Tim McGraw Doesn’t Mind Getting on the ‘Heavy Side’
Tim McGraw is known as a fun-loving guy with a host of songs -- such as 'I Like It, I Love It,'-- to back up that image. But he definitely has a serious side, too.
Want proof? Listen to 'If I Died Today,' 'Love You Goodbye,' and 'Forever Seventeen' on his latest album 'Southern Voice,' not to mention the myriad other more thought-provoking tunes he has previously released, such as 'Live Like You Were Dying.'
"I never aim for anything like that going in," Tim tells the Charlotte News Observer. "But I do like the heavier material, stuff that leans to the heavy side, gets inside you and stays there. I just record songs I gravitate toward. And as you get older, you have a little more life experience and can do those songs with some credibility."
That was clear at one of Tim's recent concerts. Even though he told fans at the Virginia show that he prefers to sing rather than talk, a few songs prompted him to praise his wife, Faith Hill, speak lovingly of his daughters and talk about the opportunities music has afforded him including singing with such luminaries as Tony Bennett.
While a lot of Tim's songs come from his personal life, acting also keeps the creative juices flowing. After his 1995 acting debut on 'The Jeff Foxworthy Show,' Tim took roles in movies including 'The Blind Side,' 'Friday Night Lights,' and 'Country Strong,' (previously titled 'Love Don't Let Me Down'), in which he plays the husband and manager of Gwyneth Paltrow, a fading country starlet.
"I do think singing and acting help each other," says Tim. "Expression is expression and art is art. I do movies and find that other part of myself, which helps me with music. Singing and acting are kissin' cousins, at least. In both cases, you're trying to create empathy more than anything. In the studio singing a song, I'm in the dark in this little room off to myself, and each song is a mini-movie. You could take any country song -- just about any song of any kind, really -- and make a two-hour movie out of it.
"So in that moment of singing a song," Tim continues, "you're trying to create a character that people will want to walk through the song with to see what happens. Same with a movie. Whether you're the good guy, the bad guy or just a guy, you're trying to get people interested in what happens and the end result."
Tim's 'Southern Voice tour stops in Charlotte, N.C. on Friday, July 23. For more upcoming dates, click here.
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