Tim McGraw: LP Field Press Conference CMA Music Festival 2010

Tim McGraw LP Field Press Conference CMA Music Festival 2010

Q: The last scheduled CMA appearance for you was in 2000, why was it so important for you to do it this year?

TM: Well, it is 2010 and I figure in 2020 I will do it again, every ten years. Just kidding but with kids and family and the way records and tours have fallen, when this time showed up, I was always in the middle of doing something or I had been doing so much that I needed the time off. The kids were just getting out of school or we were going on vacation, it just never lined up right for us. This year it did and plus I have one album left, I am going out on my label and new management; there is a freshness going on in my career. I am energized I guess.

Q: Can you give career advice for aspiring music professionals?

TM: I wouldn’t dare give anyone any advice after the way I botched things up. I would say you just have to be true to yourself. I think the times that I feel like I made the wrong decisions are the times I haven’t gone with my gut.

Q: To follow up on what you said about a new era, new album and things, you spoke earlier to Billboard about some thoughts you have on the future of your label. You seem to be acknowledging the changing landscape of music with maybe putting out shorter projects. Can you talk about that?

TM: I like the idea of not having any restraints about what you can do musically, where you really own your music. It has always been frustrating to me as an artist, that we don’t own our music, we pay for it. Everyone thinks the label pays for the music but they don’t. It comes out of the artist’s royalties. The artist pays for the music, they pay for the recording process and then at the end of the day we don’t own our music. For me it is exciting for me to be able to own my music, be able to do any kind of project I want at any time and release it any way I want to release it. I plan on doing that. I plan on doing projects while we are hanging out in the barn, recording that and putting that on line. We are doing 1970s rock cover songs; we will record a club one night and put that out along with a flagship album too.

Q: You are bringing your music to Australia in September for the first time…

TM: Yes, Australia, I am looking forward to it. We are making a family vacation out of it so that will be a lot of fun. I have already reserved a plane so I can fly out over the outback. My middle daughter is a real outdoor girl so her dream is to go in a shark cage off the Great Barrier Reef and see some Great Whites. She is getting certified this summer so we can go down in a shark cage and see them. We have a lot of great plans.

Q: You and Faith have done so much charity work and your shirt makes me think about when she did the adopting program. I know you have three girls at home but have you ever considered adopting a child?

TM: We have thought of it but to tell you the truth, our hands are full. With three daughters, I can’t imagine adding one more to the plate.

Q: Can you tell us what it will mean to you to walk out on that field tonight that was flooded just five or six weeks ago and what it will mean for you to play to all these people?

TM: First of all, I look at it as a citizen. When I moved here in 1989, I instantly knew that whether I was a singer or plugging songs or carrying a guitar for someone, I would always live in Nashville. I really love this city, I love the community, and I love the people. It is a hard working city; a city full of people who bust their butt every day, they go to work, they take care of their family, they go to little league on Wednesday nights and Friday nights and it is just sort of a blue collar type of place. I can’t think of any other place I would want to raise my kids. You feel for people because it seems to always happen to people that really can’t afford to have it happen—people that are living paycheck to paycheck and barely getting by. It is not rocket science, what we do. We are musicians and we sort of get to goof off for our whole career. All we can do it put on a show and have all our friends help. The people that really put the money into it are the ones that were really affected by it.

Q: How do you feel about hosting the CMA Music Festival TV special?

TM: It is fantastic! It is going to be fun. I’ve never done anything like this before so I will see if I can NOT screw it up too bad.

Q: I wanted to ask about “Nashville Rising” and how all the artists have come together. You can’t get this kind of star power anywhere else. Can you talk about everyone’s willingness to come together for this show?

TM: It was pretty much instantly. All those people at Red Light and CAA did all the work. All we have done is ask people; all our friends, people outside this industry, movie stars, and some people made videos and sent them in to show to put on the screens between acts. Everyone jumped on board really quickly and decided they were going to help. I can’t believe how quickly it has come together. I also need to give a shout out to my band and crew because my band is playing for most of the artists. My crew is setting up the stage. They are all donating their time for this event.
For additional photos of CMA Music Festival LP Field Backstage visit http://MomentsByMoser.zenfolio.com/lpbackstage


Transcribed by Pam Stadel for Digital Rodeo