Tayler Holder: From Viral Fame to Real Country Music & Finding Purpose

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign. Come on. [00:00:15] Speaker B: This is Outside the Round with Matt Burrill for Rage Rowdy podcast. What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of Outside the Round. Today I got my homie Taylor. Freaking holder. What's going on, man in the building, dude. Thanks for coming. Coming. I heard it was a wild weekend on the road with Mr. Chase. [00:00:33] Speaker A: Matthew, man, to say the least. It was crazy. First two shows of the year, not disappointed at all. The way the. The way the weekend ended was disappointing, but that's. That's for whatever, you know what I mean? We'll take that with a grain of salt. [00:00:45] Speaker B: Where were the shows at the shows? [00:00:46] Speaker A: We had one in Knoxville, at the Mill in mine. So that was our third time playing that room, bro. Bro. It's so sick. Now I gotta go headline it myself because we played it. We played it with Dylan Scott. We played it with Cameron Whitcomb, and then just did with Chase, and then we did Pittsburgh. And I, like, I Traveling the world and like, playing the songs have been kind of, like, surreal to me because, like, I would have never thought, like, that many people like country music in Pittsburgh and, like. Or like, we did a show in. In Jersey, like, at Jinx Club, like, right on the shore and, like, so packed it out. [00:01:20] Speaker B: That used to be my old stomping grounds, bro. No, used to help out with those Wednesday night, that series that you did with Thunder106. I used to help with those shows back in, like, 2016, 2017. [00:01:30] Speaker A: It was so wild, like, to just see, like, how many people love country music in the places that I just never would have thought as well. But then, yeah, on the way home, all of our, like, rods in our hub, like, just completely just snapped and sent us just, like, drifting down the highway and about lost the trailer. Couple thousand dollars later, still didn't get it fixed, and we just decided to leave it there. And I called my buddy and Z went and picked up a sprinter and drove four hours to come get us and drove us back that night. [00:02:02] Speaker B: I've been there, bro. I've been there. I've been. I've been to where it breaks down when you're leaving town and then you got to go rent a U Haul or a. Or another truck, load the gear into a box truck and follow the bus dude to wherever you go. [00:02:15] Speaker A: Those are. We've had one bad, like, really bad experience. Like, we were like, how can we look at this as a positive? And the positive that we took away from it was we were not headed to another show. [00:02:24] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:02:25] Speaker A: Because we've been on the way to a show, and that happens. And when you're in the middle of nowhere, can't get a rental car, can't. You can't get picked up in an Uber on the side of the highway either, to go get to a location to rent a car. It was just like the most unbelievable thing. Like, in. Like, we almost had to cancel the show because we almost didn't make it, but it was. It was a whole thing. So we were like, at least we're not headed to another show. But it was from. It was literally from 9:30 in the morning till 11pm at night until we got it solved. So it was a long day. Yeah. Yeah. [00:02:54] Speaker B: How these shows been ch. With Chase Ben, because he is a performer. If you ever been to a Chase Matthew show, you got to get your ass to one for those that are watching. [00:03:01] Speaker A: Dude, I tell everyone that even when I'm on stage, Like, I'm like, who's ready for Chase Matthew? Like, I know you guys aren't here for me. Like, I got to tell you, like, I don't know if you've ever been to one, but it's arguably one of the best concerts I've ever put on my life. Like, I watch his show every single night that I'm with him, Whether I'm playing with him or not, I'm just watching. And I learned so much from him. He's genuinely one of the guys that I learned the most of my stage presence from because he is. The entire time, one of the first things he says when he gets on that stage is, I'm giving this hat to. Away to, like, the. The loudest person that he. He is so good at, like, getting the fans engaged and keeping them engaged the entire show. And that's one thing I'm learning how to do. I'm still super new on stage and stuff like that, so we're, like, still trying to figure out those things and getting to watch close friends and people that I love like Chase, and learning from them, it's. It's cool. It's. It's something that I literally dreamed of forever. [00:03:50] Speaker B: Yeah, man. And I've gotten to kind of watch you grow through tailgates and tall boys every year and getting to see you do different things around town. And the past few years, transitioning from just doing the social media aspect of entertainment to writing songs, getting out there and playing them for people, most of all, recording them, that's got to be a wild thing to have gone through, dude. [00:04:10] Speaker A: It's. It is Weird. Honestly, the coolest thing for me is, like, been able to, like, you know, I. I think that it was a. It's been a long journey, you know, you've kind of watched the whole thing over from the Tik Tok kid to like, trying to do music and stuff like that. And I think what's like, really inspiring to me is how much like, music can actually transition people. Because, like, I was, you know, that dancing Tik Tok kid that was not an artist at all to coming into a space that I was completely unaware of and let alone country music, it was very hard for people to, like, take me serious coming into this world, you know, and I loved it. I hated it, but I loved it, you know, because everyone thought that it was this facade that I'm putting on. Everyone thought that I'm this, like, city boy from LA and, you know, no one knows I'm from town that's got 2,000 people. [00:04:55] Speaker B: Alberto Baby and Savvy. [00:04:58] Speaker A: Yeah, like, me and Sevy grew up. I've literally known him since I was born, man. Him and my brother went to school together. His parents went to school. My family. Yeah. And, you know, there's. There's not much coming from there. Growing up and, you know, wanting to team rope with my dad for the rest of my life or grew up racing moto, like, doing all these things and then like, I land on, like, dancing on Tick Tock, you know, and that's how I get, like, seen by the world. Yeah, man. I wish the world would have seen, like, the realest version of me instead of this guy that was just chasing a bunch of money that meant nothing, you know? And as we're coming over to the. To the music side, and there's so many people that, like, I see in the comments now that are like. And that's what, like, pushes me to do it even more is like cheesy and cliche as that is is like. I have dudes in the comments that are like, not gonna lie, bro. Used to, like, really rip on you, dude, and hate what you were doing. And the music is good and I'm behind it now, man. Like, I'm. You have got a fan now. And, like, that's what, like, drives me to, like, gain those people that don't give a fuck about, you know, because hopefully I'd like to think that hopefully the people that do love me, we're going to stick around for a while, you know? I mean. [00:06:00] Speaker B: Yeah, man. And whether it was the. The dancing on camera for TikTok that's still entertaining, that's still creating. So I feel like you've always had that. That bone in you to want to create. [00:06:11] Speaker A: And. [00:06:12] Speaker B: And honestly, it is. To me, it is. It is something to where the social media part of it is so hard for people to figure out. It's usually you have one thing or the other of reversed it where you come from, that social media background. Yeah, you really did. And it's. And then you get in the room with some incredible songwriters and you pick up that craft of telling story through lyrics and melodies. And you already knew how to be in front of people from. From doing interviews and dancing in front of people and doing the stuff like you talked about. So getting on stage had to feel what. What was that like getting on stage for the first time as Taylor Holder, the country singer? [00:06:48] Speaker A: It was the scariest thing in the world because I. This is. I did like, I did do like, like Whiskey Jam and stuff like that. But like, my first like, actual, like, on stage moment, I'd like to say is like, we did like a couple of our own little like one off shows just to get our feet wet. They were smaller rooms, but was the Dylan Scott tour. Yeah. And we kind of got thrown into that really fast. And like, it was literally just me and my. Me and my best friend John. Like, we. He was my content guy. And like, that first day, I remember it was extra, like, scary because, like, I had already had a good relationship with Dylan. They were already good guys, so I wasn't worried about like, that side of stuff, but everything that could go wrong day of, like the first day of tour, you know, everyone's like, getting all their. Their things, like, situated and stuff. We didn't even get the sound check. Like, Dylan was dealing with technical difficulties. There was stuff going on. And so, like, first big show ever in my life. Open up for a big artist, not a sound check. I had never really played on a stage like that ever in my life. Everything was just like, I'm like, this show's about to go to guys. Like, I was like, I'm about to really make a fool myself. This is going viral for sure. And people are never gonna come to a show again. [00:07:54] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:07:55] Speaker A: And man, it was. It was a bunch of trial and error. And I will. I will say that Dylan is like some. Some of the, like, the very few that like, put his arm around me and was like, helping me, like, line by line of like, what could really help sculpt what we're doing. And they were a big help to John Because John was like. When we got there, they were like. Or leading up to it, it was like, you know, tour manager this, that. And I was like, I don't. I was like, my mom's right here. Like, you know what I mean? Like, we had no idea what was [00:08:23] Speaker B: going on, you know? Yeah. [00:08:24] Speaker A: And John had this idea of like, hey, dude, I want to. I want to try to do this. I want to try to, like, take over more of what we're doing here. And da, da, da, da. And I was like, I got no one else to do it, so let's try it. And that's kind of where it all started for us. [00:08:38] Speaker B: So that's awesome, dude. Yeah. And Dylan Scott's a great guy. Look up to and funny, you were talking about Jenks earlier. My first time seeing Dylan Scott was 2016 at Jenks Club. [00:08:47] Speaker A: No way. Yeah. [00:08:48] Speaker B: Almost 10 years ago. [00:08:50] Speaker A: How many people did he put in there? [00:08:51] Speaker B: I mean, it was a lot of people. [00:08:52] Speaker A: Oh, is it still good? [00:08:53] Speaker B: Oh, bro, dude, hell yeah. Early on, man. Early on. [00:08:56] Speaker A: I always love hearing stories of like. Like, we played cruisins, like, a couple times. [00:09:00] Speaker B: Shout out to Wayno Wayne and Austin, man. [00:09:02] Speaker A: Dude, I freaking best. [00:09:04] Speaker B: I love Peoria, Illinois. [00:09:05] Speaker A: You know those, dude, they're like the prime example of the dudes that, like, you are, like, you're about to go play this venue for the first time, and you're, like, professional, right? And you're trying to handle everything professional. And then you get there and you're like, okay, profession. Yeah. Like, these guys are, like, throwing down with us. [00:09:21] Speaker B: Yeah, we're having fun. [00:09:22] Speaker A: Yeah. But I just love the stories of, like, they tell me that, like, I sold more tickets than Lainey Wilson did there, like, when she came and played it. And so that gives me perspective of, like, you know, maybe we got a real shot at this, you know? You do, man. You're doing it, you know, and that's why it goes in my head where, like, those are the things that, like. Because I think that sometimes, coming from the social media space, I'm so used to, like, viral, viral, viral. Like, every video I'm doing, I'm trying to go viral. It's trying to be the next big thing. And. And I think that, like, when I came to music, that was a big setback for me because it's so much different, man. There's people like that are getting 5,000likes that are selling out thousands and thousands cap rooms, like, you know what I mean, that are, like, hard for me to do. And I have 20 million right. It's just because it's such a different space, and that was a really big, like, news flash to me and a reset because I come over here thinking, like, I just. I got a platform. Maybe this will be easier for me. Right? Not at all, man. And. And so that. That's. That's also been a really cool thing to see of, like, hey, I can't. I had 20 million followers, and I was struggling, putting 100 people in a room. And it all comes down to just, like, the quality of the music, the quality of everything. And there's a difference that I've learned in. There's a difference between followers and fans. And whenever you're doing thing, bro. Yeah, man. And. And so whenever I was focused on doing stuff for the views, I'd get so discouraged, man. A video would flop, and I'd be like, oh, man, this song's not worth it or this or that. Instead of focusing on the long play, instead of focusing on, like, nah, man. Like, let it bread. Like, let it sit there for a minute. Let it do its work. Let everything cook. Because this isn't just some viral moment on the Internet anymore. This is, like, that you're building, like, decades of. Of. Of jevity and. And. And like, you're here to stay. You know what I mean? [00:11:04] Speaker B: So, yeah, man, it's an investment. It really freaking is. And from playing the side stage at a TNT in Bloomington to then going into a Cruisins or going into a Jenks club, or, like, building that from taking the side stage thing that you got to do in those opening slots to now getting ready to do your headlining thing, which you've gotten to do a little bit already, man. It's like, it is such a process and converting followers into fans and figuring out where your big markets are. Like, you're interesting because it's like, you spent time in la, you've been here in Nashville for a while, but you're a Texas guy. [00:11:38] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:11:38] Speaker B: So it's like, where would you claim is, like, a hometown show for you, dude? [00:11:43] Speaker A: It's. It's really hard, man, because there's such a special place in my heart for Texas. You know what I mean? Like, I would like to go back to Alvarado and do something like, in our. In our square, like our little town square that's right there by David's. You know what I mean? This little grocery store that's there. Yeah, yeah. One day, you know, I'd love to, you know, do that one day for the. For my. For my town, you know? But maybe. Maybe, like a hometown show would. I'd still like to say Dallas would be a hometown show, but this would just be a home show if we did it on a Nashville. You know what I mean? I think that this is, like, where I'm gonna get to build my family and where I bought a house out here. It's. It's middle of nowhere. We're up in, like, Jolt and Pleasant, where there's not nothing going on. There's. There's one grocery store, and I hold that close to my heart because that's where I was raised, man, in it. And so I'm very much like, not in the city of Nashville. And that's why I think it's drove me so much to stay here. And all that is because it feels like home, man. And also for a long time, my. A lot of people don't know, but my parents house burned down, and my family was living with me for, like, the last year. So it. It was kind of nice to like. [00:12:46] Speaker B: Oh, you had the. You had the family with you here in Tennessee? [00:12:49] Speaker A: My dad had to live. My dad was living in a. Like a. Like a camper, like, on a campsite for the last, like, year and a half because of his work, and he couldn't leave Texas. My mom was. We. We enclosed, like, this single car garage in my basement and. And, like, made it a little studio apartment for her. My brother lived in there with her as well, and he had, like, this girlfriend. They had a little girl and all that stuff that. Whatever. And then they ended up. They. They split, though. But, like, my. It was just a whole little, like, family compound for a little while, you know what I mean? And. And so that kind of regrounded me too, and all that stuff. [00:13:23] Speaker B: But what's it like? Because you're what? You're 27, 28. [00:13:26] Speaker A: Just turned 28. [00:13:26] Speaker B: Just turned 28, man. 20, 20, 28. Take it from a guy who just turned 31. 28 is a good year. [00:13:33] Speaker A: Is it? [00:13:33] Speaker B: It really is. A lot of good shit happened. [00:13:35] Speaker A: I'm glad to hear that, because I. I'm not gonna lie. I turned 28 and I woke up and I was like, holy. I'm actually almost 30. Yeah. Like. Like, I feel like the 27 was like, yo, I'm like, still kind of mid-20s. [00:13:45] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:13:46] Speaker A: And then, like, just the immediate switch to 28. I was like, bro, I'm, like, actually almost 30. Like, I'm like, actually almost there. And it kind of freaks me out because I feel like where I'm from, like, I was supposed to have, like, a wife and kids by now and work with my dad in the cement plants. You know what I mean? Like, that was the goal. If I didn't make it racing dirt bikes or I didn't make it doing anything else with, like, things I was growing up on with sports. And this was definitely, like, by far, like, one of my biggest dreams to a accomplish in life. But I never thought it would be possible for Alfredo. You know, like, I. I thought I was gonna should go and play sports or work for my dad. [00:14:22] Speaker B: And then being 28 and being able to build out a compound for your family, that's a real testament to, one, your character. And two, all that you've gotten to do in 28 years on this earth, dude, not many guys or girls would be able to do that and be able to take their family in. Yeah, and give back to the people that raised you in the way that you did, man. [00:14:43] Speaker A: Do it a hundred times over as well. Because, like, I. I can'. Speak for a lot of other people's stories, but my story is truly, like, I. If it wasn't for my dad and my mom, I would not be anywhere. Where I'm at, we didn't come from money, but my dad, you know, always did very well with getting by. And, you know, there was a moment where, like, when I moved out to LA to go do this stuff, like, they were about to sell their house to be able to keep me out there, you know, keep pushing everything. And my dad was, you know, my dad's like, old school, like, country, like, doesn't. [00:15:12] Speaker B: Texan, Proud Texan. [00:15:13] Speaker A: He's like that gum boy now. Like, he's like, super. Like, you would. You'd see my family, my brother, like, they all talk to me the same, and you would think I'm adopted, like, straight up, man. And like, you, like, my dad didn't understand any of it when we were getting started. Like, he wanted me to race dirt bikes. He wanted me to stay in the training facility. He wanted me to do all that stuff. And when I went out there, he was like, I want you to stay here. But, like, go do it, Bob. Like, go do what you got to do. And he, he, him and my mom, like, my mom was doing hospice for 20 years. She eventually stopped that to raise us and then started working with my dad to help make money to keep me out there and everything. My brother works for my dad as well, so it was like a big, like, family business that they just kind of devoted their whole life to helping me do what I wanted to do out there. And so truly like I would, I would go broke 100 times to help them and make sure they're safe because they did that for me. [00:16:02] Speaker B: So what's it like going from being an 18 year old town of 2000 people with Davids in the town square, going out to la? [00:16:11] Speaker A: Truthfully I would have, after I've done it now, I would have rather stayed in Alvarado, man. I, Well, I guess like I'll, I'll take it with a grain of salt, you know. I think it taught me the most valuable lesson, lessons in my life and it's made me, what I'd like to say, like a pretty solid like young man and what I'm growing into, I'm so far away from where I want to be in, in my walk with God and stuff too right now. But like I think that like I would just not be anywhere where I'm at mentally, physically, everything if I didn't go out to that hole of a town and do what I did. But that's a part of it, man. That was a part of what God wrote for me. That was a part of my testimony. That was a part of everything. And I think going out there I had a lot of the wrong ideas just like anyone else did. Like I was a 15 year old kid that started on vine with all those other vine kids and I was telling my mom I was like, I'm gonna go to LA and be famous on the Internet. Like I had no real intention to build any career, no real intention to build any like sustainable business. All I wanted to do was be famous and rich. Like that was like in my eyes. [00:17:09] Speaker B: Yeah, you're also between 15 to 18 years old. [00:17:12] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:17:13] Speaker B: We don't fully know what is going on in the world. [00:17:16] Speaker A: I had no idea about responsibilities, dude. [00:17:18] Speaker B: Yeah. Nobody at that young age, seriously. [00:17:21] Speaker A: And you know, I, it was a news flash, man. It was a, it was a culture shock. It was everything, dude. You know, you come from a small town where everyone knows everyone. It's, it's holding doors open for people. It's yes ma', am, no ma'. Am. It's like you, you just would do anything to help one another for Z. And you go out to a place like LA where like it's very like transactional man. It's very like, oh, like we can't hang with this guy because he doesn't benefit us at all. He's a nobody on the Internet. What is bringing him into our friend group? [00:17:51] Speaker B: Do or we're, or if we hang with this guy, then we gotta, if we bring this guy and then we got to go do something for him, and then he's got to do something for. [00:17:58] Speaker A: I'm telling you, in the eight years. [00:17:59] Speaker B: Toxic mindset, I say it all the [00:18:01] Speaker A: time, but in the eight years, seven, eight years I was in la, man, I didn't even. I didn't go throw a baseball with one person. I didn't have like a real, real solid moment with, like, hardly anybody in la, man. And I, I think that that's one thing that was like a big shock to me leaving. It was how oblivious I was to all that because I, I mean, I should have never been there for that long. Never, man. I just thought because of the way that the industry was working and the money that I was making and the followers that I was gaining was if I was to switch anything, it would all be gone. It would slowly start drifting away. I'd fall off. I'd be just another one of those guys, right? [00:18:38] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:18:38] Speaker A: And I think for so long I let my ego get to me and I was like, I can't be one of those guys, man. I, I'm. I'm on top. I gotta stay on top and, and all this stuff instead of protecting my. My just mental and capacity and my wellness. And it drove me so far into the ground to where, dude, like, I was. I was the lowest I had ever been in my life. There was a moment where, like, I even have a song that's. That, that's gonna be coming out soon that like, really dives into that moment of my life because I feel like I've been writing and I'm ranting kind of for a second right now. [00:19:07] Speaker B: Go for it, bro. [00:19:08] Speaker A: I feel like for so long, man, I was like, trying to write music and trying to be, like, accepted into this town instead of just coming into this town and being the most real version of myself. Like, I don't. I. I never, I've never drank in my life, man. I got a problem with smoking a little bit too much weed. And that's just because of what that town did to me, man. I was, I. It put me at a low, low moment, but it's, it's kind of going through those moments and, like, talking about my testimony a little bit of, like, it's called when no one's around. And that's where, like, when I was in the mindset of, like, waking up and like, taking my own life one day was an option at one moment in My life, you know what I mean? And I think that that's where like, I would love to start tying into my music and tying into my testimony of like the realest version of me. Because I feel like for the longest time, man, why this music? You know, it could be a lot of reasons. It could be just because no one. There may be some just like really like blue collar dudes that just never want to get behind Taylor Holder or the idea of it because I danced like cringy on Tick Tock and they're like, I just can't do it. Or there's just like a side of people that don't realize, like, hey man, I've been. There's. There's like a lack of authenticity. I feel like for so long with my music, with my career, with everything about me that never really. I. I guess I would say like, just showed like the version of Taylor that people. I feel like if they like. I want people to like, be like, I could, I could share a beer with that guy. Even if I don't drink. I. Oh, I could. I feel like if I like spent a moment with him and heard him out, like, he. I would like actually like this dude. You know what I mean? And. And I think that that's like the route that we're. We're excited to take. And I'm excited to. To dive down is. Is Taylor and what. [00:20:54] Speaker B: Yeah, man, Taylor actually is 100, dude. And that like the concept of when no one else is around, man, like, I'm coming up on. On 10 years off the booze, like, I had a problem with it. And I always tell people like, my. I'm at my worst when I'm just by myself. And like, people get in their heads. And that's something that I think any guy or girl can relate to at any stage in their life. Everybody's been through it. And if they say they haven't, then they're lying to themselves. You know, they're. [00:21:21] Speaker A: They're like, it's denial. Like, denial is the first sign of like depression, honestly, is what I had found too for myself was like. And that's why like, that title is so meaningful to me. Because even like you, you know, like, what you just shared is like, dude, I can't speak for anybody else, but what I do know for myself is everyone's always like, taylor, man, you got a clean house, dude, you got too many people around you always. And I'm like, I know, I know, I know. And I say I know because, like, realistically, like I know that I need to. I know that all these people around the Taylor Holder group are not all there for me. They could honestly probably give a less about me, you know what I mean? But, like, what they don't understand in my own head is like, the reason I smoke so much weed, the reason I surround myself with all these people, the reason that I've. I've lived the way that I've lived and it's hard to get out of that cycle is purely solely because for me, it's. It sounds so, like, soft. But, like, when no one is around and I'm high or I'm not high or whatever, like, my mind goes to the worst moments that I could possibly be and I don't know how to escape it. [00:22:30] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:22:30] Speaker A: And that's what that record is about is like. Like, it's almost like kind of asking for help, man. Like, the top line of the course is like, when no one's around, I start to drown, like. Like with life, you know? So throw me a robe, because I only know of one way out. You know what I mean? It's like there's like this moment of, like, just grief when you're sitting with yourself, man. And there's not a single thing, but every type of noise going on in your head of like the devil trying to attack you, man. It's the scariest position I've ever been in. And that's why I think that I surround myself with the people that I do and so many people is because I can't be alone. Yeah. And I'm working on it, man. And everyone's like, taylor, have you ever tried talking to someone? And, like, for some reason me and talking to people don't go together. [00:23:13] Speaker B: Well, you know what you can do? You know what you're talking to? You can talk to your fans and talk to the world through your songs, [00:23:19] Speaker A: and that's what I rely on, and [00:23:21] Speaker B: that's what you can use. [00:23:22] Speaker A: That's why this record, man. Man, like, whether it's just for myself or for everybody that I know needs to hear it as well. I'm so excited about. Because it's the first real, real song that I've put out. And I'm just excited for the world to hear it, man. [00:23:37] Speaker B: Yeah, man, that's freaking great. Tell me. Tell me about. About pieces, man. [00:23:42] Speaker A: Dude, talk about peace. The. [00:23:44] Speaker B: The new one you just put out, man, that's another one where I'm like, we're starting to see. [00:23:49] Speaker A: That was kind of start, man. You know, like. And that's what kind of turned the page for me, too, because I was like, like, you know, dude, we're in music, man. We're gonna, I'm always gonna write breakup songs because people need breakup songs. Yeah. And you know what I mean, whether I'm in a happy relationship or not, man, I, I, I also want those songs that, that people can just apply to their life, whether it is truthful to my story or not. But I was writing and releasing all these songs. You know how the music industry works. Like, a lot of these songs that we released were written, like, a year and a half ago, and they've just been in the, you know, I was releasing a lot of, like, heartbreak breakup songs, and I'm, like, very clearly in love, man. [00:24:24] Speaker B: And yeah, obviously, congrats on. [00:24:26] Speaker A: Thank you, man. [00:24:27] Speaker B: And I got something special, dude. [00:24:29] Speaker A: Thank you, bro. I, I, and I just, I, I obviously had sat down and wrote. I've tried to write a lot of songs about her, but, like, I didn't want to just put out another song. Like, that was just like, I love you so much. You know what I mean? Like, I, I really wanted it to, like, hit home, man. I wanted it to be a home run. And when we wrote this song originally, it was like four on the floor, dude, like, freaking going. It wasn't even a piano ballad at all. And we ended up, like, messing around and just stripping everything back. And we were like, oh, my God, boys, this might be it. And I mean, I went there. That's where I went, dude, was the place of, like, hey, dude, I am. I am this beaten up, broken individual. I am someone that does not deserve this person. I am someone that, like, is literally telling her, hey, you should probably just turn around and walk right the back out, because you're going to end up broken just like anyone else I've been with in the past. And you don't deserve that. And I think that with her seeing the version that everyone loved to talk about and not have good things about and deciding instead of following that, like, that, like, bandwagon of hopping on a bandwagon of, like, F. Taylor, it was like, no, I'm gonna stand by that guy, because that's the version of him that I fell in love with. And I see such an amazing version. Like, she's broke this down and told me it, and that's what, like, just completely changed my idea of, like, I was dead set on, like, love is probably not a real thing anymore, man. With the Internet, with everything, dude, with your life, bro. [00:25:56] Speaker B: It's. [00:25:56] Speaker A: I'D imagine it's finding someone that really understands it. And I feel like it's a lot to ask sometimes because, like, it's truly almost like impossible or it's very hard to understand this lifestyle, man. It. With the way that there's just people that always either love you and throw themselves at you or hate you and try to sabotage everything you're doing in life. It's. It's really hard on both parties, you know what I mean? And. And to find someone that can not only like, I guess, like deal with that and not even understand it, but just handle it. Yeah. And sit right there with me and be like, hey, I trust you. I'm here with you. I got you. That. That. It's one in a million, man. Yeah. [00:26:37] Speaker B: Walk me through the fire at the barn. Oh, because I saw that video and I remember I was text. I texted Tyler and was like, everybody okay? [00:26:45] Speaker A: Yeah, dude. [00:26:47] Speaker B: What a chaotic moment. [00:26:48] Speaker A: Well, I'm sure, like shout out to like my guitar player, Tony Gentili. And then John to. Because Tony, luckily, by the grace of God, had pulled up right as the fire started. So like my, my driveway like wraps around my house and then you pull up to the front of my house, but like you could see my barn in the background back there. And he had pulled up and instead of coming in right away, he sat in the car for like 15 minutes on the phone with his dad. If he would have came in right away, who, like, I always think about those things is like, what. What could have happened if it didn't happen the exact way it happened? You know, he sat in the car, he started seeing some smoke back there. And we're always burning stuff, bonfires, we're renovating the house, we got wood to burn, whatever it is. And he thought, oh, they're just having a fire. Well, the black smoke started getting bigger, bigger. He was coming there to talk tour stuff with John. John eventually went out there and was like dancing in the driveway, like being, being just, you know, we were just off and we were packing up our stuff to leave to go to tractor supply to get more stuff for the, for the barn and stuff. And. And all of a sudden Tony's like, hey, John. Like, I don't know if that's supposed to. It looks like there's a fire over there. And we were already filming and capturing something. I just hired a full time videographer to capture my life and document everything. And literally like one of the first days on the job, this happens and John comes running inside, busts in the door. And like, this is how, you know, our friend group is like, great, but not great. He runs inside and is like, the barn's on fire, dude. Like, get out here now. And in my head I'm like, yeah, right, dude. Like, the way I. I just didn't believe him because that's just how our friend group is. But I did see, like a genuine fear in his eyes. And I was like, okay, well, let's just, just. I just kind of jog out there a little bit and I turn around the corner and I see the whole barn in flames. And dude, I'm like, gone, dude. Me and Z are cook into the barn. Zoe's behind me. We have everyone. Like, it did seem like worse in the video for the camera guy because, like, it seemed like he was just filming. And it was like me, Zoe and Z, like, we did have a couple other hands that were like, were behind the camera that were bringing us buckets of water, Doing a lot of other things as well. But I mean, dude, we got out there within 45 seconds of it starting, and that's how big it was. In 45 seconds it was. [00:29:08] Speaker B: Imagine if you had been on the road, bro. [00:29:10] Speaker A: Imagine Tony went inside to meet with John and we left for tractor supply. I'm just thinking like, stuff like that. And I got out there. You could see me kicking the fence in the video. The reason I was kicking it was because the fire was where the. The gate was to get into the. To the goat pen. Whenever we ran out there. From the angle at first it was the goat pen that was on fire. And I thought the entire thing was. I thought the goats were gone, dude. And when we got around the corner, there was about a three foot gap in between, like, where the goats were and where the fire was. The goats had some like, burn marks on them where they had lost some of their fur and stuff like that. But I was trying to kick the fence in because I couldn't go in through the gate. And man, we built that fence good because I could not get that thing through. I was trying to. Two of the goats were pregnant. I was trying to kick it open to just let them run out, you know. Tried throwing that cinder block through, couldn't get it. And I was like, I'm going in, boys. Like, baby, go in the. Go in Mabel's pin the pig and just catch them. I'm gonna throw them over, like, and I just start throwing them over the fence. I didn't want to do that because they were pregnant, you know, but I Was like, they're either gonna die or we're gonna do this. You know what I mean? And so did that. Z's running around throwing water on it. And finally the fire department gets there and like, puts it all out. But, dude, that was like one of the craziest days of my life. And it turned into something way bigger than I thought it was going to be as well. Like, I tried to post that just to literally say, God is good, man. And like, it ended up like, going. The next thing I know, I was on the news and stuff like that. I didn't know it was going to be that. I just was, like, trying to bring awareness to it that, like, man, you really don't know what can happen next. So. [00:30:43] Speaker B: Yeah, that's wild, man. I'm just glad you guys are okay. The animals are okay. [00:30:48] Speaker A: Oh, I was, I. I jumped in the fire. I mean, I was like, I didn't even give a. If I got burned, man. I was like, I need to get these animals out of here. So that was like the most important thing to me, that. That all the animals were good. And, like, the barn's replaceable, man. Yeah. And you know, all them, everyone. There were so many people online that was like, buddy burnt this barn down to collect insurance and all this stuff. And I'm like, yo, you guys are losers, man. Like, f you for that. [00:31:11] Speaker B: I'm so, like, burn my bar. [00:31:13] Speaker A: Like, like, bro, like, what do I. Like, I know I could look like an absolute douchebag on the Internet from, like, my content, but, like, I would just never, like, burn, like, put animals lives at danger to just collect some money. [00:31:24] Speaker B: That's not something that I've had all [00:31:26] Speaker A: the money in the world, and I've also lost all the money in the world. Like, it's really pointless, man. And still to this day, we have not claimed insurance. I'm rebuilding it on my own dime. All this stuff. But that's like the part of the Internet that's. Yeah, whatever, man. Yeah. [00:31:39] Speaker B: How do you handle that? Like, you've got. You've read the comment section on your Life now for 10 years. [00:31:46] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:31:47] Speaker B: You know, how does someone navigate that? [00:31:49] Speaker A: I think, like, for me, I think time, obviously I. The. The amount of time I've been doing, it helps, for sure. But also, whenever you, like, realize, like, I kind of started to sit back, like, probably five years ago and realize that, like, dude, we not only, like, also, like, we would look at these, like, cringy dances that we would do, like, like back in the LA days, right? Like, I feel like a lot of people kind of feel like we film these videos and we're like, this is hard, bro. Like, now we filmed it. Like me and Bryce and all those guys. Like, we knew what we were doing. Like, we filmed it. We were like, yep, we're definitely gonna get flame for that post. Like, we knew it, you know, because we were just. It was like, how do we get people to talk? Right? Yeah, but nowadays I'm just like, this 15 second clip pissed somebody off so much to go onto a comment section that they know no nothing about. They haven't spent one second of a day with off of. Of a video on a screen to go comment. Some outlandish, outlandish stuff. I'm like, I think about it like that I'm like, who's the real loser? At that point? [00:32:53] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:32:53] Speaker A: Like, you know what I mean? So it's like, we honestly feed off of it. Like, I love it. Like, I love pissing people off because I'm like, you're like, you're just a loser, man. Like you. If you. If my. If what I'm doing in my own daily, daily life is pissing you off that much, like, go, go, go touch some grass, brother. Like, you know what I mean? [00:33:11] Speaker B: Like, and I'm sure it has to make the positive comments, especially since you've been doing this music thing, mean that much more coming from the negative comment sections that you once had to now getting, you know, people talking about the music like, this ain't you leaving was a huge song for you. And I'm sure that song generated some great positivity and all these new songs, [00:33:33] Speaker A: it was, it was funny because even with that song, like, we. We knew what we were doing there. Like, I. I took a different approach with the promotion on that song. And I doing very much like Cameron Whitcomb style stuff. And that was because behind the scenes, no one knew it yet, but I was gaining a friendship with Cameron. We were like, I was telling him how I learned a lot of my promo from him. I apply a lot of it from him. And then like, people were like, kid wants to be camera wick come so bad. So then we doing it right, but. And then me and Z, because you know him. And he had Cameron, I think that's his name. Yeah, his little buddy Cameron. Or Kaden. My bad Kaden. And. And so I had little Z. And we were like, all right, let's keep doing this for the public side. Because me and Cam were about to link up anyways and do some stuff Together and do that tour together. So we were like, it's all gonna make sense, but like, you gotta trick the Internet for a while and like, you know, like, you just get people talking. Dude, it's funny, man. It's fun. [00:34:28] Speaker B: How did little Z come into your world? [00:34:30] Speaker A: Find a little person dot org. You know, it was like, build a bear, dude. You just like, I, I always tell [00:34:37] Speaker B: people that, dude, he's a Midwest guy. [00:34:38] Speaker A: He's from Kansas City. [00:34:39] Speaker B: Kansas City. [00:34:41] Speaker A: But we, we were, I was living in. I just moved to Nashville. I was living in Hendersonville with like, Kaden Crease, Jaden Tyler, like our whole little squad that we had. And we were like, really heavy on our, like, little like, content house style stuff still. And I was like, boys, hear me out. We need a little person, man. Like, like, everyone loves them. It makes content amazing. They're freaking solid. Like, like, I just. Everything about it made sense, right? And like, at first, I think for a while I was kind of mainly looking at it as like the content purpose. And then like, I met Z. Like, we. One of them was like, Kaden was actually like, you know, he, they, they knew Z. He was a full time diesel mechanic. Got him on FaceTime. And I was like, yo, brother, I want you out here in Nashville. I come out and create with us sometime. And like, very quickly was like, I, like fell in love with the kid, dude. Like, he very quickly became one of my best friends, dude. And I was like, bro, I want you to. I want you to do this stuff with us, dude. And he came to the Dylan Scott tour. We found out he could sing. He started singing every day. [00:35:45] Speaker B: He can sing, like, really freaking well, dude. [00:35:48] Speaker A: Like, you wouldn't believe it, like. And I was like, there's a real product here as well. You know what I mean? And so I just. That's kind of how that happened. And just through mutual friends. And after I came out there and he rides dirt bikes. He. He's a mechanic, he flips. He does like all kinds of talented things as well. And I was like, there is, there is something here. And also I just get along with him a lot because from my moto, my parkour, my dis, like, I just did a bunch of stuff growing up that I still do to this day that I was like, me and this kid are gonna get along. Yeah. And here we are four years later, like part of the family together. He's part of the family. It's. Yeah. [00:36:23] Speaker B: So what was the big adjustment coming from LA to Nashville? [00:36:28] Speaker A: I think, I think the Biggest adjustment was, and I guess, like, if I could sum it up into one word is like, patience. I think, like, like slowing down, you know what I mean? Because LA was such a. Never satisfied, how can I get to the next thing, you know? And it was all just materialist stuff that meant nothing at the end of the day. And I think that was like the biggest culture shock. Coming to Nashville was like, how much immediately someone extended a hand and said, hey, bud, like, how can I help what you're doing? You know what I mean? But I think, I think just kind of honestly, the best place to start was throwing out everything I ever learned in la, really, and, and just networking, meeting people, getting out there, working on my craft, studying it. Also, like starting from ground zero. I think that it has to be [00:37:20] Speaker B: a nice feeling too, to kind of rebuild because how. How long have you been out here now? [00:37:24] Speaker A: 3. October. This last year was three years, so a little over three years. [00:37:28] Speaker B: Okay, so move out here when you're 20. [00:37:30] Speaker A: 25. [00:37:30] Speaker B: Yeah, 24. 25. [00:37:32] Speaker A: Somewhere in that one of 2022. [00:37:33] Speaker B: Yeah, it's not a bad. Not a bad time to kind of embark on the next chapter, bro. [00:37:38] Speaker A: Yeah. And that was. It was a scary thing for us, man. We had, like, kind of fired and got rid of all of our team. And like I said, it was me, John and my mom basically. Basically that like, kind of started this whole new chapter. And it was just a bunch of trial and error, man. But I'd honestly encourage anybody that's like, watching stuff like this or watch anything I do, whether you like it or not. But starting over. Excuse me. Starting over is like one of the scariest things we've ever done in life. And it was the biggest blessing I've ever done. Like, God will absolutely rip you out of a situation you have never been aware of. He sees things that you don't see. And he pulled me out of an area that he knew that it was hurting me for so long, man. It was like. Like, I truly feel this, man. I was like, I. I truly feel like God was like, I'm about to mess your world up for a long time for you to see what I have planned for you. And, and, man, did he provide, man, did he do exactly what he said he was going to do. [00:38:27] Speaker B: Yeah. Talk about the relationship with God. And that's something that you say you're. You're continuing to work on, but you need to have a better grasp on now than you ever have. [00:38:36] Speaker A: Absolutely. I. I mean, I'm obviously still. I struggle with A lot of things, whether it's, you know, there's, there's, there's a lot of things that come in factor with like the way that the, the public views Christianity as well and love to bring in. Like, oh, like how do you, how do you claim to follow God and you cuss so much. How do you claim to follow God? And you smoke and you, you do these things that are unchristian. Like, absolutely, brother. I never claim to be a perfect Christian. I still struggle with those things. And last time I checked, that's between me and the Lord. Like, I don't know where that ever came to play that I'm just some perfect Christian. But out in la, you know, I went to church here and there. I didn't grow up in church. I didn't grow up in, you know, my parents believe, but they're not some just like die hard biblical. Like, you know, we're very like, just redneck. Like if you ever see where we grew up, man, it's just like, that's just what it is, dude. And it was a, it was a, I think it was a thing of a long time of me being out in LA and, and hearing people say, you know, they're Christian or they believe in God. And I think I would just say that stuff because I thought it was the cool thing or the right thing to say. And instead of actually even picking up and reading a Bible at all or stepping foot into a church or, or really even understanding what anything meant to walk right with God, like, I didn't know any of that. Yeah. And going through just the years that I've went through in life, I, I, and, and just the ups and downs and of everything. Like when I came here, I, I was like, surely there's, there's no reason this is happening for no reason. There's a, there's a, there's such a strong reason as to why I'm being removed from a certain area and placed into another. And I, and I, there was one thing that I'd not tried to do was understand why God was moving stuff in my life. I kind of just always rolled with the wind and what was popular in that moment. And I bought a Bible, man. I started going to church, I started surrounding myself with real Christians. I, my, even my old guitar player Harrison was like a massive help to my life and my, in my walk with God as well. He, he has an amazing testimony from where he was with his drug abuse to where he is now. Man, you would never even think that kid has Ever said a cuss word or touched a drug in his life, man. God has changed his life so much. And I think when I came here, I feel like God gave me a second chance to not only just like, have a career or do something that I love, but to also put me on a stage to. To serve him and to spread the word about him and what he has done for my life. To hopefully push people to walk towards that moment of their life as well. Because I feel like we're in a really. We're in a really scary part of the world right now. [00:41:06] Speaker B: We really are. That's the truth. [00:41:09] Speaker A: I wish I could like, even like, talk more about because. And not because I don't want to. It's because I truly don't feel like I know enough about it, you know, I feel like no one really knows because of. I feel like everything's hidden, man. I feel like everything's. Like. When you feel like, you know, you still don't know. And when you're being lied to by the people that run all of this, it's like, what do you even. Like, I'm just like. All I can. I can do is just be the best version of myself and be the best version that like God and. And to people. You know what I mean? It's like kindness is really any. Everything at that point. [00:41:38] Speaker B: Yeah, man. I think about. And it goes back. I grew up a huge Brantley Gilbert fan. [00:41:42] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:41:43] Speaker B: And I remember and it helped me a lot my sobriety. Because he's California sober, like I am as well, like you are. And his title of his first record was Modern Day Prodigal Son. And it was talking about going through those tribulations, a lot of it. Doing it yourself, but having to go through that BS and then finding your way back like a modern day prodigal son. And that seems like what this chapter has kind of been with you surrounding yourself with the right people, doing what God put you here to do, Having the right woman in your life, singing the songs and writing the songs for. For people, you know, to spread that message that he. He put you here for. [00:42:19] Speaker A: Absolutely. Well, here's the thing, man, is at. When you're at the top of the world, people are gonna have something to say about you. And when you fall off and you lose everything, people are gonna talk about how washed up you are and how you were once was something you're never. You're never gonna have everybody on your side. And I think that, like, that's just that, man. Everyone's got an opinion. It sucks. And I think that, like, I wish sometimes we could put a muzzle on some people's voices on the Internet because I think one thing that we really messed up on is giving everyone a voice. You know, I believe that everyone has a voice. I just don't think that everyone deserves a voice. Yeah, you know, that stuff's real, man. And the Internet is a scary, scary. One of the worst drugs I think I've ever been addicted to. Yeah, if I could say that if that was the case. But you know, I think that it all just comes down to you and your relationship with God and what you know you're supposed to be doing, man. Because when you don't know what you're doing and you're caught into something like just social media or politics or all this stuff, it's a very, it's a very toxic world, man. It's a very scary world to get out of. And sometimes you don't ever get out of it, man. [00:43:32] Speaker B: Yeah, man, it absolutely is. So what are we looking forward to in 2026? Sounds like a tour. Sounds like some new music. Sounds like a record. [00:43:40] Speaker A: Yup. We got, we got headline tour. You know, it's not 100 solidified, but it is like it is moving and that's what we're headed. And right now we're headed for top of May to attack for eight to 10 shows. Hopefully that's what we're going for. You know, we're. We're going, we work on an EP or my first project, my debut ep. Lots of new records, some cool features that I'll tell you about after. I don't know if I could say yet, but we should have, I'll say we should have his verse back here in the next week, hopefully. [00:44:16] Speaker B: Oh, that's awesome. [00:44:17] Speaker A: So it's uh, we're working on some really cool stuff, man. And I, I'm just excited to keep slowly building it brick by brick, man. [00:44:24] Speaker B: That's cool, man. What's something that you would tell that 18 year old kid that's leaving Texas and now knowing what you know now and where you're at in your life and getting ready to drop your first project and just all that you've been through, what's the message you would have for, for that kid leaving a small town, going to pursue something that might end up not being the right thing for him? [00:44:47] Speaker A: What you're feeling is not a mistake. I think that there's, there's goals, there's dreams in life that everyone wants accomplished, but there's People and opinions that get to you, that make that instead of going here, it ends up kind of like all these other ways until you get there. I think that trust your heart, lean on God, and consistency is key, man. I think that. Don't second guess what your gut's feeling. I wish I would have done that better. I wish I would have applied that better instead of letting materialistic stuff control my life for a long time. I feel like maybe I would have been a little bit happier with my career and happier with just life if I would have just trusted what I knew in my heart I wanted to. And. But that's a part of my testimony, and I'm. And I'm. I'm glad to hold my head high with that. But, yeah, I would just say follow. Follow what you're feeling. [00:45:46] Speaker B: Amen, dude. Always trust your gut and go with what you're feeling, brother. I appreciate you so much taking time. [00:45:51] Speaker A: I know it's a long time. [00:45:52] Speaker B: Been a while, dude. A long time. Overdue. And I haven't done a nighttime pod in a while, but it feels good if you're doing this at night, man. [00:46:00] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:46:00] Speaker B: And I can't wait for this project. I can't wait to hear more about what you and the boys are cooking. [00:46:06] Speaker A: We'll send it all over to you. [00:46:07] Speaker B: Please do, man. Please do. Anything we can ever do to help in the. In the raised, rowdy world. You know, your family, you guys have [00:46:13] Speaker A: always been so good, dude. And. [00:46:14] Speaker B: And we got. And we got to get out in the golf course sometime soon as well. [00:46:17] Speaker A: I would. We were literally just talking about that. [00:46:20] Speaker B: I would love to do that again, especially because I got your lady hooked on these. On the Surfside. Zoe is a big Surfside consumer. [00:46:28] Speaker A: She's, like, very similar with me when it comes to golf. We play a strong game of whack. I can't really hit the ball very well, and she's probably even worse, actually, but she loves being a cute little caddy and getting drunk on the golf course. Yeah. [00:46:42] Speaker B: And when I. Our group that we had, we. We represented the tailgate and tall boys family very well. Was you. It was me. It was Pork Chop from Jelly Rolls Crew. It was Lily Rose. It was Matt Grace. Check. Who sells words. Who sells merch. For. For Wallen. Zoe. John was out with us. We had a. We had like, a six or seven. [00:47:01] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:47:01] Speaker B: Group. [00:47:01] Speaker A: It was completely against all the rules. [00:47:04] Speaker B: And when you and I had. Had done a little smoky smoke at the turn, I started putting balls within 10ft of the pin. [00:47:10] Speaker A: Oh. Playing the best round of golf. [00:47:13] Speaker B: Whatever you had that day, we need to have that again. We need to go out there and hit some golf. [00:47:18] Speaker A: You know what sounds good? I think this week we need to get on the golf course out there in. What's that one called out there? Nashville Nationals, man. Out there by my house, dude. The reason I like it is because I can pull up and, like, I could pull up and go golfing. Underwear and flip flops if I wanted to. It's like, it's a. It's a. It's a still good course. Like, it's good and it's got some good holes on it. But, like, you can just walk on. There's no, like, real tea times. Like, you just go and, like, you can just be a fool. [00:47:46] Speaker B: So that's how Pebble Brook is, too. I don't know if you've done that one. [00:47:48] Speaker A: That one is that in Hendersonville. [00:47:51] Speaker B: It's. It's up towards your neck of the woods. It's out. It's out that way. And. Yeah, the Robertson county area. And it is. You have to. You should have to sign a waiver for driving the golf course on the hill, on the golf carts, on the hills, because it is. It is chaos, man. But we'll have to get out on the links for sure. [00:48:06] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:48:07] Speaker B: I would love to do that. Y' all be on the lookout for the new music coming from my boy Taylor Holder. It's coming real soon. And shout out to our friends from Surfside. No bubbles, no troubles. It's not a seltzer. It is a Surfside. Damn it. Delicious. Vodka, lemonade, iced tea, all the good stuff. And for more on us, visit raisedrad.com My man, Taylor. I'm Matt Burrell. This has been outside the room. I never been the conversation one place [00:48:35] Speaker A: for too long I never been the best it's it I love you to [00:48:41] Speaker B: a girl I love Only got a [00:48:43] Speaker A: couple tricks on my sleeve they usually just make them leave so if you [00:48:50] Speaker B: know me if you really know me you know I'm just a two trick pony May be the drink and the lack of money for show I'm just a two trick pony [00:49:05] Speaker A: yeah.