At 58 years old, Tim McGraw is still one of country music’s most recognizable voices and enduring stars. But in a recent candid interview, the “Humble and Kind” singer opened up about how his relationship with country music has evolved — and why he no longer feels comfortable performing songs about “tailgates and bikinis.”
“That’s just not who I am anymore,” McGraw said. “When I was younger, sure, I could sing about summer flings and cold beers in the back of a truck. But now? I’m a husband, a father, a man who’s been through a lot of life. I want to sing about things that matter to me now.”
It’s a sentiment that many longtime fans have admired about McGraw in recent years — the way his music has grown up with him. While he built his early career on chart-toppers like “I Like It, I Love It” and “Something Like That,” his more recent catalog has leaned into deeper themes of reflection, family, faith, and the passage of time.
“Look, I still love a fun, upbeat country song,” he laughed. “But I want to sing about what it means to be a good man, about raising daughters, marriage, and legacy. I want songs that hold a mirror up to the life I’m actually living.”
McGraw’s transformation as an artist mirrors the path of his personal life. His decades-long marriage to Faith Hill, his public sobriety journey, and his role as a father to three grown daughters have shaped the man — and musician — he is today.
“The older I get, the more I want to leave something real behind,” he said. “Songs that mean something, that help people, that outlive me.”
He cited songs like “Live Like You Were Dying,” “Highway Don’t Care,” and “Humble and Kind” as career-defining moments — not because of the awards or chart positions, but because of how they made people feel.
“I’ve had fans come up to me and say, ‘That song helped me through my dad’s cancer,’ or ‘I danced with my daughter to that at her wedding.’ That’s the kind of impact I want to have.”
As for the current state of mainstream country music — often saturated with party anthems and surface-level lyrics — McGraw doesn’t criticize it, but says he simply no longer sees himself in that space.
“There’s a season for everything,” he said. “I’ve had my fun. Now I’m in a season of meaning. Of depth. Of gratitude.”
Tim McGraw’s voice may be as strong as ever, but the man behind the mic has clearly matured into something far more profound — a storyteller who has learned to trade tailgates for truth, and bikinis for wisdom.
“I want my daughters to be proud of the songs I sing,” he added. “And I want to be able to look in the mirror and say — yeah, that’s me in that song.”