Bruce Springsteen Recalls How Tim McGraw Cheered Him Up After a Grammy Loss
There was once a time when country music star Tim McGraw used his undeniable charm and quick wit to cheer up rock legend Bruce Springsteen during an especially down moment. So, how did he do it?
Well, by simply pointing out the obvious, as Springsteen recalled when he chatted with McGraw on the "Highway Don't Care" singer's Apple Music show, Beyond the Influence Radio. The uplifting moment happened 18 years ago at the 2003 Grammy Awards, right after Springsteen's 2002 comeback album The Rising lost out on the Album of the Year trophy to Norah Jones' Come Away With Me.
Even though The Rising still took home the Grammy for Best Rock Album that night, Springsteen and his band understandably felt disappointed after the Album of the Year loss. Backstage, however, McGraw wasn't keen on the pity party -- and he knew just what to says to "The Boss."
"I always remember one thing you said to me," Springsteen tells McGraw. "It was the night after we lost the Grammy for The Rising, and I came into the dressing room, and everybody was kind of down in the mouth. And you said, 'Hey, what's the matter, man? You're Bruce Springsteen!'
"That really picked me up," the 71-year-old singer adds as both he and McGraw chuckle about the memory. "It was kind of a great moment, and I've always remembered that when I think of you."
The recollection closed a conversation between McGraw and Springsteen on Beyond the Influence's Episode 4, as shown in the above video (the exchange occurs at around 10:30). Elsewhere in the chat, the pair discussed their bands, fitness tips and what drives them to create.
"More than wanting to be rich or famous, I wanted to be great," Springsteen says, as People reported following the interview. "That was the thing that motivated me was when people looked at me and my band, I wanted to say, 'Well, man, they were one of the great ones.'"
"And that still motivates me like it did when I was 16 years old," he continues before discussing his latest effort, 2020's Letter to You. "So [with] this record … I think it can stand up next to the best records that I've made. It was just the desire to do something that would wake my fans up, make them feel alive, help contextualize their lives … in these very difficult times that we're going through."
Fans can tune into McGraw's Beyond the Influence by clicking here.