SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 15, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Country star Walker Hayes is a true southern gentleman.
About 13 minutes into our phone interview, which I’ve been allotted 15 minutes for, a usual practice, I realize I have a few more questions I’m dying to ask him. I apologize and tell him I’m aware we have only a couple of minutes left. Hayes, who’s chatting to me from the front porch of his home in Estill Springs, Tennessee, kindly and without hesitation responds: “Don’t worry about time, I’ve got nothing else. …”
This is exactly the sort of down-home, generous and laid-back spirit that the Mobile, Alabama-born singer-songwriter has become known for.
Hayes and his wife, Laney, moved to Tennessee back in 2004, but his road to success has not always been paved with gold. Hayes was initially signed to Capitol Records Nashville, and released two singles — “Pants” and “Why Wait for Summer” — in 2010 and 2011, respectively. He subsequently parted ways with the label. Laney was then pregnant with their fifth child, and eventually, Hayes took a job stocking shelves from 4 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Costco to make ends meet; the hours allowed him to still make songwriting appointments and play shows at night. At that time, he was also struggling with alcoholism; he’s now been sober for eight years.
Things took a turn in his professional life when singer-songwriter-producer Shane McAnally recognized his talent. Hayes has a lyric-heavy, groove-based and truth-infused style that caught the ear of McAnally, who immediately signed Hayes to his SMACK music house in 2016. Sony Music then announced the relaunching of their label Monument Records in January 2017, with respected industry veterans Jason Owen and McAnally serving as co-presidents, and Hayes was named as one of two leading artists for the label.
Three years ago, Hayes’ music career witnessed a massive resurgence with “Fancy Like,” a song that became a sensation and solidified his presence in the country music world.
And perhaps surprisingly, that was partly thanks to TikTok. A dance created by Hayes’ daughter Lela to the song, featuring the father and daughter duo, went viral, introducing his music to a wider audience. “Fancy Like” spent more than six months at the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart, hit the Top 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Songs and No. 1 on country radio, and gave Hayes his first Grammy Award nomination as an artist for Best Country Song. The song was also featured in a nationwide Applebee’s commercial. That track, as well as follow up singles “AA” and “Y’all Life” have made Hayes one of the top-selling and streamed artists in country music.
Hayes has performed his music, including the Double-Platinum RIAA certified hit “You Broke Up With Me,” to national audiences on “Good Morning America,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and “TODAY.”
In April, Hayes released his latest album, “Sober Thoughts,” a collection of songs that delve deeper into his life experiences, including his struggles with addiction and the heartbreak of losing a child.
The family is also involved with charity work; the Be A Craig Fund was established by Hayes as a tribute to a man named Craig who gave Hayes’ family a van when they were struggling. The vehicle was big enough for all of the Hayes children to have a seat belt.
Following the success of Hayes’ “The Duck Buck Tour” and the “Glad You’re Here” tour, this summer he is headlining the “Same Drunk” tour that will take him from coast to coast. The tour kicked off in Cincinnati, Ohio, on May 30, and will wrap up in Saratoga Springs, New York, on Sept. 1. He then goes on to perform at numerous music festivals. Hayes will be playing Sandy Amphitheater on Aug. 14, supported by Kylie Morgan. Limited tickets are still available here.
Hayes spoke to us from his front porch from his home in Estill Springs, which is between Chattanooga and Nashville, on Thursday, July 11. He described how he and his family were due to board the tour bus that night for his next three shows.
We asked Hayes what his musical influences were when he was growing up.
“I was more of just a Top 40 guy,” he said. “I was the type of kid who went and bought CDs for one song, and it was usually just that artist’s biggest hit, because that’s usually all I was exposed to. And I just listened to the radio and what was ever on a jukebox, and then that would influence me to go buy someone’s album, and I mean, it was across the board; my first tape was a Tone Loc tape, my first CD was a Mariah Carey CD — her “Vision of Love” album.
“I’d say my first country album was probably Alan Jackson or Sammy Kershaw, or one of the others, but I listened to a lot of rap also. I listened to Coolio, I mean, I was just, honestly, a typical ’90s kid. I was just exposed to the big bangers at that time and dove deep. And then I also, you know, I shopped for CDs. So if I went in and, you know, I filled out my card and I got a free CD, I would usually take a risk on, like, The Presidents of the United States of America, or Sublime, or some of the fringe heavy metal. I mean, I even listened to Megadeth and some Metallica growing up. So it wasn’t, there was no common thread in the music that I purchased or that I invested in; it was just, I enjoyed the library.”
We asked Hayes if his tastes in music have continued to be wide-ranging.
“Yeah, I mean, lately, my 18-year-old daughter and I have, we have listened through and through to Sabrina Carpenter’s new stuff, Billie Eilish’s new stuff,” he said. “And then there’s some contemporary classical stuff that I’ve been listening to. Me and Laney took the kids to ‘Shucked,’ the Broadway musical. We were on the boat yesterday and just cranked up ‘Shucked.'”
I mention to Hayes that “Shucked” premiered in Utah, at Pioneer Theatre Company, and that we interviewed his friend and collaborator McAnally, who wrote the score along with Brandy Clark.
Hayes told me that he and McAnally are currently working on a Broadway musical about a scarecrow.
“We’ve only written maybe two songs for it, but it is going to be insane,” he said. “We’re kind of in the assembling the team part of it. ‘Shucked’ inspired me at a time when I was feeling uninspired, and I just want to dive into that space so bad, and a few years ago, a man approached us with an idea about a scarecrow, so that, and not only the musical side, but maybe pairing it with like an animated version. It’s super cool.”
He added: “We just love music that makes us feel something, and obviously, that’s across the board with my kids. One of my kids, he’s 16, his name is Chapel, and he is the type of listener that when he is into an artist, it’s just that artist. He’s really the only one, and honestly we’re very into what he shows us, he rarely shows us something that divides us. He’s big into [rapper, singer, songwriter] NF, and [actor, rapper, and internet personality] Connor Price. We’re really, really just all about music and creativity, there’s no just one genre.
“You know, even when I am asked about country music, I wouldn’t say that I’m just this, wake up, die-hard, country only, country guy. I’m not like that at all; I do have the deepest level of respect for a type of country music writing, like lyricism, that exists sometimes in country songs and not always. Not every country song is phenomenally written, but a lot of them are; a lot of country songs are really, really great. And that holds true in all genres, but I do think with country, it has had phases where it was just above the rest, as far as the lyricism. So, you know, that’s why I’m in Nashville, that’s why I wanted to work here, because I wanted to be part of that.”
I mention to Hayes that it seems like his music is influenced by other genres, such as pop and rap.
“Yeah, I definitely don’t … see those lines on paper when I’m writing a song. If it feels right, I do it. … I don’t cross the barrier with any intention,” he said. “I think that’s true with most singer-songwriters; they don’t. We think less about what genre lines we’re crossing. We just think: ‘Yes, I like that, and that sounds good.’ So yeah, I mean, most of the writers I write with do a lot less aiming for … especially now that I have a touring career, I would have used to have written my music more with the aim and purpose of getting it past certain gatekeepers. And now, when I write, I think of the live show: Can I sing this song, and can they digest it in a live setting, even if it’s a brand new song that they’re unfamiliar with? And so that, that doesn’t really narrow the window; it actually kind of makes it bigger.”
We also asked Hayes if he could tell us more about this tour and what audiences can expect.
“Yeah, the tour, it really has no boundaries,” Hayes said. “Every version of me is exposed on the tour; we even do a little bit of Nelly’s ‘Country Grammar.’ He’s a co-writer on ‘Y’all Life,’ so we were like, ‘Let’s throw in part of that, because everybody knows that.’ And then we also do, I also have to stick in Coolio, because we are doing ‘Halloween’ and I break off into a Coolio song. But, we’re on 11, I mean, it is just pyro, we’re jumping around, we’re sweating. Then we also bring it down to just me, you know, and a drummer and a bass, and we bring it down to, like a little, we call it a Puckett section because we used to play at a restaurant called Puckett’s. And we bring my two little girls out on stage and there’s no track, just the instruments you see, and a lot of times it’s just the guitar, me and the girls, and we sing whatever we’re feeling that night. In Hyannis last weekend, I just played a song called ‘Ballplayer’ that I just recently wrote. So there’s a lot of things that happen each night that don’t happen every night. To me, those are some of the most electric parts of the show. But it is a vast, vast amount of emotions. I mean, I know that people regularly cry two, three times.
“And it’s an awesome band; we still have those bangers. My drummer Luke DeJaynes designed the show, and there were very few changes made to it. I mean, I showed up at rehearsals and was kind of blown away, and so, yeah, it is really a show that I am truly proud of. Every Wednesday night the bus picks us up; I’m excited to do the show, which is not always the case. Sometimes shows become quite monotonous, but this one, it entertains even me, and there’s a lot to be said for that.”
Hayes also takes his entire family on the road with him.
“Oh yeah, yeah, they go everywhere with me, I mean I wouldn’t do it, if they didn’t,” he said. “My daughter, she’s one of the dancers, so I have my three girls involved. I’m looking for ways to get the boys involved. My middle son makes these amazing necklaces and bracelets, and sells them at merch and stuff. And then one of my sons is a graphic designer and he had a lot to do with some of the T-shirts, but yeah, I’m just always trying to keep the family involved. They definitely carry me out there. I would not be able to do it if I didn’t get to be a dad at the same time, it’s pretty amazing.”
We also asked Hayes, as he seems like such a down-to-earth person, with normal guy struggles, whether it’s important to him that he communicate that to his fans, whether it’s date night at Applebee’s, trying to stay out of AA, or keeping his blowup Grinch in his yard until March.
“Yeah, I’d say like, some of it is on purpose, and some of it is not,” he said. “My wife, my kids, we moved to Nashville in 2004, and so I knew I would never, ever stop writing. You don’t ever have to quit chasing that dream as long as you live, as long as you can pick up a pen, you can write a song. And I think just what we went through, and some of those, some of the addiction struggles I had to battle, I think some of those have really, by the grace of God, humbled me. And I don’t know, I always told my team, you know, I was around a lot of famous people, and I noticed that fame can really magnify some of your flaws. You know, if you’re not a good person, when you become famous, it multiplies that times 10. And I’m not a perfect person, and so I’m very aware, I’m aware of the effects of fame. I know that sometimes, when I walk in a room, if people notice me, I think: ‘I wish I could have a minute of privacy,’ you know?
“But I also realize that sometimes if I walk into a room and they don’t know it’s me, there’s a part of me that goes: ‘Don’t you know what I did? Don’t you know who I am?’ And I don’t like that part of me, but I’m aware of it. It is definitely important to me to remind myself, I’m just a person, I’m just human. I’m not some super dad, I’m not some superhuman. I’m really just like everyone else. And I think by fighting that battle, praying about it, and honestly talking. Like I talk to my kids about it all the time; I need to talk to them, they’ve become celebrities through this also; we discuss it a lot, and I think being aware of it has helped us fight that battle inside our home. And I think that translates when we go out. I think if you bring your family to my show and you watch us, you go, he’s just, they’re just parents. I mean, he’s just a guy who loves his job, and loves his wife and kids the he best can, and he failed a lot at it, and I think that’s everybody. So I’m glad, I’m glad that comes across most of the time.”
We asked Hayes if he has a proudest onstage moment.
“I think one thing for me personally that wasn’t a letdown and never is, is hearing an audience, singing word for word, a song that you feel very strongly about,” he said. “And so by that, I mean, I think a lot of things are a letdown, I mean, you think, if I only I could sell a million T-shirts, and then you do, and you’re like: ‘It wasn’t that great,’ but hearing a crowd singing ‘AA,’ that’s a very special; it’s kind of indescribable. And it is a moment that I go: ‘Man, I wish each and everyone in this audience could just stand in my boots and just feel these goosebumps.’ It’s awesome, and it’s fleeting; you know, it comes and goes. And there are some nights where you go: ‘Oh, they weren’t, they weren’t loud enough tonight. What was wrong with them?’ There’s that stuff.
“But I will say the unexpected, biggest, proudest moments I feel, I mean honestly, are anytime I look at my 18-year-old daughter, you know, face to face, and we’re just smiling, we’re just sharing the stage, or I’m looking at, you know, my wife, she’s next to me on stage, and I’m able to tell people, you know, how we met, and I can look over and smile at her at the same time. I mean, anything family-related, and then also the team, I mean the team I work with, like those are my work friends that get to be my relationships. I mean we’ll speak at each other’s funerals, you know? It’s that kind of family out there on the road. So honestly, that’s the proudest moment.
“And anytime, anytime we see the Lord is using us for better stuff, when a fan comes up and goes: ‘Hey, I’m 25 days sober and I was inspired by your music,’ or, you know, a couple comes up, and says: ‘We have been having some tough times, but we as a family have been watching your trick shots, [he and his family have embarked on a challenge to attempt a different trick shot every day for an entire year] they’ve been such a useful experience,’ and just any way where we can go, you know, that’s not us, that’s the Lord working through us. Those are proud moments.”
Finally, we asked Hayes what a perfect day would be for him.
“Shoot, I mean a perfect day for me, I know this sounds just cheesy, but I mean, I just love just waking up, just diving into the word, talking to the Lord, and then just observing, and just being next to my family and being next to my wife and my kids and watching them do their thing,” he said. “That’s about it. I mean, I love that God is giving me songs, you know, the songs on my heart, and then if I have one [a song], I love to sit and noodle on it, you know, that’s the best for me. That’s one of the greatest releases he gave me, was: ‘Oh, an idea.’ An idea is very precious. But, just, you know, being with my family, some of those days, it’s just double, if I get to do a show and Laney’s parents are out with us, and I’m with my team, and the crowd’s electric, I mean that’s a pretty perfect day.”
For more information about Hayes, and for tickets to the Utah show, click here.
