For years, Walker Hayes couldn't understand why people would say that it's 'so tough to make it in Music City.”
'I remember having my first day job, and somebody I had worked with who had been here and had a lot of experience in the music field was like, ‘Dude, you're not going to get a publishing deal within a year,' and, sure enough, I did,” the singer-songwriter says. 'I don't know if cocky is the wordbut I was kind of always like, ‘Why does everybody say this town's so hard?'”
Shortly thereafter, he found himself working at Costco, having lost his deal with Capitol Records after his singles failed to meet expectations. He took the job to provide for his wife and six kids, working from 4 a.m. until 10 a.m. so he could go to writing sessions during the day. He sent his songs out everywhere but had little luck getting any of them cut. He also lost his car, which he'd been given as part an endorsement deal, and many of his friends in the industry disappeared. Then, Shane McAnally called.
He told Hayes that, although he wasn't able to place any of his songs with other artists, he wanted to help Hayes make a record of his own.
'He said, ‘I think these songs are amazing, and I think you're the only person [who] can deliver them.' He kind of rescued me, for sure.”
McAnally, who has written hits for Miranda Lambert, Keith Urban, and countless others, signed Hayes to SMACKSongs and Monument Records and produced his new album, boom., a quirky mix of spoken word and breezy, radio-ready country that showcases the 37-year-old's knack for lyrics.
>>> December Albums from Nashville Artists
Lead track 'You Broke Up with Me” is Hayes's most successful single to datebut it's also a kiss-off to those in the industry who turned their backs on him. 'Halloween,” meanwhile, is a heart-on-his-sleeve love song to his wife that sounds like Macklemore, if he'd gone country. (Hayes names the rapper as an influence.)
Hayes looks back on his earlier work with mixed emotions, and, while he admits the past few years have been rough, he considers boom. his most authentic project to date. 'Maybe it took me getting dropped and not knowing how to pay for my wife and kids, and struggling and meeting Shane,” he says. 'Maybe it took me all that to be confident enough in myself to write songs like ‘Halloween' and not be afraid to just share the truth.”