The Bobby Bones Show - A Message from Bobby + BONUS: BobbyCast with #306 - Brothers Osborne on their Radio Success vs. Ticket Sales + Why TJ Decided To Tell His Story + John on Taking a Break from Music for Mental Health

Episode Date: August 8, 2021

Bobby sits down with two of his favorites, Brothers Osborne. They give their genesis story of how they went from playing in the family band to deciding to pursue a career as a duo. TJ and John talk about how they feel like they haven’t had the most success at country radio but take pride in their tours and live shows which has become the meter by which they gauge their success. TJ also opens up about why he decided to come out earlier this year and John opens up about a time during the band’s career where he had to take time off of music for his mental health. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Hey friends, Bobby here. Okay, thanks for checking out the Bobby Bone Show podcast. Obviously, that's why you're on this feed. I appreciate you listening and subscribing. But also, like I do, it better be, I don't know, 34 months here, I want to recommend to you the Bobbycast, which is my music podcast that I do from my house. You know, I sit down with your favorite artists.

Most of them are country. Occasionally not. Like this week, Lisa Loeb is on. Next week, we have lined up Adam Durrett's from the Counting Crows. Mostly it's country, but I wanted to play you a really good one that we did a few weeks ago. So if you like this, you can go subscribe to the Bobbycast. I mean, it's deep dive stuff. We're there for an hour.

You get to know them. And so I wanted to share this conversation that I had with Brothers Osborne. They opened a lot about the struggles they've had over the past couple of years. T.J. talked about why he decided to finally share his story. Same thing. Both these guys came on and were just so honest and pretty cool conversation. If you don't mind, be sure to subscribe to the Bobbycast. Just search for it wherever you listen to your podcast.

And if you hit that follow button and you leave us a five-star review that helps us out a lot. And it's also good luck for you. So if you believe in luck, if you do that today, you will have good luck. And if you don't, you'll have bad luck. All right. Here it is, Brothers Osborne that was featured a few weeks ago on the Bobbycast. In studio now with Brothers Osborne, which I was on my Pelotone. I don't know if either one of you guys ride the Peloton at all.

Do you even have one? I bought one. Okay. I don't have one. And it looks great sitting in my house. But you understand the concept of it. You get on, there's people on. Sometimes you're live.

Sometimes you're not. And I'm on and one of you guys' songs come on. And I'm riding along to it. Do you, like, how does that deal get worked out? Because they got a lot of trouble for playing everybody's music. And now they can't play everybody's music. They can only play some. We have no idea what's going on ever.

I mean, I don't, we don't know. I did wonder about that. But it can't be. like the most like extravagant amount of money. No. Would it just be probably the same as a stream? Like 0.000.

That's what I'm thinking. Yeah. Like, okay, let's go after him so we can make $75. You know, like I'm just like, just use it. I don't know. But it was a nice mix of music.

It was like Drake. And you could tell the, the girl was like 19 and blonde and you know, kind of bubbly. And she was like, I just love Brothers Osborne. I didn't believe her. Not that you guys aren't able to be loved.

No. But she was going one after the other. It was like, I'm big. I'm a big Drake fan. Oh, this is Lil' baby. I just love Brothers Osborne. And I was like, does she really?

Or is this just a good sounding song? No, it's probably just a good sound and song. That's probably the answer. That's what our next album's going to be featuring Little Baby. He's like featured on every, I don't even know a little baby song. I don't even know a little baby. Little Baby. Well, there's little baby and then there's Duh baby.

Dab baby. Don't get them confused. I know. Because if you do, that's insulting to both of them. Little baby. I just assumed to not say anyone's name ever. I don't do it in person. I don't do it anymore.

Meaning if I were to just have seen you around and I'm like, I think I know that guy's name, but I'm not going to bet. I don't even know if I met him, but I'm not sure. Hey man, good to see you again. Yeah, what's up, buddy? You can't go wrong with Good to See ya.

No. You can't tell everyone our trade secrets here. No, this is a Nashville trade secret that everyone knows about. In fact, the good to see it is a very, is the Nashville hello because we meet a lot of people here. we see people every day. And, you know, especially when they're not in the right context, it takes your brain that compartmentalizes things.

A second to realize who they are. And I met Kenny Rogers, you know, RIP. I met Kenny Rogers a few years ago. And he did a good to see it to me. And I was like, that is amazing for a multitude of reasons. One, he did the Nashville hello, the good to see you. Two, he doesn't know if he's ever met me or not. So he said, good to see you.

Three, I'm a thousand percent sure I had never met Kenny Rogers. That's awesome. And he was super cool. I saw Mike Dungan, who's a big deal here in town. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I saw him at like a grocery store, and my mind just wouldn't put him in a grocery store, and I couldn't remember who it was.

I've talked to him a thousand times. I think he's been in here. Yes. And I know him, if I were to see him at a show, I would be like, Mike, what's up, buddy? Because we were near carrots, I was like, can't compute. I know who that is. I can totally relate to that.

The environment's not the same thing. Yeah. Have you guys played yet? Have you guys done shows yet? We've done some shows. We, um, seven shows maybe? Yeah, we, uh, yeah, it was our third, we just finished our third weekend out and it's been a lot of fun. We've, a couple of them have been festivals, which has been a lot of fun.

And then we just recently, this past weekend did some of our first, like, headline shows. Um, and that's been really fun because we put a record out last year. And, uh, it's, one, it's obviously awesome to get back in front of fans again. But it's also the first time that we've been able to perform our new music to anybody and just kind of see what they're responding. two and not to mention we've had some more singles out since last time we toured. So being able to add those into the set, it's been a lot of fun. And this year we, I know some people wanted to like dial it back a little bit and kind of get some of their money back they lost through the pandemic.

We did the opposite. We're like, let's lose more money. No, we really try to step our live show up this time around. We always do. But obviously as you grow, you can only grow as fast as your budget allows you to. But this time around we were like, you know, I think we just, we just, we don't. just really wanted to put on a show that just stood out from the rest, considering everyone is going back on tour right now. So I feel really good about it. We put a lot of work into it,

but I'm excited for the fans, especially the fans that have seen us. A dozen plus, you know, 50, some of these people have seen so many shows. I'm like, how do you afford to do this? I know. I know. I feel self-conscious. And there's someone, like, there's a particular, Katie, who I know will be listening to this at some point. She has seen nearly 100 shows. And it makes you self-conscious. You're like, you've heard this same damn. bit and routine a hundred times how can you find this interest i'm falling the sleep up here how can you find this interesting you know what's great about music and there's a lot of great things but as opposed to what i do when i tour and i do stand up is that you guys can play it ain't my fault for 10 years

yeah if i work hard and i have the and i have a joke and i've got four or five of them that i'll do any i'll do a corporate gig still because they they didn't ever come watch me tour but if i write a joke or i have a whole bit that's like three or four minutes and i've just died i've cut it just right dialed i got my my everything's down yeah I can do it once. Yep, that's it. That's all you get. And I can never do it again.

It is, although I have seen some comedians, and we've had some friends of ours who go out and do that, and they'll do like one kind of like, okay, there's all the new material. I'm going to do the greatest hit. Like, here's the one that really made me famous. And it still is funny when you get to hearing it. If you address it as a greatest hit, nothing I've ever done has been great. So I'm like, what are I going to do? Here's the mediocre one that I worked on for six months. The only time I've, I even covered a joke one.

The first time that the Opry hadn't had a lot of comedians on for a long time after Because there was the whole 90s boxworthy Oh yeah Yeah we were just backstage there and they just did like a whole reel of the comedians and it was awesome right? Totally incredible. I'm like where is that? So as bringing it back So they had come to me Sally Williams who used to run the opera It was like hey we really want to get back into comedy and we know that

One you're funny two you can implement a little music and three you're clean We don't have to worry about you because I love the opera My grandmother made me I didn't at first. My grandmother made me, when I was like seven. I was like, why am I watching this over?

Right. But then you, I have a real affinity. I produce a TV show for the opera now. Oh, yeah. And so the first time I got to go on and do comedy,

I went up and I did my whole set, 11 minutes, you know, it's not like the opera is a full half hour. Yeah. But 11 minutes, that's a long, that's a lot of content. Yeah.

I mean, I would normally do an hour, right, when I was doing theaters. But I, and it's also a weird crowd because they didn't come to see me. Some of them don't even know who I am. Yes, they do. Some of them are 90. They don't even know what I'm talking about.

It feels the same way. It feels the same way for us when we play there. I mean, I love playing it for a multitude of reasons, but it can be a really hard crowd to play to. And at the very end, it's the only time I've covered a joke. It was, I said, hey, I said, for all you guys out there, like, this is special for me because my life, I watch the opera. Or I listen to the opera, depending on when it was on TV, on TNN or. Oh, yeah.

I said, and my grandmother, who's not alive anymore and adopted me for a long part of my life, I said, her favorite comedian was Jerry Clower. And we would watch Jerry Clower on the Opry, that we'd watch him. And it seems like he was on every month. And so I did my favorite Jerry Clower joke. And I did it. And to me, even though I didn't write that joke,

that's the best freaking joke I've ever told. Because it actually meant something to me. To you, yeah. Oh, no. Well, you know what? Especially when you're a new artist out and you start playing songs and you get like your first single, it's kind of doing something.

And then you cover Hank Williams. And everyone goes bananas for it. You know, it's literally, oh, man. Yeah, there's this great special called Talking Funny. It's like Luis C.K., Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, and Ricky Jervais. And Jerry Seinfeld said something that, for me, kind of resonated in a very strange way. You know, a musician will get up. We'll get up and play a song.

Even if it's a new song, we have roughly three to four and maybe five minutes. And we play this song, right? And then they decide whether it's cool or not. Whereas a musician, or sorry, a comedian, they're judged like every 10 to 15 seconds. so and it can really go off the rail so if we do a song that was like wow that wasn't really much well let's just do it in my fault and we'll win them back a comedian they're judged judged judge judge so it takes a lot of guts I've really thought about that yeah and once I feel like once a comedian loses the room they very rarely get it back unless yeah unless and I'll say this

because when I will do a theater 15 to 2,000 people right and they weren't a theater and they came to see me and I know the first 10 minutes they're giving me for free because they're just happy to be there yes I can go out and just be like what What's up, everybody? Yeah. They laugh. Yeah, yeah. They're funny.

Oh, yeah. There's always a mark between like 11 and 15 where you got to start to earn, start to earn that ticket. And I will really hit them with the hits, the moderately decent stuff, around 11 to 15, and then I'll start to sprinkling some new stuff. And when it doesn't work, I have the one crutch that some comedians don't, or I just grab my guitar and I play a funny. And you can hide behind a guitar. Oh, yeah. You literally can. Story of my life.

I can play. Literally. I do that frequently. I do want to talk about the genesis of the group. Because you guys haven't ever done this podcast here before. But I do want to talk about the genesis, which I know and obviously you guys know. But to a lot of my friends who love your music from kind of the outside edges, they're like, which one has the beard?

Which one doesn't? But you have the beard too. It's very obvious which one they're referring to. I refer to when they say beard. I like have a very, very, you know, tight beard situation. And John is so bearded that people just automatically think that I'm clean-shaven. Honest to God, if I were to close my eyes without looking at you and said, who has the beard and who doesn't, I would have bet money you didn't have a beard. People say the clean-shaven one.

And I'm like, I haven't shaved in my eight years. Honestly, do you guys watch the office at all? Oh, yeah. They're debating if Stanley has a mustache. If you would have done that with you and your beard, I would have said you didn't have a beer. It's amazing. I mean, comparatively speaking, though, if you were sitting next to Bobby, you would have a beer, but you're sitting next to me. Yeah, exactly.

His is tightly, tightly shaved, and mine's very, I got a loose beard. The Bobby Bone Show is proud to be supported by Grand Canyon University, an affordable, private, non-profit Christian University based in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. They say higher education is outdated, irrelevant. Well, GCU doesn't settle for the status quo. They shatter it. At GCU, academically rigorous, industry-driven programs are built to move at the speed of relevance, with practical skills, career readiness, and opportunity for every learner. GCU believes education shouldn't be a privilege, but an affordable path forward for all.

Grounded in Christian truth, GCU works to empower the next generation to lead with integrity, serve with purpose, and help transform their communities, building a future that matters. GCU is purpose-driven education. Take action. Find your purpose at GCU, private Christian affordable nonprofit. Visit gCU.edu to learn more. Make every day feel epic in the all-new Hyundai Palisade Hybrid. The Palisade Hybrid is packed full of features, cutting edge tech, and up to an EPA estimated 619 miles of range on select trims and class leading interior space. Available front and second row relaxation seats.

Available class exclusive blind spot view monitor. Class Exclusive Dash camera feature, 2.5T hybrid engine with up to an EPA estimated 619 miles of range on select trims, seating configurations for 7-8 passengers, available H-track all-wheel drive so you can be ready to go anywhere in style. Including standard 100-watt USBC ports, available Bose 14 speaker audio and standard passenger talk driver intercom. Learn more about the Hyundai Palisade at HyundaiUSA.com. Call 562-3-4603 for complete details. All right, if you have ever dealt with a traditional home security company, you know the drill. Expensive monthly fees, contracts that lock you in for years, and waiting around for a technician to set everything up. It's a lot. Well, now they're Simply Safe.

They have completely changed the game. Simply Safe has no long-term contracts, no hidden fees, no being trapped. They earn your business by actually keeping you safe, not by locking you in. Setting up is so easy. You customize your system at... It's simplysafe.com. It ships to your door in a few days. And with the app guided setup, you can have everything installed and armed in under an hour. No technician needed. And it's not just a camera. It's a full ecosystem of sensors, cameras for inside and outside, and 24-7 professional

monitoring. If there's ever a break-in, a fire, or a flood, SimplySafe's agents are on it immediately. They were also named America's best customer service by Newsweek, which honestly tracks. Right now, you can get 50% off your new system by visiting simplysafe.com slash bones. That's half off at simplysafe.com slash bones. There's no safe like simply safe. This show is brought to you by better help. Financial stress is one of the things that we don't always talk about, but it hits harder than we realize. It's not just numbers in a bank account. It's the anxiety that keeps you up at night. It's the tension that it can create in relationships. and that constant feeling of,

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Sign up and get 10% off at BetterHelp.com slash Bobby. That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P.com slash Bobby. Betterhelp.com slash Bobby. Let's go back to the beginning of just you guys' childhood. And when you started to play music, because John, you're older? Correct. How much older?

Two and a half years. Does that mean that you had two and a half years of music before TJ ever started doing music? Not really. Not really. You know, our parents played music. And it was just always around. And we both, I don't know, I think we both kind of got into it roughly at the same time. Probably roughly, but, you know, I think, you know, really the thing is,

it's kind of weird to think about. I was thinking about this the other day. Someone asked about your parents, they play. And I was like, yeah, they do. And it made me think about really the first time that both John and I really wanted to learn how to play and learn how to contribute music to any degree. It was simply just so we could join the family, or mainly our dad and our uncle and our cousin who played just at the kitchen table. It was like, God, if I can, because they wouldn't let us just come there and bang on a guitar and make nonsense. They were like, if you learn how to play and you can come and play, then do that.

So we were like, oh man, I can't wait to play at the kitchen table. That was like the, that was the mark. And so that, and then to really think about going this far, I mean, you kind of dream about that. I think every kid does, you know. But wow, I mean, it's been such a long way. But that was really kind of the first thing that let the fire under us was just simply so we could just kind of join the family around the kitchen table. I remember when I just started playing guitar. And I started when I was around 12 or 13.

and all I wanted to do was play around the table like he said with our dad our uncle bill and our cousin Johnny and they wouldn't let me because I had to practice and they were right they said that we want you to practice and you can't just thumb around you have to be good enough to play and then um that gave that inspired me to actually want to be good enough to be able to play at the kitchen table with everybody that's we're all starting another thing it was really cool in that moment is both particularly our dad and our Uncle Bill had originals that, you know, our Uncle Bill grew up in a band. And he was adopted at a young age, and we didn't get to, my dad didn't even know him until really later in life. And when they met each other, they were both musicians and both wrote songs.

And bought the same guitar. They both had the same ovation. Quick sidebar that nature or nurture. Yeah, who knows, man. It's a little bit of both, I'd imagine. Really crazy, though. I mean, honestly, yeah, they had the exact same ovation. And which is, like, funny now, like, no one has an ovation anymore.

No. So anyhow, so that was the thing. They would sit around. They'd play, you know, they'd cover Bob Seeger songs or it could be George Jones. And then they would throw in their originals. And I always thought, man, that's so cool. Like, they have these original songs. And they actually had some really good material. I mean, there's still songs that I'm like, man, that'd be really cool. So was it the brother, you open that door, Mike?

It is pretty, pretty, balls hot in here. Was it the thing where one brother picks up the guitar, but then you're stuck with the bass? Not really. Because that happens a lot of families where the old. older brothers playing the lead. Yeah. All right, Sammy, you got to play the bass. Yeah.

I think it was like, you know, well, John's playing guitar and I'm like, I got a lot of work to do to get up there. You keep doing that. I'm not going to try to catch up to you. We actually, we both played a lot when we were kids, and we both ended up playing the bass at the same time. We actually, I was the first, like,

in our elementary school, Deal Elementary School, I was a member of the first Deal Elementary Symphony Orchestra, and it consisted of three, violins. It was me a girl named Emma Barrett, I think her name was.

This was like 100 years ago. And Dustin Dustin Reed or something like that. It was three kids. And I would just watch a video of it like six months ago and it sounded atrocious. It was so bad. You could tell we were really shot really hard. You got earplugs upon entry. Oh, we got it so bad. And then we both

started playing the violin and neither of us were very good. And the reason why we ended up we ended up on base because when we moved on to like middle school and the teacher saw that we were tall. Basically, we were just tall than all the kids. And our hands were too damn big for the violin, so he just put us on the bass.

It's almost a similar thing of like, well, you needed bass players. They're like, a different big brother. Yeah, they're like, we don't need another crappy violin. It's like, please, just go over and play baseball. And then we, our big hands, I was like, oh, this is cool, and it worked. And actually, side note, any musician is listening will understand this.

But a bass is tuned similar to a guitar. They're tuned in four, it's into violins and fifth. So it made sense, more sense to me. So you're playing music in school. You're playing music around the table. But did you two ever, because I know you didn't move to, T.J., you didn't move with John to Nashville. No. Not a first.

Not a first, no. So that wasn't the plan for you guys when you're 16. We're going to be a duo. We're going to be a duo, the greatest duo of all times. Well, that was our mom's plan, by the way. No, she had a plan with our sister Natalie. I believe you've met her. She's wonderful.

I feel like she should run for mayor of Nashville because everyone knows her. Quite all the time, people are like, oh, wow, you're Natalie's brother. And I'm like, what do I have to do? I know. I get some recognition. I'm on TV. Yeah, exactly. Anyhow, but so originally my mom, her plan was that it would be John and I and Natalie

and that I would get on the microphone, I would say, hey, I'm T.J. Osborne. And I would say, I'm John Osborne. And now they would say, I'm Natalie Osborne. And together in unison, we would say, and we are the siblings. That was my mom's grand plan. And so we were like, we're going to stay far away from that idea. And so John came down and was in a band called King Billy that had a lot of traction at the time. And a lot of amazing musicians and songs in that band.

And I was kind of doing my solo thing. We were in a family band with their dad called DeCenter Quarter. In fact, I have a tattoo on my left arm that says 225. A lot of people want to know what it means. It's simply just a car, a Buick Electric 225. And so our family band was named after that. But you moved your first. I did, yeah.

How far I had a T.J.? It was a little kind of staggered. So I went to Belmont and I started in 2000. And then I want to say you came in around 2001 or two, something like that. Yeah, I think it was too. Yeah. Yeah, so he moved down here before he graduated high school. Ended up going to high school here for like a year or two.

Moved back to Maryland to graduate. The funny part about it. It's up only five years. I know the math. I can see you over there, Bobby. You're like, hmm. Yeah. Well, he loved high school so much.

He stayed around for an extra year. Yeah, exactly. The kicker there is I hated it so much that I didn't, that I wasn't that a ten of. So then it added an extra year. So I really like showed myself there. Like, oh, wow. You hate it so much you're getting an extra year of it. It is backwards, isn't it?

The more you love school, the less you have to do it. That doesn't make any sense. That is true. So the, but the kind of side note, so when I was 18 when I moved here, T. So it was 18 or 19, something like that when I was at Belmont. TJ had come to live with our mom in Nashville for a short period of time. But I had a dorm room, like a triple at Belmont, which was like unheard of. And my two roommates, like, dropped out right before the semester started.

I had this huge room to myself. It was amazing. And T.J. would come just like sleep, you know, in the dorm room. And if we would go to like a Belmont party, which at those days, you'd be lucky if there was like four people. And that was a Belmont party. And T.J, they all thought he went to school because he always had this like deep voice. I was like 16.

and everyone's like, what's your major? And I would just tell them music business because I know no more questions would follow that. Like boring. And yeah, so he moved back and I was still like, I changed my major a bunch of times. I actually started in bass because I got a scholarship

and my parents were like, well, if you played bass, there's a lot more work for bass players. There's too many guitar players. Yeah, which is another interesting side note there is John was an incredible upright bassist. He actually went to Belmont and went to Bay Scholarship. You played the big, the boom boom boom. Yeah, the big boom boom.

Yeah, that whole thing. You flip it and stuff? He played by Classically. He played with the Baltimore. Like the Baltimore Symphony, even they would have this where they would get kind of the top chair people in the state to come join them for some concerts. And John was, you know, it was one of the kids they picked out of high school to come up and play with the Baltimore Symphony playing upright bass. Yeah. Thank you.

Thank you. I was a total nerd. But that's what I did. And I didn't love it, you know. So when I went to school, I was like, man, I'm not loving this thing. I really want to play guitar. of like you were talking about the grandelopry and you were kind of made to watch it and that took you a minute to love it that's how we were with bass and then um eventually i i i changed my major to guitar because i'm like that i love

i really enjoy playing this is where my heart is and then i switched my major to music business switch it back to guitar i'm like man i'm like four years in i've got like 500 hours or credits later i i there's no way i'm going to graduate and i'm already like doing it i'm getting calls to go play i'm traveling you know four hours making like a hundred bucks and being like this is great and so I bailed from school but around that time TJ came back after he graduated high school and then that's when we both moved here

so he had mentioned this band Kingbilly that I was in one of my best friends from college Josh Mathini who's played on a bunch of hit records as a recent as a great dobro player we joined a band Charlie Warshum was in that band and a bunch of other really really great musicians

we ended up getting a publishing deal TJ and I at the time had been writing a lot of songs off to the side. The King Billy, the band I was in, cut a few of those songs. So he got signed to the publishing deal, to that same publishing company about a year or two later. Well, quickly, what happened? Because now King Billy lives in like everyone's mind is one of the greatest bands that should have been massive because of the success of you. This individual. Charlie.

Yes. And so everyone's like King Bill. I saw them once. It was the summer. It's like this legacy. It was an incredible band. I mean, I remember it was like, yeah, it was the show to go and see. But what happened?

Why did it not happen, I guess? You know, I don't know. I could try and give you 100 reasons as to why things do and don't happen in this industry. And I would probably be wrong every time. And so much of it is just being around the right people, the right time, the right songs. I mean, I listen to the songs. I'm like, yeah, they're really, really good songs. And some of them were really great.

But maybe they just weren't, you know, I think we were pretty muso about things. Like, we're all way too smart for our own good. good when it came to music. Even the term muso, I think, is probably it for most people's heads. Yeah. That's like, you know, when you're so musical that it's just like only nerds would like it. Yeah, yeah, it got there. And I don't know, man.

I don't know. I wish I could give you an exact reason. Timing is everything, you know. I mean, Bobby, you know, you've seen amazing. And you were such a supporter of new music and new artists. You're very rare in that way. And you've seen it firsthand. Like, this is amazing.

Like, I can't wait to see this thing blow up. two years later, five years later, nothing happens. And no one knows. But the one thing that is, like, really interesting now, in retrospect, is obviously everyone's like, how did this band not take off? And, you know, I think now, I think looking back for probably most of the people in the band, I mean, particularly us, it's like, well, this would have never happened. And as you look back different.

And at the time, I was doing solo stuff because John was in an established band in town, like really outside of the bands that were playing nationally and super fans. They were the biggest band in Nashville. And I just was like, you know, I need to do my own solo thing. John's, at the time, it was really well known as a great guitar player. And I didn't really want to kind of rest on his laurels or whatever, or write his goattails. So I wanted to just make a name for myself. And so I'd go out and perform.

John, a lot of times would join play guitar. And people always commented on just the two of us together. There was something that we didn't really notice because we just played together our entire line. lives. It didn't feel necessarily that special to us. But people kept saying it over and time and time again. Like the two of you is something. You've got to do something together. And then once we decided to do that, I mean, within a year we were assigned to Capitol Records. I was watching Nathan's Hot Dog eating competition. You guys haven't to see any of that at all. Anything clips. I don't, but I find it very fascinating.

So before the hot dog part, before the Joey Chestnut eats 70 hot dogs. This is his name? This is his name? Great name. Great name. Yeah. There's a competition where they drink a gallon of lemonade. And it's who drinks the gallon of lemonade the fastest. Before they eat the hot dogs. Well, one guy did both competitions. The guy who won the lemonade also didn't win the hot dog, but also drank the gallon lemonade, won, then went and ate and finished, you know, fourth, fifth of the company.

There's a superhero. My point is, and you're going to see. He probably weighs like 80 pounds. Those people somehow are like, what is going on? What I saw John just do with a bottle of water is what the guy did with the lemonade? Somehow he ch- Would you get John? on another bottle of water. It's like he took it up,

made one swallow and the whole thing was gone. I was wondering where the hell you're going with that. Are you dehydrated, my friend? I don't know. I just love water. This drives Lucy, my wife, Lucy Silvas, who have you played before? It drives her crazy about how much I love water

because she hates water. What is her to hate? It's amazing. It's cold and it's dehydrating. She's like, she sees how much I like water and she gets so annoyed. She thinks I'm doing it to just piss her off. But I don't love it. Lucy doesn't drink much alcohol.

So I think if she'd down like 15 beers the night before. Yeah, then she would know. She would want to be chag and water. Thank you. I'm just consistently hung over. Well, I was listening to TJ tell the story about going solo, but over on this side, I was like 93% there. But part of me was going, that's the weirdest. That's like the best, the most solid water drinking I've ever seen.

I love it. I love it. I love it. Let me talk. And I've told this story with you guys around, but for anyone that's listening new to this, because this is a whole different podcast that goes a lot of different places, the first time that I saw you guys, I had been dragged to what they call a radio show boot camp. It wasn't about country music. Heck, I wasn't even in country music. I was, I had built my own syndication company, and I was doing pop and hip-hop,

but I was getting trouble because I would put dirks on. I put Willie on. They'd be like, why are you playing country music on pop radio? kind of what it happens now just on the other side where I'll bring in Pharrell or I'll bring in somebody and they're like, why are you bringing in Pharrell on a country? I just always knew what I liked.

It didn't matter to me really what format it was. I think most people are that way. I think people are too, right? But I was over there doing that and we're in this theater and I was ready for some other you know, gibrony to get up and talk about something in radio

that I thought was lame. And they were like, all right, before we go, we got these two guys want to showcase to you. I think it was Chicago. It was in Chicago, yeah. And they were like. I'll never forget this. This is one of the most awkward moments in our life.

It was awful. For both of us guys. They were like, Brothers Osborne. And I was like, music? Like, I'm trying to like. And I also don't know if you recall this, but they said, Brothers Osborne.

And then the guy decides in that moment to change the batteries in the microphones. I'm like, why didn't you do this like 10 minutes ago? Do you kidding me? So we had to stand there on stage. Why everyone had been, they had clapped, finished clapping five minutes ago. And he's changing one by one these batteries. I was like, oh my God, I could kick you straight off the stage. right now. And we started performing and no one really cared. Can I say another thing, though,

about that I found really bizarre about that since you worked in different like formats of radio. Why are the pop radio people so insanely arrogant? Like, I feel like a lot of them have stations. But I find like these people, you know, like, I feel like it's probably unusual in country. Like you actually do know most, if not all the country artists that come through here. But they always pretend like you'll listen to a pop station. They'll be like, Oh yeah, I was hanging with my boy Drake. And I'm like, I guarantee that you maybe just saw him in a meet and greet. And it's so weird.

And they're like the most con. And at that thing, I found it almost like unbearable to watch these people co-exist together because you had the country people who were like really cool and hanging out. And some of them have their egos. And then all the pop people are like, screw the country guys. Even though I'm like, these guys have stations that are like five times the size of yours. I don't know why that happens. But it's weird.

Culture. The answer is culture. You are in the pop world taught to look as cool as you absolutely can even if you don't have it In the country world and I find this with myself too because I'm in California a lot working In the country world or the Nashville world or the south or however you want to use you know we are taught Hey even if you are cool kind of scale it back a little bit because nobody gives a crap nobody does So it's it's basically that that's the difference pop radio versus Los Angeles versus Nashville versus country radio it's when I go and I'm shooting American Idol

they think that I am first of all showing up with a hazy you know overall is hazy but they're also like he's just the greatest guy he's just the and it's like I'm like everybody else here you know I don't get an award

for being the greatest guy I'm a good dude but yeah you gotta be a good dude around here or you don't survive yeah I know isn't that weird they'll prune the bad dudes here oh big time quick real quick yeah and they're like

oh he's just the greatest because there if you don't show up with an entourage, even if you can't afford it, that's anti that culture that they promote. So that's such a wonderful observation that you saw because that's how it is. Here, if you show up with an entourage, everyone's laughing at you. Yeah. What are you doing?

Douche. Boo! Everyone's like rolling their eyes. I mean, that's like in the same way that Vince Gill, arguably the greatest singer and songwriter musician of all time, of all genres, shows up by himself to like an event and wears his lanyard around his neck with his name on it just to make sure that. that everyone, he can get backstage to a place he's playing. And then he's just cool.

And then he packs up his own guitar and walks off and drives his own ass home. I'm like, if he can do it, anyone can do it. Right. I mean, I saw Stapleton drive up to a show once in his old truck in Nashville. Get out. Be like, hey, I'm Chris. And they were like, oh, you are him. And they just lay in the middleman.

He just literally Stableton drove his old truck parked up behind the Ryman and walked in the back just to do his show. Yeah. And I was like, but yes, it's a culture. Yeah. People in that pop culture have to act cooler than they are. People in this culture have to act less cool than they think they are. And you really see it too at the Grammy Awards. I feel like it's so funny.

Once again, you'll see someone from country walk in and everyone's like, oh, this hokey, you know, S-O-B. Meanwhile, I'm like, this dude sells like 10 times the amount of tickets you do. Like, you're not that cool. Like, just chill. You know, just have fun. Why is it such a, you know, it's weird that are like, oh, wow, they're so nice. I'm like, shouldn't you just? Shouldn't you just be nice?

And I felt that way too early, but now I just take it. I'm like, I'm the nicest guy in Hollywood. Here I am. Because I would go to meetings. I would go to meetings where, and I didn't realize that it was so calendar that culture, but I would go to meetings and pitch TV shows, not for me, because I produced a couple shows. And I would go and I would be like, I go meet. I met with Les, before I got in trouble.

I went and met with Les Moves, who was the president of CBS and all of his people. And I showed up by myself at the gate. And I just, you know, took an Uber. got out and they were like you're here by yourself I'm waiting for your team I was like I'm the team and they were just so shocked by it and they said they verbally said

this never happens nobody comes alone this is so refreshing and I went oh I will now do this forever so when I go and it's what I would have done anyway I go by myself right and I show I get my little backpack on and I'm like hello hey guys but they're like you're the nicest guy in Hollywood I'm not from Hollywood

but it is it's a definitely a culture thing. But you guys grew up, where you grew up in Maryland, I have to think felt like the South. Compared to New York and Boston and a place where I go when I'm in the Northeast. Yes. 100%. I think it's interesting.

I think it's probably a lot of why our music is the way that it is. It's like to the northerners, we are just like these rednecks down where we're from. And then people from the south treat us like we're these Yankees. And it's kind of like we're in kind of everything. No one really wants to claim us. I'm not really sure what's going on.

But it is a very like homogenous thing where we do we do feel part northeast and part southern. It's really, really strange. That's funny you say no one wants to claim you because I felt for a while because, and I'm not just saying this because you're here, I've been fans of you guys since the first time I heard you. I was just like, love you guys. And I think I would tell you guys that. I'd bring you on the show and you play the early stuff.

You've been very supportive. And this isn't me. I don't want to hurt my elbow pat myself in the back. But my point is, is that I felt like even the format, country music did that to you for a minute too. Not geographically. But they're like, they're a little too rock. And they're going to be like, no, they're a little too country.

Where you kind of were in that same spot where no one wanted to claim you exactly. Did you feel that way? Oh, absolutely. Still do. Still do. But I think, you know, the thing is that we've realized, I think there's a lot of fans out there who are the same for whatever reason. And it's actually been a now.

that we are where we are, I think we've done really well touring because of that. And we've been able to make a lot happen off of comparatively not a ton of radio success. And I think, obviously, to a new artist, we have had a decent amount of radio success. But we've gotten a lot done with not much. And to come full circle, though, you mentioned something. And we were kind of heading there with your story talking about that radio seminar thing that was extremely bizarre. And I've told you this before. but we just got to meet you.

I think you were new to country, so everyone was like, I don't know about this guy. You know, he was like fresh blood. Everyone's like, and you're immediately coming into like one of the biggest like slots in radio. But you sat there through the entirety of our performance. You did. Most people could care less that we were playing.

There was very few people in the room that paid attention. And I will always remember that you were attentive to the entire thing. Whether it was because you felt incredibly sorry for us, I'm not really sure. That probably has a lot to do with it. But thanks, Bobby. Thank you. The Bobby Bone Show is proud to be supported by Grand Canyon University,

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it's, you know, when you say we haven't had, as compared to a new artist, a lot of radio success, it's funny because there are some songs that will hit number four, but feel like a number one.

Yeah. But some artists, right? Not even talking about you guys specifically, but Urban will come in and I think like, going to fly or something, was never a number one.

Right. He's like, you know, but it feels like a number one because people were, I feel like, because I had to look at, like, the chart to see where you,

I felt like, you guys, guys get more credit for having radio success because it feels like a lot of your songs were bigger than maybe numerically they were given. I know. It's really strange. Oh, 100%. And you are right the way.

There's a really kind of one of my favorite sayings amongst radio promos people. They always say not every hit is a number one and not every number one is a hit. And, you know, it is weird. And John and I have just rack her brains all the time thinking about that. Some artists have a bunch of number ones and you can't remember them. and then some people have hardly any number ones, but you remember all of their material. And I don't know why it works that way,

but I definitely feel that way for us. And that was why I really particularly miss playing in front of a crowd for a year and a half is for us, like a song like All Night. We felt like that would be a big hit. It was, it did okay. But now that we're out playing it, it's like you would have thought the song

was that number one for a month. I mean, people go bananas for it. Now, it was really hard for us to, I think it went to like 20 on the charts or something like that. 25. That felt like, oh, with this rejection. But usually John and I don't pay a whole lot of attention to that because we're seeing it live and we're like, okay, it's working.

But now that we are back at it, I'm like, okay, now I get, you know, what we do, why we do, what we do, because it works. And it was extremely hard for us in the pandemic to just only be able to look at a chart position. That was the one on the, again, who knows what chart I'm looking at here. I think this was maybe media-based. Yeah. Okay. So All Night was one of the ones

that I specifically pulled and was like, this thing was only in the 20s? Yeah. Like, here's a clip of All Night. Another one was, and I bet you it just lights up a live show. It ain't my fault.

Yeah. I got to imagine hands come up and that. Oh, yeah, every night. It is. Well, yeah. I got to imagine people hit this song as hard as any number one live. Oh, yeah.

The thing is our biggest, which does very well, our biggest song on the chart position-wise or whatever was stay a little longer. But people come, the majority of the crowd, the song they're waiting to hear is this one. I mean, it's the name I call. Yeah, it's the one that they call for the most. You know, stay a little longer.

It was being our only number one. People love that song, but they stay for all night. They want to hear it, but they stay for that one. And right now we're onto our current single, I'm not for everyone. And we're, it's charting. We're doing pretty good, but we're like, hello, can we like, can we get moving here? Like, we're still just like hanging in the 40s. Like, what's going on?

But now that we're going out and we can play it, and people are already responding like we're playing a hit song, it's like, okay, it's just, there's other things that play here more than just a chart position. It's a huge part of what we do, but it's not the only thing. And it can be, it can drive, I think it drives, even artists that have lots of number ones, if you just look at a chart, it really will just eat you from the inside out. It's really frustrating.

Especially from like the 42 to 31 spot. That's kind of like the swampy no man's land. God, it's awful. Where you're just trying to climb out. Yeah. And if you can get out, you got a shot. And then if you're looking at the chart, especially being in this business now for as long as we have, it's like we know nearly everyone that's on the charts. And they're jumping over us.

Your friend jump you. You're like, oh, God, I'm canceling dinner with you. I think it all comes down to like what's your own metric, you know? And there are people that live and die by the chart. And that's fine. If that's your metric and that's what you base your success on, that's fine. That's how you want to do it. And it's great.

I think for us, we have to base our own success off of multiple metrics. One of them is how well we're doing on radio, but most importantly, like TJ touched on earlier, is how, one, how many butts already put in seats? And two, how much fun are they having? And how much are they have much fun are they having during that song? Can you feel the energy? And we have to go off of that metric. You know, we're very grateful for how we've done on country. radio, considering that we do sound different.

And it has helped us immensely. But if we only hung our hat on just the chart, we would lose our minds, which is honestly why I don't even look at it. I mean, I don't. Because what the hell can I do? I mean, right? I'm not going to call a radio promoter or some guy up and be like, hey, can you give me like five spans?

That's what our promo team's for. It's just going to drive me crazy. But every time they do play a song, it is a little advertisement for our band. There's also this really strange disconnect with radio. And as John said, to me, I think the ultimate stat is just tickets. You sell tickets. And there are people like Luke Combs who have lots of number ones can sell a lot of tickets. And then there's people that like Stapleton who doesn't have a ton of radio success,

but will sell out everywhere he goes, Casey Musgraves or like even an artist like Eric Church where he has radio success, but not as much as you would think for someone who sells as many tickets as he does. And that's the thing for me where I'm like, you know, or you look at Miranda Lambert. You know, a guy will rail on tour with her. I thought, God, you got all these hits. And the same thing for her. She doesn't have a ton of number ones. But let's mention all the people who have a lot of number ones can't sell seats.

That's my fun game. No, I'm not saying. Let's avoid that. I'm not saying that. And I think we got to go. It's getting a little bit. But anyhow, and that's the kind of also the thing, like the era that we live in is amazing. I can tell you firsthand that country radio helps sell tickets and helps blow you up.

I mean, it would stay a little longer. When that was a hit, it was night and day what our show is. but at the same time there's so many other ways that there's and it's in some ways it's exciting and other ways it's also exhausting because you're like now it's like we got to get songs on these streaming services and then we got to do things to promote here and then we get it's there's so much to do so many angles and if you ignore any one of them you're really it's it's it's I don't know if you're kind of um I'm trying to think of a nice way to put this that that I can say to your fans something clean but you're an idiot basically if you ignore any of those

well I haven't learned the TikTok dance yet to your new song So if you guys want to... Yeah, it's not happening. No, you guys, no. It's not happening. I guess that's why I haven't learned it. You haven't made it yet. We should do a TikTok dance where you just sit, stand still.

Yeah. Everyone can do this. Yeah. What, so the tour, we're not for everyone. Yes. Yeah, we're not for everyone. Not everybody, everyone. Yeah.

So did you name, because it's always, you name the song in the record after the song after the tour. In what order did that happen? And did you name the tour of this because you really felt that? or because it was a good song or... Well, a couple different reasons. I mean, you know, we know, I don't know, we titled the record of skeletons because honestly, the song,

the song skeletons on that record defined, I think, the record. It's kind of the centerpiece. It's one of the first... Was it the first one we recorded? It was one of the first three, I know. And then we recorded, I'm not for everyone. It was one of the last songs,

if not the last song that we recorded. We thought, oh, we got one more day. Let's just do this song. And I'm like, we were thinking, man, I'll sing a verse. That might be kind of cool. It'll just be different. It'll never be a single, but the fans will like it. And then we put the record out, and then people started freaking out about this song in particular. And I think it has a lot to do with the message. I mean, you look at the times that we're in now. And everyone is claiming, you know, who they are and this is what I do. And also, like, coming to terms with the fact that you just can't please everybody, especially in 2020 and 2021. So we felt the traction of the song. So we decided, you know, we've got to put it out. And then us, It is a bit of our mantra. We are accepting that we just are not for everybody. You look at our songs getting the 20 at best for the most part.

And then getting to Neil and Travis, who are both a very unique, very awesome left of certain artists. It just kind of worked. The whole message seemed to come together at one time. I wish I could say that we were smart enough to see it in the future like that, but we're not. And it's just, but we saw how the thing was shaping up when we took advantage of it. Yeah. And I think it is one of those things that you, that John and I wrote it from the perspective. of this is how we feel.

And to our surprise, I think nearly everyone feels that way. Yeah. You know, whenever I wrote some very personal things in my first book. And I thought, I'm going to share some stuff that's extremely vulnerable. And a lot of it had to do with either the drug addiction my mom had before she died or a lot of the really bad decisions that she made that influenced me. and that I loved her, but it was a very tough relationship. I mean, heck, she got pregnant if she's 15, right?

And my dad left. So she had to, but I was going, there was a lot of stuff. And even when she reached her breaking point, she did some things that I know she wouldn't be proud of, but because drugs had to, they were taking control of her. And so I wrote, and in that, I was trying to tell the story of someone who had been through that, not through her side of it, but through mine.

And I've never had a drink of alcohol and never touched a drug because I've been so scared of it. I wish I could. I mean, to me, one thing I want to do is relax. I'm freaking, I'm like a little bit. So, but I wrote these stories, and I thought, man, either people are going to feel sorry for me or they're going to tell me to shut up, but they're not going to understand.

And I put it out, and what I learned is, and I say this, because you just express the same thing to me. What I learned was I never felt so welcomed or like I was included until I felt like I was so not included. I thought, this is my story, no one's going to understand, nobody's going to relate nobody's going to feel like me yeah um but it turns out they just because people aren't screaming about it doesn't mean they're not feeling it yeah exactly yeah and that you know when you say we're not for everyone we do that's how i felt about me but i would be doing a meeting

greet somewhere you know we'd be doing someone like he's like you know the story about you know that touch me and i mean i felt that i felt that severely when i came out it was you know i thought i didn't know how it would be received i know some people would be supportive and some people would probably hate but I think the thing that was really um one of the most uh um like recharging things of it or whatever or inspiring things to me were the parents and stuff being like hey my kid parents of other kids other kids yeah are being like this is great you know I was getting a lot of that kind of stuff of just people who themselves weren't gay but were really close to someone who was and this felt like just like a relief for them and um and that yeah so I know what you mean it was

I didn't expect that, and it was one of the coolest experiences I've ever felt. Did you feel more love? And you just said this, but I just want to hear this from you again, because I did. Did you feel more love than you expected? I did, and you know, and I've talked about this before, but I absolutely felt more love than I expected. And I'm even feeling the love from people that I knew loved me, it was just was so different. It was so overwhelming. And it's a thing I wish everyone got to experience because everyone has loved more than they

realize they are. And the kind of sad part is there's a lot of people don't talk about how much they love someone until they've died or something really tragic. And, you know, it was a difference of just like someone, you know, it's like, I compared to someone just leaves, you're like, all right, all right, love you, man, see you later, as opposed to like someone grabbing you by their shoulders and being like, I love you. Like, it just was like, wow, it's the same word, but it just hit in such a different way that I just thought in that moment, wow, like just for this alone to feel this is it's something I wish everyone could feel at some point in time. Why at that point in time?

Like, do you guys have a conversation? I'll like, let's just do it now. Were you finally like, I just feel like telling people? Well, yeah. I mean, I always wanted to come out. And this was a huge hurdle for me because I was always really, really afraid that it would look opportunistic. And so I never wanted it to, never wanted it to be anything that would just not,

here we need some publicity or whatever. And so in order to do that, I always felt like I need to do this at the height of my career. And then through the pandemic, I'm like, you know, I just really, one, was kind of the things that were important to me were very simple things, things that I've had my, virtually my whole life, was doing the same sitting around fire or having some drinks just, you know, chewing the fat with people. That was, I mean, the things that I was still having the same that were fun for me. And I'm like, I can do this, you know, when I was broke, I was having doing these same exact things, you know. So I just felt like at that point, like, and then also, who knows when you're at the height of your career? And so then the other fear was, what if I have, you never know that you're, have passed the height of your career until you're on the way down. And then if I come out then, it's still, it just seems like I'd be jumping the shark to people.

And so I just felt kind of stuck in this weird thing of like, I'm unsure the perfect time. And then finally, just one day I just thought like, I got to do this, like, and I got to do it now. And I don't want to go back to work to where I just did have distractions again. Like I need to do this now where I can focus on it. And the other thing, too, was I want to be able to build my, why would I not want to get to the height of my career being just completely open about who I am and what I am? And John and I really pride ourselves for just being who we are.

I mean, hell, or it's where we're songs, I'm not for everyone. It's kind of like their mission statement, so to speak. And so at that point, I was like it needs, I don't know that there ever is a perfect time and there really isn't in your brain until you do it. And then you realize that that was the perfect time. It was wild about that day, is that morning was when the Morgan Wall and stuff happened. Oh, yeah. And here I go and I wake up 3.30 in the morning and I'm clickety, clickity, click.

And I'm like, the Morgan Wall and stuff. And I'm getting hit by everybody. Yeah. Because if somebody wants in this format, and I have to be careful now too, which I never thought would be the case with me, people just want a sound bite out of me. Yeah. And they're like, what do you have to say about Morgan Wall? Yeah. What do you have to say at Morgan Wallen?

And I'm like, God dang, man. I don't know. I just saw this. I need, and so I get on the air that morning. And because I don't think your story came out until the literal, like 8.30 or 9 o'clock that morning. Which was also interesting because I hadn't even read the article until it went live for everyone else. Is that right? So, yeah, it was intense.

It was an intense moment when that finally went out. I'm on. And I'm like, I got to say something by Morgan Wallin because I'm getting beat up about it. I'm going to say how I feel. And no one had said anything. Because everybody's just kind of scared. They're all like, I don't want to say the wrong thing out of the way. Yeah.

So I get on. and I'm like, all right, guys, here's the deal. He's got to go away for a little bit and fix himself, but he gets to come back. That was my message. Like, we don't cancel people. Like, we don't need to cancel people for anything unless you hurt a kid, you heard an animal. Or you're a really, really bad person. Right.

Yeah. I said, we're not going to cancel them. But if you don't think he needs to go away and at least, like, come on. I said, and I like Morgan. Yeah. And Morgan's been here. He's been over to the house. He's got a good heart.

Yeah. Yeah. He's got good heart. He's got stuff. So I'm dealing with this. And I'm catching it on both sides because. I'm the sensible one. I'm not canceling him.

So canceled country artists are hitting me up going, I can't believe you do it. We know the cancel artists are. And the people that are like, no, he, and I'm just being sensible was so tough because I got both sides. Then your story comes out. And, I mean, I know you were gay.

I didn't, you know, but for me, it was big, you said it because I was finally, I would get to talk about it. And I went on the air and I mentioned it. And everybody's like, talk about Morgan Wall and who cares? And in a way, Both the way, like I felt irritated and great at the same time. Great that people weren't like, we need to hear because somebody's gay.

Yeah, right. Because I just did a show called The Talk where they were talking about, you know, somebody being gay. And I was like, wouldn't it be great if somebody was gay? And that was, you don't have to announce it. No one could. It's just part of life. It is what it is.

And I, you know, and I, yeah, and it would be especially great for people who are gay. You know, I would love not to talk about it. And the weirdest thing, I have only verbally come out to anyone at this point. I mean, it was like, I mean, I could maybe kind of one hand. I just, people just kind of found out. Like, you know, I mean, hell, I was next to your neighbors with Amy and I live there with my boyfriend in that house. And I'm sure it was not hard to figure out after a amount of, any certain amount of time that we were together. And so, and then it was kind of this really intense thing because I'm like, well, now I'm about to come out to everyone.

And it's just awkward. It's a really awkward thing to do. It's rarely in context with anything that's being discussed amongst your friends. It's a really, it's just a strange. it's just I don't really like to shock people either. You know, it's like, guess what? You know, I don't, that's just not how I am. So I've always felt like, ugh.

So in some ways it was kind of relief to be able to just do it all in one thing. And the other thing it was relieving for me too is that I felt like it was kind of this burden for people that did know that felt like they didn't want to talk about it or they could talk about it or felt weird. Can we talk about it? And I'm like, everyone in the room knows, like, you know, it's fine. I didn't really care all that much. But, and I felt like it was a relieving moment for them too because I felt like it was a, unfortunately, I guess Mike Crossed Bear, so to speak,

but I think there was lots of people who kind of felt the stress of that. Well, my point was, I would have liked that morning to have spoken about representation because I think it's so important whether you just want to see somebody that is similar to you

doing something great, then you feel like you can do it. Because even me growing up a poverty kid, I didn't see people like me doing cool things. And so I like to be that for them. And I like to get, so I wanted to have that conversation. and they were like, that's not for today.

Talk about Morgan Wallen. And I was like, I kept hearing people who were like upset that, oh, Morgan Wallen stole your thunder. And I was like, this wasn't about getting attention. So I was like, I truly didn't care. If anything, I thought it was kind of a good moment to see that the variety of what country is going through at this moment.

I mean, to have that on one hand and then this on the other is just like, wow, what a time for not only country, but just kind of cultural things happening. And I think for me, it was just speaking about from my own experience in doing that, is I think a lot of people just really think that, yeah, both country fans and country artists that were just all these like really narrow-minded, you know, Neanderthals or whatever they think, I'm not really sure. And then to kind of really be part of this group of people that I think is incredibly diverse,

more than people realize. And it's only really recently really becoming that way. But I think there's a lot of country, fans out there who have never really been able to have to really be acknowledged that much, too, and that we've noticed that people, I mean, you see it really, especially with like Kane out there and Mickey or Jimmy Allen, these people that now all these people of color who are having success, we see it at our shows, people of color, more people of color showing up. Oh, yeah.

Before they loved it all along. They just felt uncomfortable. They didn't feel like they belonged in the community, but they do. The Bobby Bone Show is proud to be supported by Grand Canyon University, an affordable, private, nonprofit Christian University based in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. They say higher education is outdated, irrelevant. Well, GCU doesn't settle for the status quo. They shatter it. At GCU, academically rigorous, industry-driven programs are built to move at the speed of relevance, with practical skills, career readiness, and opportunity for every learner. GCU believes

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If your yard feels more stressful than satisfying. Sunday's approach makes a lot of sense. Go to get sunday.com to get your free custom yard analysis. That's get sunday.com. If you get a cold, does your voice get deeper? I don't have a cold if that's what you're wondering. No, I don't think you do now. It does. Yeah, it does. Yeah. It does get deeper. It does get deeper. Oh, yeah. How? I don't know. Did you ever try to do voiceover stuff? You know, I just recently kind of started talking about it and then about just doing it just mainly for fun. I mean, I can't imagine there's a ton of money in it.

But I, but recently someone told me that like pretty much every person in entertainment has been trying to do voice servers now because there's been so little work. But now that I'm like, they're like, no, we don't need more. Just, just sing, please. Well, let's not let it be lost on. This is like, I would say this is the Lady A effect where Charles Kelly is 10 feet tall. So you don't realize Dave Haywood's like 6-2 or 6.3. Dave's actually a tall cat. And I say that about you.

Because John, you have a deep freaking voice too, but you're just not quite where he is. He's not quite down there. I mean, he had a lower voice than me when we were kids. I mean, I was in puberty and his voice was lower than my head. He hadn't even hit puberty yet and was like, way you're done here. He had an Adams apple at five. What the hell's going on? I did one time.

I got in trouble at school for some, like, silly thing. I was just kind of a class clown. And then I was able to get home in time to intercept the phone call. And they thought they were speaking to my dad. You're a son today. I'm like, I'll deal with it. Tell me, John, about when you play, is there something that you do see?

Because you're so proficient. And I ask in, this is, and I don't mean to be insulting, because sometimes people will say, hey, man, you're pretty talented. And I get insulted by that, because I'm not talented. I work hard.

Yes. Well, there's, you have to have both. You have to have. Talent's nothing without working hard. So I, ask in the way of naturally, did you have a gift that you felt early? Are you able to interpret playing or sounds,

sonic, anything different than people you even play with? What is it about you that makes it special? Well, I don't want to say that I'm special in any regard. I said it, not you. Yeah, it's special. Or it, because it is kind of binary when it is it in you. But honestly, it's a couple things. Like I picked up on guitar pretty quickly, quickly.

But on top of it, like, I loved playing. And I loved the process. And I remember watching a video with John Mayer a couple of years ago, and I wish I had thought of this a long time ago. And he was saying what makes people great is they have to love the process of getting there. And there are a lot of people that have natural ability, but they don't like the process of working at it. And I think more important than natural ability is working.

working hard at it because you can have someone with just a little bit of talent and they can work their ass off and then they will get there eventually. And I've seen just the most natural musicians. I used to teach guitar when I was in high school and some of these kids could pick it up so fast, but then they just wouldn't work hard at it. So I genuinely love learning. I love reading. I love knowledge. I just soak it all in. And it gets to a point and I don't want to get too metaphysical with anything. But there's something called flow and we all get in it. You know, like you have some nights, I'm sure you know this when you're doing stand-up, you have some nights where you're like, okay, I'm battling this one out.

I got through it. And the other nights, it's like you're surfing on a wave and you just can't fall. And this is getting kind of heady, but there used to be, the term genius refer to something that was like metaphysical that lived above us. And we didn't actually have talent. We were a conduit for talent. But I think there is something to it, whereas you get, you, you, you, you, work really, really, really, really hard.

Then your brain shuts off and then you just do it. Like your brain is not even, it's just, I don't want to say autopilot because sounds bad, but it seems like something else is flowing through you and you just happen to be the vessel for it. And, you know, that's, I believe you look at players like, I mean, look at Keith. When he's in the zone, that's like, he's not even, he leaves his body. Go look, I mean, any, pretty much any performance of Jimmy Hendrix or Steve Ray Vaughn, those guys have left their body and like something else is taking over.

But that only comes with putting in your 10,000 hours and putting that 10,000 hours in over and over and over again to the point where your brain just shuts off and it just happens. That was going to be my question. Like, do you get to flow if you didn't put the work in? Like, is the flow a product of hours? I think you can to a degree. Like, you know, I mean, it's like, I would say for me, like, there was certain days, like, I wouldn't consider myself to be labeled as funny. I occasionally say funny things, but I don't think I'm a funny guy. but there will occasionally be a day where I'm just like, I don't know what's going on,

but I'm just getting all of these like really hilarious things are coming to me and I'm saying everyone's laughing. And then I might try it the next day and everyone's like, well, you shut up. You're not funny at all. But I just had that flow that day. I was feeling funny. There was something going on. But, you know, and I do think that it is like the same thing like there is an innate like just talent you would have like me having a low voice, for instance.

I didn't practice that. I just have it. And, you know, there is an ability of. If like for me, it was like, well, I can't sing like a lot of really and crazy good singers, like, you know, whoever, just whoever comes to mind, Bruno Mars or whoever. But I had to really learn of like how to make a single note, like a whole note, really feel like I was singing 20 notes or whatever. And that's something, yeah, it does take, it takes a lot of time. But the reason why you're able to work on it in this instance, when I'm playing guitar is that he just really, really liked it more than the average person.

Most people don't listen to it. they don't want to figure it out. It's like I can go out and like try to build a house and just get a bunch of nails and start hammering things together. But until someone really, so you work at how to actually frame a house out or how to cut this board properly is all the different. Yeah, I actually loved practicing. So going back to what we were talking about earlier, you know, I had a scholarship at Belmont

to play upright bass and, um, and all that stuff. Yeah, and play the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. But I never really liked practicing. I did it because I had to. And I enjoyed the playing side of it, but I never, I just didn't want to. sit down and do it. But guitar, no one ever had to tell me to do it. I couldn't get it out of my hands. No, in fact, there would be times where I'd be like, oh my God, like, we would go to bed and I'd be like, he'd still be playing guitar and I'm like, oh my God, dude, like we're going to be up in like six

hours, like, shut up. And I don't know, I don't know why. And then he would be like, all right, and then he would be like, okay, well, let me play something that. Lolo-lis. Because we shared a bedroom growing up, and we grew up in a really, you know, humble, humble means. And so he would, yeah, he would then just play like something chill to fall asleep. So what were you, and not a therapist here, but what were you chasing by trying to get so good at the guitar? I don't know. I mean, there is a bit of an addictive quality to it. You know, it was a probably, if you wanted to go into the biological side of it, it was probably serotonin and dopamine hits, just like anybody that's addicted to anything.

I just couldn't. No one ever told me to do it. It wasn't even a choice. I never sat down and said, hmm, I'm going to choose. to want to do this. I just wanted to do it. I think that's that way for most, that's why I find it so hilarious when someone's like, I'm retiring from music. So like literally, you're never in your life going to sing or anything ever again. But honestly, and a big part of it for me too, a big side of it was in school, I was like by far, the farthest thing from the cool kid, very quiet,

very shy, very sensitive, picked on by the bullies and all the cool kids. And the guitar for me was like, okay this is my place i feel invincible here i maybe it just like your safe place my safe place and i felt like it became my identity and maybe i was chasing that i don't really know 100 percent but i just absolutely loved it and i'd be in school and i'd be like hiding from my own shadow and it is it is therapeutic you know her oldest sister rachel who um you know god bless her she's a wonderful person but can't she cannot was not if you are blessed with music she certainly was not and she would admit that and so she always said she's like anytime you guys are arguing or a moment gets awkward she's like you guys whistle you'll be like we like whatever and we just instantly kind of get lost in music and i think

there's like there's something there which is also writing songs those types of things it is a it's like it is a form of therapy but i was also very much a kind of a quiet kind of i loved solitude and you know i could go to my room and fortunately i don't know what i would be as a teenager now There's way to, they're subjected to, you know, TikTok and all these being an Instagram influencer and then all these video games, which we had video games as a kid, but there are nothing like they are now. I mean, it was just like, I don't know, you played it and whatever. So I was addicted to guitar. And if I ever felt, and I've struggled with anxiety, I have had anxiety my whole life. And I've done a lot of work around it. But guitar for me was my medicine. So if I would ever feel nervous or anxious or any type of, like, hinging on the or a virgin on depression, guitar would always bring me back to center. And that's, that's,

I think has a lot to do with it as well. You know, I ask, you know, what were you chasing? And I mean, because I think for, well,

for me, I know what I was chasing when I was a kid and I was trying to perform at anything. If it was radio, if I was getting on stage, it was, I didn't have love at home,

so I was trying to get it somewhere else. Yeah, absolutely. But I never, affirmation of some sort. Just, right. And I,

as I'm, you know, I'm engaged and we're going to get married soon and all. And she has to slap me in the head sometimes and go, hey, you know what? You don't have to like chase that sometimes. Yeah. Like, you're loved. That's good.

I know. That's good. And it's the first person to ever do that to me and I actually understand what they mean. Yes. But I've never heard the, because that's another thing. You could actually be chasing that serotonin, that in your brain. That dopamine hit. That is, for me, is wild to think about.

Yeah. I know why I did it, right? Yeah. I know why I'm still doing it on it. You know, some of that childhood trauma stuff, you just don't shake. Exactly. You cope better. One of the hardest things.

And it's amazing that you have such a strong woman that kind of shakes you and rattles you out of that because what is enough? You know, what is enough success? You know, it's like I was talking about some of these artists, some of the biggest artists in the world, they don't need the money anymore. I mean, there's something else here that they can't shake. You know, it's, it's, I'll get a Grammy. And you get one. It's like, well, how many can I get? I want to have the most.

I want to have the biggest tour. I want to sell it the most tickets. I want to sell the most records. And it is hard not to get caught up in that. I think, I mean, everyone, it starts to feel very much like a competition than like a celebration at any point in time. Especially like radio. I mean, it's all ratings and where you place and who beat you. Judgment.

You don't know. You don't look at stuff anymore. It's like crazy. And the reason why you don't look at it because if you did, it would drive you crazy. I would go out absolutely bonkers. Same. That's why we don't look at the chart. I mean, it does drive you crazy.

So at the end of 2019, I had a pretty epic meltdown just like very, it was really, really bad. And, you know, I ended up, my anxiety was at like this crazy high. And I've always kind of dealt with it one way or the other. And I've never really, I mean, don't get wrong. I've liked to party and I like to do things to assist me and partying. But I've never struggled with it. Like, I never wake up going, man, I need a drink. Like, I've never struggled with addiction in that way, but I have struggled with workaholism.

And you probably struggle with this too. I always felt like, okay, if it's getting weird, I'll just work harder. And then that'll solve my problems because it has done that for years. And really, I'm just distracting myself from the inevitable monster that is about to envelop me. And it did in the end of 2019. I went to this place called OnSight for three weeks. It was a full-on thing. You know, it was bad.

I got to the point where it was suicidal. And I ended up with tinnitus ringing in my ears. brought on by a lot of other different things i wasn't sleeping it got really really ugly and uh it occurred to me at some point that when i was a kid i would play guitar when i would feel that way you know i would play guitar it would take me out of that you know if i was in school when i was anxious i would go and play guitar if i was at home and and it was tumultuous at the home with like you know our parents fighting i would go in the room and i'll play guitar and it always made me feel better and then i pursued a career in music i'm like this is fun and this this is great

and I get to do it all the time. Meanwhile, I'm not really taking care of my inner child, which is really what it all boils down to. I'm just ignoring it and I'm making myself feel better. And of course, I had moments of like, I'll just drink my way through it

and smoke weed my way through it or whatever I had to do. And then it got to the point where, all right, we made it. We're successful. We're Grammy nominated. We're winning awards. We're buying houses.

This is really amazing. At the time when this is happening, We're on tour with like this dream lineup with Allison Kraus, Bonnie and Wight and Willie Nelson. Our three favorite artists, period, of all time, top three. And I had a meltdown and I couldn't do it anymore. I broke down. I pulled out of the tour, which was like farm aid. I mean, all these are really huge, like huge moment.

And I think two things I realized happened. One, I realized that now the very thing that brought me out of anxiety was now the, was now giving me anxiety, was now the reason for it because, you know, if I felt judgment, I'd play guitar. If I felt anxious, I would play guitar. If I felt picked on or whatever, I'd play guitar. Now this thing is like, you're judged a lot, you know, which, again, we don't look at the charts. I try to ignore a lot of that stuff. But it is a lot of judgment that you get every day.

And it's like, you'll sign on to Twitter and you're like, whoa, man, you guys are pissed off about things. And we didn't even do anything and you're mad at us. So it became a lot. So then I had nothing to fall back on. I didn't even want to play guitar. It was awful. And the other thing I realized when I was there and through a lot of therapy that I've done since then

is this is not an uncommon situation to be in. You know, a person growing up and having, you know, trauma, and we all have trauma. No one is a hall pass. Yeah, no one gets a hall pass. We all have trauma, big trauma, small trauma. You have it. And you have to deal with it at some point.

And it is so not unusual for someone like myself or really any of us to pursue a goal because we are, we have this false notion that once we get it, everything will be better. And then the problem is, and this happens all the time. And you see it happen all the time with movie stars, with musicians, just big, you know, anyone that finally succeeds in their dream, once they got it, they realized, oh, no, that has. actually didn't do it. And I've like spent 20 years trying to figure that out. Now what? And when you realize that you look behind you and that giant monster is huge because you never dealt with it.

And a lot of times that's why people end up with bad drug addictions and alcohol addictions and rehab and stuff like that because they never dealt with their problem to begin with. So fortunately, through the love of my family and my wife and friends and the people that we work with. Our management was amazing. The label was amazing. Jay Joyce or producer was amazing. They're like, stop everything. We're done for a month. Go, go take care of yourself. And I did that. I'm so glad that I made it through because not everyone does. It's crazy. You talk about being a workaholic and we're almost done here. But like I experienced that, right? Like I hide from things

or did still do. Getting a little better because I have a good support system now. Still do. But I went to on-site too because I was like, uh-oh. It gets you. They're like, whatever's about to happen, ain't supposed to be about to happen. It gets you, right. It's like you start to crack. And I just wanted to catch the cracks before they turned into just full-scale earthquakes. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

So as, like, I have empathy for you. I don't have, I have sympathy for anyone that's going through anything, but I have empathy because I understand, right? And that's what we talked about. What comes back around full circle, we'll end on this. That so many people understand, but because people ain't talking about it because it's not social media, because it's not on Facebook,

everybody thinks they're alone. Dude, that is, that is it. That is it right there. And I've told so many people this. The problem that we face in this world, and I think it's a bit of an epidemic, is that everyone, we're all so connected, yet we all feel so alone. Because you post all of your highlights on social media, that's not who you are. That's not who you really are. That's why when you wrote those things in your book, it made people feel vulnerability is everything.

That's where connection happens. I don't go, hi, I'm John Osborne, I've won all these awards and blah, blah, blah, blah, no one cares. But if I said, hi, I'm John Osborne, I struggle with really bad depression and anxiety. Immediately vulnerability creates connection and talking about it. It's counterintuitive. Talking about it keeps you from being alone. But you're right, Bobby. And when John was going through a lot of this stuff, you know, people were coming up like, man, you know, like my son went through this, we're going through this.

People that I was really close to, and I had no idea that they were dealing with extreme problems. and no one was talking about it. And I kind of felt like, wow, you know, and I thought, well, part of why John is in the condition he's in is that he felt so alone and that he couldn't complain about it because it was like maybe he felt it was a weakness or he didn't want to feel like he was letting anyone down and that he needed to man up and get it together

when there was tons of people around you at any given day that are going through some really, really severe things. And that really was eye-opening to me. I was like, wow, I just wish people talked about him. Oh, yeah, me too. Well, listen, you know I adore both of you guys. Likewise, man. I mean, I couldn't, on a fundamental level, respect and just love you guys.

Likewise, dude. For somebody I don't hang out with, like, I love you. I don't hang out with anybody, really. I got, like, two people to hang out with. You have time to hang out with anybody. Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Yeah, exactly. You've got to go to bed in like two hours.

So, but I do. And I don't tell a lot of people that because I don't mean it. I don't know that from you. I hope you guys know that it is as legitimate from me as it possibly could be. Thank you. We know that. And if you called and you said, hey, I needed. I need be picked up.

I'm down in Madison, broken down. I would come and pick you up. Well, we know that. We absolutely know that. Yeah. And it makes me feel good to know that you are also privy to your own, you know, trials that we all deal with and that you have your soon-to-be wife who's there just to slap you across the head and remind you, hey, man.

Sometimes it sucks. I know. But it is the best medicine you will ever get. Like, I've, I'm 41 now, right? I've never been engaged, never even been close to being engaged, never been married. And it's the first, I've never lived with anyone. And so it's like, now she will just go no. Yeah.

And I'm like, wait, I don't understand that. What do you mean? The power of no. What do you mean? I know, I just want to go spend six hours playing golf with my friends. And she's like, no, no, we have two dogs. We've got groceries to go get. It's not responsible.

No? I don't got Yeah, yeah And it's that the real life stuff But then it's also the I will spiral And she's like And it will end on this This is because we're sharing here

Can I also ask you a question? Yeah Those times where she's like No, you're not going to go out and do that And then you stay home Are you like, wow, this is actually kind of nice? Yeah, in the end I'm like she's right But I don't say that out loud to her

I'm mostly I'm like We were My TV show that is on Nat Geo And it's doing really well I haven't watched a show yet, but just the reels that I see you post of it. I'm like, once we're finished with this, so we don't keep going, I want to ask you about the barges because they, both of he and I live on the river and we see the barges all the time. I've got like a million questions. Well, so we do this show and I'm like, I've been waiting to do my own, I created this show myself.

And it's kind of like part jackass, part dirty jobs, part what I do on the radio show. But I've combined all these elements, things I love and made this show about people, diversity. And I'm like, I just want to get it on the air. Nat Geo buys it. like, all right, oh, it's got to have huge ratings. One comes out, huge ratings. I'm going crazy. Every week I'm going crazier about something else.

It gets on Disney Plus. It's on Disney Plus. It's on their front screen. And I'm like, if I'm on the front screen and it's not one of their biggest shows, they're not going to want it anymore. And she will grab me and say, you are spiraling. Yeah. Like you have to end, and I listen.

Yeah. And I don't listen to anybody. That's amazing you have that. It's the blind spot, right? We all have a blind spot and you have to have someone there to tell you what's in that blind spot. And she's doing that. She lives there.

That's important thing. Okay, listen, you guys, Brothers Osborne going to be out. We're not for everyone, the tour dates. July 29th through November 20th, they're out. You're out all the time. I've never seen so many dates in one, like season. We're making for a lost time, man.

Apparently, they're doing four shows in Boston in one hour, apparently. But I know, you guys check it out. As you can see, I love the guys. Follow them at Brothers Osborne. Very funny on social media. Appreciate you guys this time. Love you, bye. Thank you, buddy.

We did an hour. We did over an hour. Sometimes things go 15 minutes. And I'm like, well, that was good, folks. But I just appreciate you guys and see you soon. Likewise, buddy. Take care. All right.

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