Scotty McCreery has always shared bits and pieces of his personal life in his music, from the death of his grandfather in “Five More Minutes” to “This is It” and “It Matters To Her,” both of which point to his love story with wife and childhood sweetheart Gabi Dugal McCreery.
But, with his next project and follow-up to his 2021 album, Same Truck, fans can expect the 29-year-old country crooner to show a new side of himself.
“Less Autobiographical Than Previous Records”
While McCreery promises the usual true-to-life kind of material with songs dedicated to his wife and his nearly 1-year-old son, Avery, he notes his next chapter of music will be “less autobiographical than previous records.”
“There will be a baby song on there and a song for Gabi. But, I would say, as a whole, this record is a little less autobiographical than previous records. I kind of went into it with that in mind,” McCreery tells Music Mayhem. “…. We kinda tried different directions on this record. There’s a song for Avery. There’s a song for Gabi. Some heartbreak and some breakup songs. Some honky tonk songs and stuff I really haven’t done before on records.”
One of those out-of-left-field approaches on his forthcoming album is the waltz-driven “Cab In A Solo,” which is fictionally about the loss of a connection with someone he considered a love interest. And while McCreery couldn’t be happier in his love life, marriage, and in his new role as a father, the tune proves he can change direction and relay the emotions it takes to sing a heartbreak song.
“Cab In A Solo”
In fact, “Cab In A Solo” saw McCreery experiencing success early on. The song received the most first-week adds of McCreery’s career, with 120 radio stations reporting as well as the largest first week for his label Triple Tigers and the third biggest add day of the year.
“I was pretty excited. I don’t think I’ve ever had most-added before. So, for me, that was a big thing,” McCreery shared what went through his mind when he found out the incredible news about his song. “I’d even come close to triple digits, let alone 126 or whatever it was. So, it was an exciting day. I kept repressing the ad page on the internet, and it just, I think my index finger might have gone numb that day. But, it was fun to watch.”
“Cab In A Solo” offers listeners the first taste of material from McCreery’s upcoming album, and the 2011 American Idol winner says he wrote the song alongside Brent Anderson and Frank Rogers, whom he considers to be some of his closest buddies.
“We wrote it up in the mountains in North Carolina, me and a few of my buddies, and we went out there just to write country songs, just around the fireplace, drink cold beer, play guitars, and it was picture-perfect,” McCreery raved. “We wrote a song that’s one of my favorites that I’ve written, so I’m excited about it.”
RELATED: Scotty McCreery On Prioritizing His Family Before His Career: “It’s Very Important To Me”
McCreery Says His Forthcoming New Album Will Have A “Honky Tonk ’90s Sound”
And those laid-back get-together writes with his friends in his home state helped set the tone for the project, which finds Scotty McCreery leaning into the ‘90s country style of music that he grew up with.
“We more so just kind of sat down with guitars and were having fun, you know? We wanted to write songs that sounded like songs I grew up with and loved. I wanted to tell those stories,” McCreery, who previously said the new album would be a “good dose of country music,” said “Sometimes, it doesn’t have to always be your story. So, we just kind of let the guitar lead us, and wherever we ended up is where we ended up.”
“You know, I really just wanted to pay homage to that country sound. I think everything goes in cycles, and, at the moment, it feels like country music is just really digging into what I grew up with, what I love to sing, you know, that honky tonk ‘90s sound,” he added. “For me, that’s what I do best. It’s what I grew up learning on the guitar. So we really went in that direction, followed suit with ‘Cab In A Solo’ on the rest of the record, and telling some stories, and I’m excited. I think folks will really get a feel for me on this record.”
Will The New Album Feature Any Collaborations?
As far as collaborations go, McCreery shares, “Yeah. We’re talking about it. I don’t think we went into it straight up looking for one, but I think there are a couple of songs on there that could actually lend itself to that, so we’ll see how things shake out. Well, there’s one song on there actually that we are – we went into it looking for it, so we’ll see how it works out.”
Although McCreery has not announced the title or anticipated release date for his album yet, he did say, “We just finished up yesterday in the studio for the album,” so folks can rest assured he will be unveiling the rest of the project in due time.
In the meantime, folks can look forward to McCreery celebrating a big milestone as he will soon be inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. McCreery’s induction ceremony will be held at the Mooresville Performing Arts Center in Mooresville, NC. on October 19, 2023, and will also include fellow inductees Betty Davis, Bill “Fatback” Curtis, Fetchin Bones, George Beverly Shea, and Loudon Wainwright III.
