As Tim McGraw celebrates his 47th song at the top of the charts with “Standing Room Only,” the 56-year-old says he’s still got a lot left to give.
LISTEN NOW: Tim McGraw has no interest in writing a memoir, ‘there’s a lot of stuff that I wouldn’t wanna tell’
“I feel like I got a lot more in me,” he told Audacy’s Katie Neal during the Superstar Power Hour. “ You know, I still feel like I'm still cranking, getting better – hopefully I'm getting better – I try to get better.”
Part of getting better for McGraw includes challenging himself to take risks outside his comfort zone which in the past have included cross-genre collabs, big time tours, acting, writing a book and more. From the looks of it, nothing seems off the table for McGraw, but turns out that’s not true.
During his conversation, McGraw revealed while he loves to read and has even authored a book – writing a memoir is not something he has planned for the future. “It's something that's not on my radar,” he said. “’Cause if you’re gonna do it, I think you gotta go completely all in. I think there’s a lot of stuff that I wouldn’t wanna tell. I think if I did a memoir, it wouldn’t be full and complete.”
In true Tim style, he continued on to clarify you can “never say never,” but for this specific venture, the scenario would have to be perfect. “Maybe down the road we’ll see… When all the principals are dead, so I’m not getting any trouble. Protect the innocent and the guilty,” he laughed.
While his disinterest in writing a memoir might surprise some, no one will be surprised that Tim is only interested in doing something if he’s ready to give it 100% – Take his forthcoming tour, for example.
“Well, it’s a huge stage, huge video, a lot of moving parts,” he said of the set-up, which is one of the biggest he’s had in his career with a “sickening” amount of lights. “I’ve had people tell me, ‘Why don’t you just do all white lights? And you guys do like an MTV Unplugged, sit down and play songs? I guarantee you people would love it,’” he shared before responding. “If you’ve ever tried to see me sit on a stool for two hours and sing a song, it’s impossible.”
There’s no doubts that McGraw’s shows are high-energy and that’s something he’s not ready to give-up as fitness is one of his top priorities. “You feel better, you know, I think you put on a better show,” he said of prioritizing fitness in his everyday life. Yes, even before shows.
“I mean, the band and I talk about it all the time. When we do our workouts during the day before the show, sometimes a day will sneak up on us when we don't have time where I'm busy or they're busy and we don't have time to get a workout in. We don't do as good of shows. Our shows aren't as good."
"We just feel different. Even if we wear ourselves out completely throughout the day, the energy level is so high when we're on stage, when we get a good workout in.”
Tim’s physique has everything to show for his hard work, but he admits he does get a few cheat meals in here and there. “Faith’s Southern cooking is my real true cheat meal. I try to do it once a month, but every now and then, I ask her for twice a month.”
He continued, “[Also] road trips, Faith and I like to take a lot of road trips. And so a Chick-fil-A or McDonald’s, I love a Big Mac every now and then still. So on a road trip, to get a Big Mac is pretty cool.”
While cheat meals and quality time together encompass some of Tim and Faith’s favorite time’s on the road together, Tim also took time to reflect on being on the road together with their Soul2Soul tour in 2006, which featured Taylor Swift as the opener following the release of her debut single, “Tim McGraw.”
“Taylor was one of our opening acts. It was just her acoustic guitar,” he recalled. “We spent a lot of time talking to her in the dressing room and stuff before and after the shows. Faith and I both said, ‘This girl, she’s going to be the biggest star in the world.’ She’s just so curious, which is a sign of great intelligence. We had no doubt she was headed to do big things.”
Hear more about Tim’s relationship with Taylor, what he thought of her Eras Tour, his favorite holiday family traditions, and so much more by checking out his entire conversation with Audacy’s Katie Neal above.