Hunter Hayes First Learned Guitar From His Mom

Hunter Hayes is known as much for his multi-instrumental abilities as his hit songs. The 23-year-old, who played every instrument on his self-titled debut album, credits his mother with teaching him how to play the one he uses the most -- his guitar.

"My mom, one summer, decided, 'You know what? How about I go and get a guitar and learn to play so that when you do your acoustic gigs ... I can accompany you,'" he recalls to CMT.

Hayes' mother, Lynette Hayes, took a few lessons but soon realized her student was about to become her teacher.

"After a couple of lessons, he was better at it than I was, so I just said, 'You just do your thing, and I'll just do the Mom thing,'" she says. "And I never played guitar again."

Not that his parents weren't still supportive. The 'Tattoo' singer says his parents always encouraged him, not only when he showed musical proficiency at a young age (Hayes performed for then-President Bill Clinton when he was only seven years old), but also when he endured painful bullying in school.

"Fortunately for me I had incredible parents," he says." I had an incredible support system, musicians around me, and that showed me that there was hope -- that there was maybe something else I could look forward to.”

Hayes is currently out on the road on his Tattoo (Your Name). See a list of dates here.