2: it's what it's all about.
10:47
Speaker 3: When it comes to where you're at musically.
10:50
Speaker 1: Obviously, we know the current song is on the verge
10:53
Speaker 1: of grabbing the top spot.
10:56
Speaker 3: What do you know what you want to come with next?
10:59
Speaker 2: You know? I think for me, I mean, you know,
11:02
Speaker 2: we've got twenty one songs on this new project, and honestly,
11:06
Speaker 2: every I feel like every album you make, it's you'd
11:09
Speaker 2: say it's you know, got to be one of your
11:10
Speaker 2: favorites if not, because it's just new stuff to you
11:13
Speaker 2: and new phases of life. And I think this is
11:16
Speaker 2: this whole project is just different stuff because I'm in
11:19
Speaker 2: a different place in my life and the fans that
11:21
Speaker 2: have grown with me and experienced things as I have,
11:24
Speaker 2: it's been It's been really cool. But I think, you know,
11:27
Speaker 2: I've had a few serious songs out there. I think
11:29
Speaker 2: people know that side of me now, but also when
11:33
Speaker 2: I came on the scene, they knew the fun side
11:35
Speaker 2: of me, and I just it's hard to beat those
11:37
Speaker 2: types of songs too. And after such a you know,
11:39
Speaker 2: emotional song to me and just a you know, a
11:41
Speaker 2: big moment of my life, I think I'll probably want
11:43
Speaker 2: to come with us some tempo and something that you know,
11:47
Speaker 2: just people can't get out of their heads and got
11:49
Speaker 2: a few ideas.
11:50
Speaker 1: So when it comes to the amazing songs you've put out,
11:54
Speaker 1: is any one of them?
11:55
Speaker 3: Have you ever stood back and be like, well, y'all
11:57
Speaker 3: really like this one? Yeah?
11:59
Speaker 2: I mean the older I get and look back at
12:01
Speaker 2: some of the early ones, yeah, I mean, but it's
12:03
Speaker 2: just that's music changes, and the whole landscape of it,
12:07
Speaker 2: the sound, the you know, when when I came on
12:09
Speaker 2: the scene, the whole traditional thing wasn't the the vibe,
12:13
Speaker 2: and now it's just since Yellowstone and whatever, it's, it's
12:17
Speaker 2: changed a lot, you know what I mean? And that
12:19
Speaker 2: and that's cool because I've always loved, loved that that
12:21
Speaker 2: style of it too. So that's for this album. You know,
12:24
Speaker 2: I wanted to have the stuff that was actual traditional
12:27
Speaker 2: country sounding, but then you know, keep that vibe of
12:30
Speaker 2: of when I came on the scene that I know
12:32
Speaker 2: that my fans love, and you know, you just as
12:36
Speaker 2: an artist. I mean, you you obviously want people to
12:39
Speaker 2: to dig your stuff, but it's it's okay, not everybody.
12:43
Speaker 2: You're not making it for the for the critics. You know,
12:45
Speaker 2: you you let that stuff. We talk about it all
12:47
Speaker 2: the time as artists, but like that one comment that
12:49
Speaker 2: ruins your day, you know, and the hundreds that are positive,
12:52
Speaker 2: I mean, that's not fair to those people to worry
12:55
Speaker 2: about the negative. So it's it is hard, though, but
12:57
Speaker 2: I you know, for this, you know, you learn as
13:00
Speaker 2: you go, and I think just to quit worrying about
13:03
Speaker 2: that stuff and worry about the people that do, you know,
13:06
Speaker 2: love what I do. And I'm just excited to have
13:09
Speaker 2: those fans and take them through this whole album with me.
13:11
Speaker 2: I think it's you know, it's a it's a roller coaster.
13:15
Speaker 1: It's been cool as country music especially. I mean, you
13:18
Speaker 1: can go back to like early FGL stuff to work
13:21
Speaker 1: where the sound of country changed. But what's happened over
13:24
Speaker 1: the last five years is country country changed them. But
13:28
Speaker 1: now it's like those lines are so blurred right now.
13:32
Speaker 1: You have maintained steady, continue to be successful, but watching
13:39
Speaker 1: what's happening in country around you, what would tell you
13:42
Speaker 1: that country is in a great place right now versus
13:44
Speaker 1: ten fifteen years ago.
13:46
Speaker 2: You know, I think just the variety, like just what
13:49
Speaker 2: you said. I mean, yeah, I love the traditional sound,
13:52
Speaker 2: but it's you know, that's not everybody's cup of teat
13:55
Speaker 2: to be able to combine that with something, you know.
13:57
Speaker 2: I mean, look at what Wallin's done for the genre
14:00
Speaker 2: and how huge. I mean, I just got back from
14:01
Speaker 2: Australia and I think they're saying, you know, how big
14:03
Speaker 2: country's gotten over the past few years him Luke calls
14:06
Speaker 2: on several more. I mean, they're responsible for that, and
14:09
Speaker 2: I mean we all benefit when when somebody does well,
14:11
Speaker 2: you know. So I think it's always going to change,
14:14
Speaker 2: but who knows what'll be the next hot sound here
14:16
Speaker 2: and there. And I've always tried to, you know, not
14:18
Speaker 2: chase anything too hard. Just I just want to put
14:20
Speaker 2: out relatable songs. And I'd be lying if I said
14:24
Speaker 2: sometimes I didn't feel like I'm out of the loops sometimes, man,
14:27
Speaker 2: things change fast. You know. There's a lot of artists
14:29
Speaker 2: out there, and you know, with social media and all
14:31
Speaker 2: these you know, the TikTok stuff, it's just easier to
14:35
Speaker 2: you know, get noticed and have a career. And I
14:37
Speaker 2: always say, whether you like that or not, I mean,
14:39
Speaker 2: I had at my foot in the door and chance
14:42
Speaker 2: to get my shot, and I think TikTok is that
14:45
Speaker 2: for a lot of artists right now. And it's just
14:48
Speaker 2: it's amazing to see how powerful that stuff is. So
14:51
Speaker 2: I'm just happy to still be around, man, you know,
14:53
Speaker 2: to get to do this, you know, ten eleven, twelve
14:56
Speaker 2: years later. It's just it's a blessing to be on
14:58
Speaker 2: album five and still you know, just renewed my contract.
15:03
Speaker 2: I've you know, been with Warner since day one. And
15:05
Speaker 2: that's how I am. Man. It's it's family when it
15:08
Speaker 2: comes to work. I mean, it does feel like family
15:10
Speaker 2: to me. And I uh, I'm just lucky to have that.
15:13
Speaker 1: And I'll tell you it's somebody who gets to talk
15:14
Speaker 1: to these clowns all the time.
15:16
Speaker 3: They're just as passionate about your success as you are.
15:19
Speaker 2: So I mean, and that means the world because it's
15:21
Speaker 2: and that's like I said, not just family. You get
15:23
Speaker 2: to share it with the people that have to deal
15:25
Speaker 2: with you every day and the bad days, and my team,
15:28
Speaker 2: you know, just you know, it's we're all working towards
15:31
Speaker 2: the same goal and you know, but they're the ones
15:33
Speaker 2: that see all the behind the scenes stuff and the
15:35
Speaker 2: ones working hard to make sure I get to sit
15:37
Speaker 2: here with you and talk about hit songs and you know,
15:41
Speaker 2: and the fans out there that make them work live
15:43
Speaker 2: is just it's it's awesome. It wouldn't be a special
15:46
Speaker 2: if you didn't have people to share it with.
15:49
Speaker 1: You had mentioned social media and artists that are posting
15:51
Speaker 1: stuff all the time, and we just talked to Bailey Zemron,
15:54
Speaker 1: who feels like he's putting out a new song every
15:56
Speaker 1: twenty minutes.
15:57
Speaker 3: Some of that might be a d D, some of
15:58
Speaker 3: that might be as fast, but he's great.
16:00
Speaker 2: But you know, you look at it and that's what
16:02
Speaker 2: that's what works, that's what you have to do. And
16:04
Speaker 2: I feel like, you know, he's young, uh energies off
16:08
Speaker 2: the charts. I mean, that's what that's what he does.
16:10
Speaker 2: That's what people want to see. And it's just like
16:12
Speaker 2: I said, man, you can't you can't knock the fact
16:15
Speaker 2: that they're working hard. You know, our working hard back
16:19
Speaker 2: when I got started didn't look the same as this,
16:21
Speaker 2: and I think it's, you know, just trying to adapt
16:23
Speaker 2: and stay in the game and that some of it
16:25
Speaker 2: is uncomfortable for you know, for people that have been
16:28
Speaker 2: around a little bit, but it is what it is. Man.
16:30
Speaker 2: You either do it or you get left behind. And
16:32
Speaker 2: we're trying to figure out We're always trying to figure
16:34
Speaker 2: out that way of how does that fit for me?
16:35
Speaker 2: I'm not twenty two year old kid doing this? How
16:38
Speaker 2: do I do this? And you could still go viral
16:41
Speaker 2: dancing on TikTok though I should. I could definitely go viral.
16:47
Speaker 2: It would go viral, it would yeah, it would not
16:49
Speaker 2: be another press bad. Yeah.
16:51
Speaker 3: No.
16:52
Speaker 1: The funny thing is, you know, I was I was
16:54
Speaker 1: talking to another guy in radio recently about this and
16:57
Speaker 1: what TikTok has done. It has eliminated the radio shows
17:01
Speaker 1: to like you have to play like thirty radio shows
17:04
Speaker 1: in a year on top of your like full page gigs.
17:07
Speaker 3: This is eliminated a lot of that. I think for
17:09
Speaker 3: some of the newer artists coming in.
17:11
Speaker 2: Oh wow, just yeah, feel well? Yeah, I mean, I
17:14
Speaker 2: don't you know, to me, it's radio is all I've had.
17:18
Speaker 2: I mean my whole career. They've always you know, you
17:20
Speaker 2: guys have always been good to me, and so to me,
17:24
Speaker 2: it's I don't know, it's what I grew upon and
17:26
Speaker 2: to be able to have this many hit songs, it's
17:31
Speaker 2: just it's hard to wrap your head around. Man. So
17:34
Speaker 2: I'm very very fortunate. But a lot of people that
17:37
Speaker 2: are responsible for that.
17:38
Speaker 1: With all the things going on in country right now,
17:41
Speaker 1: between the social media stuff and and you know, artists
17:45
Speaker 1: putting out fifty five to ten song albums, somewhere in
17:48
Speaker 1: the middle, there's also I feel a certain expectation of
17:53
Speaker 1: who are you working with?
17:54
Speaker 3: Who's working with who?
17:56
Speaker 1: Yeah, how do you how do you avoid that pressure
17:59
Speaker 1: and just let let collabs or duets fall into place
18:02
Speaker 1: where they're supposed to.
18:04
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, that's something I don't think people really know.
18:06
Speaker 2: You know, your friends like, oh, you ought to do
18:08
Speaker 2: this with so and so, and don't you don't realize
18:10
Speaker 2: how hard that is, or that so and so has
18:12
Speaker 2: got a song with so and so coming out in
18:14
Speaker 2: two weeks and it's just a you know, it's a
18:16
Speaker 2: huge But I've said that for years. I mean, the
18:19
Speaker 2: collapse stuff. It was always another genres and I'm like,
18:22
Speaker 2: how you know, or if you've done one, I can't
18:24
Speaker 2: do another one. It's like other artists and other genres
18:26
Speaker 2: don't think like that it's I that's a compliment. You
18:29
Speaker 2: know they're on it, and it just you see a
18:30
Speaker 2: lot more. But obviously it's catching on in country, and
18:33
Speaker 2: it's just tough with everybody's schedules and different labels and
18:36
Speaker 2: what their music release is like, and you know, to
18:40
Speaker 2: have collabs. So this one, this album, to me, I
18:42
Speaker 2: think if we have any it'll be after the fact.
18:44
Speaker 2: There's some songs that I love, but it's just a
18:47
Speaker 2: lot of them were last minute finishes, just like the
18:49
Speaker 2: last album, and I you know, I'm fired up about
18:52
Speaker 2: the way it all turned out. But collabs are a
18:55
Speaker 2: big deal. But this one, I'm I'm kind of taking
18:57
Speaker 2: this one solo and we'll see. I think you know
19:01
Speaker 2: who fits on what after the fact.
19:04
Speaker 1: So this will play a portion of this will play
19:09
Speaker 1: this Saturday, and then obviously the iHeart Country Festival is
19:12
Speaker 1: coming up a week a week away, so you'll be
19:16
Speaker 1: in Austin, Texas for that show.
19:17
Speaker 3: It's you.
19:19
Speaker 1: It's Sam Hunt, Thomas, Rhett Rascal, Flats Brooks and Dunn, Bailey, Zimmerman,
19:25
Speaker 1: Megan Maroney, Nate Smith.
19:27
Speaker 3: Did I get it all?
19:28
Speaker 2: I think that's hard to forget that lineup that is
19:32
Speaker 2: other than it being long. That is honestly that people
19:36
Speaker 2: you always say that's an honor to share the studies
19:38
Speaker 2: with it. Really, I mean, that's a crazy lineup, man,
19:41
Speaker 2: that's a that's a big deal.
19:43
Speaker 1: What is it like backstage at a show like that,
19:45
Speaker 1: because not that you'll see a lot of people and
19:48
Speaker 1: maybe not a ton of downtime, but when you go
19:51
Speaker 1: to a show where I don't know what your relationship
19:53
Speaker 1: is like with Rascal Flats, but those dudes haven't been
19:56
Speaker 1: together for a while, Brooks and Dune, yeah, absolute legends.
19:59
Speaker 3: Will do you.
20:00
Speaker 1: Try to seek any of them out? Or do you
20:02
Speaker 1: hope to run into anybody?
20:04
Speaker 2: You know? I think we usually do the group pictures
20:06
Speaker 2: and stuff. I know, I'll you know, hopefully at least
20:08
Speaker 2: get to say hey to them, because I literally I
20:10
Speaker 2: am a fan of everybody on that lineup.
20:12
Speaker 1: Man.
20:12
Speaker 2: That's it's pretty cool to just you know, and backstage.
20:15
Speaker 2: I'm sure I'll be in there when I'm not there's
20:17
Speaker 2: some media stuff around it, but to try to catch
20:19
Speaker 2: some of the sets and just see what it's like.
20:22
Speaker 2: I feel like we're all on the same team that night,
20:24
Speaker 2: you know, making sure that the fans in the building
20:26
Speaker 2: and the people streaming on Hulu are enjoying it, and
20:30
Speaker 2: I take this roster any day. Man, I'm excited to
20:33
Speaker 2: be a part.
20:34
Speaker 1: Of Hey, shout out to the Hulu plugs. I wasn't
20:36
Speaker 1: gonna work that in. Thank you for that chitching. When
20:41
Speaker 1: it comes to being invited to stuff like that, how
20:45
Speaker 1: what does that mean for you? Obviously you started as
20:48
Speaker 1: a fan, ye, you're a part of the game now.
20:50
Speaker 1: And when a lineup is announced and whether it's iHeart
20:53
Speaker 1: or it's stage coach, or it's wherever else you end
20:55
Speaker 1: up playing, and you see names like Brooks and Dunn.
20:59
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, and that's, like I said, there's been,
21:02
Speaker 2: you know, several full circle moments, I think, from from
21:05
Speaker 2: growing up falling in love with nineties country to doing
21:08
Speaker 2: songs with some of those artists are sharing the same
21:11
Speaker 2: stage and Brooks and Dunn, man, it's just legends, I mean.
21:16
Speaker 2: And to be even part of that lineup, you know,
21:19
Speaker 2: I'm sure there's a lot of us on that stage,
21:21
Speaker 2: everybody probably that feels the same way. And you know,
21:24
Speaker 2: but then you've got you know, people like Nate Smith
21:27
Speaker 2: that I've toured with, and tr and Sam and me.
21:29
Speaker 2: We all kind of came up at the same time.
21:32
Speaker 2: Megan Maroney's absolutely crushing it, Bailey. I mean, geez, it's
21:37
Speaker 2: I don't know, it's exciting talking about it and humbling
21:39
Speaker 2: knowing that because I know what you know, when they
21:41
Speaker 2: make that line up, they're trying to put together the
21:43
Speaker 2: best that they can do for them the festival the
21:46
Speaker 2: same way. I mean, it's just those are big deals
21:49
Speaker 2: to a lot of people, and to know that you
21:51
Speaker 2: have the responsibility to make sure, you know, everybody has
21:54
Speaker 2: a good time. I love that. Man. That fires me up.
21:58
Speaker 1: So I'm going to ask you as somebody who started
22:00
Speaker 1: as a country music fan, and I'm also gonna embarrassed
22:02
Speaker 1: at the same time, when she first met Garth and.
22:06
Speaker 2: Tris astray here, like, well, for real, that's part.
22:09
Speaker 3: To be fair, it's in her contract. She has to
22:11
Speaker 3: catch she has to catch a couple. But when she
22:16
Speaker 3: first met.
22:16
Speaker 2: Gartha, Trich's trying. Yeah, I'm like, but I'm talking.
22:19
Speaker 1: Not like, oh my god, no, it was.
22:23
Speaker 2: So I bet he's telling the story a little different.
22:28
Speaker 2: But listen through my eyes, all right, imagine that's what
22:32
Speaker 2: she felt like inside. Maybe, Yeah, that's what I'm saying.
22:35
Speaker 1: Have you ever have you ever had a moment like that,
22:38
Speaker 1: and maybe not hysterically Pride and Mac.
22:41
Speaker 2: Not like you acted like Tay is she didn't even
22:44
Speaker 2: do that. But actually, yes, And that's what I know
22:47
Speaker 2: what you mean by just there's just so many you know,
22:50
Speaker 2: you grow up on these songs and how much they
22:53
Speaker 2: mean to you, and then here you are meeting you know,
22:55
Speaker 2: the person that that did that. I mean mine was
22:58
Speaker 2: back at the ACMs years ago. I don't even remember chilling.
23:01
Speaker 2: It was the only thing I think I had out
23:03
Speaker 2: And We're walking by Tim and Faith and I'm telling
23:06
Speaker 2: my buddy Michael Monica, I'm like, this is it. I
23:07
Speaker 2: got to speak to him. I got to speak to him,
23:09
Speaker 2: and I got about from me to you to him
23:10
Speaker 2: and just kind of look down and walked right by
23:13
Speaker 2: him and uh no, no, no, no, no, no, that
23:16
Speaker 2: that did not that's not the same thing. Sorry, Right
23:18
Speaker 2: before I got to me and you to him, Yeah,
23:20
Speaker 2: he reached out his hand, That's what happened, and uh introduced.
23:23
Speaker 2: He's like, hey, Cole, I'm Tim and I just I
23:26
Speaker 2: honestly I couldn't even speak. I mean, it's embarrassing. I
23:29
Speaker 2: literally I was like, yeah, He's like, uh, you know,
23:32
Speaker 2: I listened to chilling it picking up my daughter's just
23:35
Speaker 2: always on. You know, I'm a big fan and I'm
23:37
Speaker 2: just like, man, and uh, I just I like, I
23:40
Speaker 2: think I put my head on his shoulder and just
23:42
Speaker 2: walked off. I didn't. I mean, he'd probably like, what
23:46
Speaker 2: was that? But I just honestly, I mean some you know,
23:49
Speaker 2: people like that. I wasn't expecting that for him to
23:51
Speaker 2: reach out. I wanted to talk to him, and I'm like, nope,
23:53
Speaker 2: I'd already decided I wasn't, and he just I don't know,
23:56
Speaker 2: I talked to me for a few minutes and just uh,
23:59
Speaker 2: stuff like that. Man that you know, I hadn't felt
24:01
Speaker 2: like that too many times meeting somebody. It's just it
24:03
Speaker 2: was emotional, I think, you know, I had my eyes
24:06
Speaker 2: were watering and didn't couldn't really speak, so I just
24:09
Speaker 2: tapped him, patted him on the shoulder and kept walking like.
24:12
Speaker 3: I don't know.
24:12
Speaker 2: He probably thought I was, you know, not very cool.
24:16
Speaker 3: Uh Uh.
24:18
Speaker 1: As we wrap things up, I want to ask, like
24:20
Speaker 1: I said, country music it's in such a cool spot
24:22
Speaker 1: right now because there's it used to be like, hey,
24:25
Speaker 1: that's not country. Yeah, and then it was well that
24:28
Speaker 1: sounds country and now it's like from post Malone to
24:32
Speaker 1: Beyonce to Morgan to You to Zach Top.
24:35
Speaker 3: I mean, country is And it's.
24:38
Speaker 2: Funny to me the people that still complain it's like
24:40
Speaker 2: with all the ways you can find music and listen to,
24:43
Speaker 2: it's just go listen to what you want to listen to.
24:46
Speaker 2: I mean, it's just uh, but I do think it
24:48
Speaker 2: makes it better. It brings everybody in. And you know,
24:51
Speaker 2: like I said, I mean somebody that is doing well
24:54
Speaker 2: in our format, I mean they're gonna probably look and
24:56
Speaker 2: find other artists and hey, that artist might be you
24:58
Speaker 2: that they stumble across. So I think, think, you know,
25:01
Speaker 2: I'm just one of those artists. I you know, I'd
25:03
Speaker 2: want people pulling from now pulling for them. I just
25:05
Speaker 2: think it's better for all of us in the in
25:07
Speaker 2: the long run. And uh, you know, the country radio
25:10
Speaker 2: that supports us and you know make sure that you
25:13
Speaker 2: know we stay around is just you can't thank them enough.
25:16
Speaker 2: So it's a it's an honor.
25:17
Speaker 1: So so as a guy who's been around over ten
25:20
Speaker 1: years in the format, who are some of your closest
25:23
Speaker 1: friends that you're proud to be doing this with and
25:25
Speaker 1: not the guys that guys and girls that like you're
25:28
Speaker 1: close with, whether it's a creative process or touring or
25:31
Speaker 1: you talked about being close with with Sam and t R.
25:34
Speaker 3: Yeah, I like that.
25:35
Speaker 2: Yeah, TR has a bit. We've you know, toured together
25:38
Speaker 2: a couple of times and just having those conversations that
25:41
Speaker 2: only I feel like we understand. You know, people from
25:45
Speaker 2: the outside may think it's all you know, bright lights
25:48
Speaker 2: and just good times, and some of it is, but
25:52
Speaker 2: it's also there's a lot of pressure and just you know,
25:55
Speaker 2: the demand to keep doing this and this, and it's
25:58
Speaker 2: just you're the only one that can, you know, do it.
26:01
Speaker 2: So it's just it's a lot. But I think, you know,
26:02
Speaker 2: people like TR obviously new artists are so excited for
26:07
Speaker 2: Grayland James, Me and him have become pretty close, and
26:09
Speaker 2: I just I don't know, I remember when I was
26:11
Speaker 2: right there where he was, and you know, he's he's
26:15
Speaker 2: become a good buddy mine, George Burge. He's a big
26:18
Speaker 2: golfer like me. So it's just cool seeing whether like
26:21
Speaker 2: I said, it's hard, we don't get to spend a
26:23
Speaker 2: whole lot of time together, but Luke see him every
26:26
Speaker 2: now and then. He's obviously, Uh, we're still buddies and
26:29
Speaker 2: just uh yeah, man, I'm thankful to, like I said,
26:33
Speaker 2: to get to do it along side of them, and
26:35
Speaker 2: I'm thankful for their friendships because that's I think, that's
26:38
Speaker 2: just a special, special bond that we kind of only
26:40
Speaker 2: understand on some sort of situations.
26:43
Speaker 1: And as a guy who has done this at a
26:44
Speaker 1: high level for so long, who are names not like
26:49
Speaker 1: you know, Luke Bryan Jason Thin, but like when you
26:52
Speaker 1: look at this next wave of country artists me have
26:55
Speaker 1: three years, like within the last three years, now, who
26:59
Speaker 1: are who are artists? Since you've seen this for so long,
27:02
Speaker 1: who are artists that you look at now and you're
27:04
Speaker 1: like this formats in good hands because of this person,
27:07
Speaker 1: this person, this person.
27:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean I think obviously you know, I don't
27:13
Speaker 2: know if you were not talking about those I'm talking
27:15
Speaker 2: like that came after me, like Luke, Colmbs and Bailey Zimmerman.
27:19
Speaker 2: You know, Megan Maroney is killing Ella Langley, you know
27:24
Speaker 2: Riley obviously doing well. Who I think who else I
27:28
Speaker 2: was thinking of? But no, it's I mean, there's just
27:31
Speaker 2: so many great artists out there, and I think, uh,
27:34
Speaker 2: you know, everybody does their own thing. I think it's
27:36
Speaker 2: a little a little different, and it's it's cool to
27:39
Speaker 2: have them all on our on our side.
27:41
Speaker 1: Uh you brought up golf, by the way, we had
27:44
Speaker 1: Chris Young in here not long ago.
27:45
Speaker 3: Have you golfed with Nate Smith before?
27:48
Speaker 2: I have not. We've talked about it, and we always
27:50
Speaker 2: said on we were both on the Thomas Rhett Tour
27:52
Speaker 2: and He's like, we gotta you gotta teach me how
27:53
Speaker 2: to golf. I'm like, man, I'm not the best teacher,
27:55
Speaker 2: but I'd love to play. But we've never uh never played.
27:58
Speaker 1: We talked to Chris Young and if you need to
27:59
Speaker 1: be up on somebody, if you need to feel better about.
28:01
Speaker 2: Your golf game too, yes, okay, well man, it's a
28:04
Speaker 2: tough game, that's what. Honestly, it's the most humbling sport
28:07
Speaker 2: in the world. I think we were I got to
28:09
Speaker 2: play some over in Australia, Cody Johnson, So I was
28:11
Speaker 2: going to say I obviously was label mate, but I
28:14
Speaker 2: mean watching his show just I don't know. I hadn't
28:17
Speaker 2: seen his show in a while and we were over
28:18
Speaker 2: in Australia and just he's just a real deal.
28:21
Speaker 1: Man.
28:21
Speaker 2: I think having people like that that are also good
28:24
Speaker 2: to people. I mean, he's we've you know, he's always
28:26
Speaker 2: been good to me and just I'm I'm a big
28:28
Speaker 2: fan of his. So I didn't talk him in to
28:31
Speaker 2: play in any golf. He was off rope and doing
28:33
Speaker 2: his thing. I was off making bogie. So we had
28:36
Speaker 2: had a good trip over there that I wanted to
28:37
Speaker 2: give him a shout out because he and his team
28:39
Speaker 2: are awesome.
28:40
Speaker 3: That's so awesome, man. What are the plans this summer then?
28:43
Speaker 2: Man? Just uh, you know, festivals and just promoting this album.
28:48
Speaker 2: It's it's been, it's it's gonna be busy. But like
28:51
Speaker 2: my team tells me, you didn't had to do this
28:53
Speaker 2: in over two and a half years. Saddle up, you know,
28:55
Speaker 2: it's time to go to work. And I'm just excited.
28:57
Speaker 2: You know, when you have something like this album that
29:00
Speaker 2: you're fired up for people to hear, you know. I'm
29:01
Speaker 2: gonna be honest, I didn't feel like that about the
29:03
Speaker 2: project as a whole for a long time and just
29:06
Speaker 2: everything always works out at just the right time and
29:08
Speaker 2: how it's supposed to. And now just to have that
29:10
Speaker 2: feeling back of man, I cannot wait for people to
29:12
Speaker 2: hear this whole thing, not just these couple songs like
29:15
Speaker 2: I can't wait for people to listen from top to
29:17
Speaker 2: bottom and just kind of see what we've been working
29:20
Speaker 2: on for so long, Dude.
29:21
Speaker 3: Cole Swindell making it just getting cribs.
29:26
Speaker 2: I'm going to do the new cribs. How about that?
29:29
Speaker 2: Did we just come up with something?
29:30
Speaker 3: All right? Appreciate your brother