Parker McCollum

Summary

Podcast Summary: Dumb Blonde – Episode Featuring Parker McCollum Release Date: May 19, 2025

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Introduction

In this engaging episode of the Dumb Blonde podcast, host Bunnie XO welcomes acclaimed country artist Parker McCollum for an in-depth conversation about his music career, personal life, creative process, and experiences on tour. The episode offers listeners a blend of heartfelt stories, candid insights, and humorous anecdotes, providing a comprehensive look into Parker's journey as a musician and individual.

Early Life and Musical Roots

Parker McCollum opens up about his upbringing in Conroe, Texas, highlighting the significant influence of his family on his musical aspirations.

Notable Quote:

“The reason that I play music is because that's what my older brother did when I was really little.” [06:07]

Parker shares fond memories of working with his grandfather, whom he regards as one of the greatest cowboys, and discusses how his mother's involvement in barrel racing and his family's diverse business backgrounds shaped his early experiences.

Discovering Music and Songwriting

Delving into his passion for songwriting, Parker recounts writing his first song at the tender age of 12 or 13, drawing inspiration from early country legends like George Strait and modern influences.

Notable Quote:

“I just wanna go sing the songs that I write and record them.” [43:55]

He emphasizes the importance of authenticity in his music, expressing his desire to create songs that resonate deeply without conforming strictly to traditional country norms.

Creative Process and Substance Use

Bunnie and Parker discuss the role of substances like weed and DMT in his creative process. Parker reflects on his youthful experimentation and the balance he now strives to maintain to sustain his creativity without falling into self-destructive patterns.

Notable Quote:

“I wrote just, you know, after taking a little hit and just kind of letting it go. It just sparks.” [11:24]

Parker acknowledges the initial reliance on substances for inspiration but shares his journey toward sobriety and how it has positively impacted his songwriting and personal well-being.

Personal Relationships and Fatherhood

A significant portion of the conversation revolves around Parker's relationship with his wife, Hallie Ray, and their journey to parenthood. He reveals touching anecdotes about their meeting, engagement, and the profound impact fatherhood has had on him.

Notable Quote:

“He is here, and he is not going anywhere.” [52:12]

Parker speaks candidly about the challenges and joys of becoming a father, expressing a deep sense of responsibility and love for his son, Major Yancey Tyler McCollum.

Touring Experiences and Backstage Stories

Parker shares vivid tales from his touring days, including memorable moments with fellow artists like CO Pretzel. He recounts the camaraderie, the chaos of life on the road, and the unique challenges of maintaining authenticity while performing for large audiences.

Notable Quote:

“We were just playing guitars and trying to write. It was so wild and free.” [61:20]

One standout story involves an unexpected and humorous incident with a bottle rocket on tour, showcasing the unpredictable nature of life as a touring musician.

Evolution of Country Music and Parker's Place

The discussion shifts to the evolving landscape of country music. Parker expresses his thoughts on how the genre has broadened and how he strives to carve out his unique sound without being confined to traditional labels.

Notable Quote:

“I just gotta go sing the songs that I write and record them.” [43:55]

He reflects on the balance between staying true to his roots and embracing the contemporary shifts in the genre, emphasizing his commitment to authentic storytelling through his music.

Future Projects and Collaborations

Looking ahead, Parker hints at upcoming projects, including a new album set to release on June 27th. He discusses the creative process behind this album, highlighting the collaborative efforts with producers and engineers that have allowed him to produce his best work to date.

Notable Quote:

“This album is the only record I've ever recorded that I didn't immediately say, now I know what I want to do.” [34:56]

Additionally, Parker entertains the idea of collaborating with rappers, though he remains uncertain about how it would fit within his musical style.

Conclusion

The episode wraps up with Bunnie and Parker exchanging warm regards, emphasizing the strong personal and professional bond they share. Listeners are left with a deeper understanding of Parker McCollum's dedication to his craft, his personal growth, and the values that drive his music and life.

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Final Thoughts This episode of Dumb Blonde offers a rich tapestry of Parker McCollum's life, from his early inspirations and creative struggles to his triumphs and personal milestones. Bunnie XO skillfully navigates the conversation, allowing Parker's genuine personality and passion for music to shine through, making it a compelling listen for fans and newcomers alike.

Transcript

[Bunny]

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[Parker McCollum]

I know we're. We're striking out, man. It's all good. I love. I don't love you any less. Hey, back at you. I feel the same way.

[Bunny]

Come by if you can, baby. We're going to start filming in a minute.

[Parker McCollum]

I'm going to try to squeeze by. I got to go do that thing with the mayor. And I'm finishing this session with Alex.

[Bunny]

Okay.

[Parker McCollum]

I course he does. He said love that thing with the mayor.

[Bunny]

Well, so he's getting a pardon. We. We think we've been working on this for a really long time. But he's trying to get a pardon from the mayor or something like that. Right?

[Parker McCollum]

Certainly gonna do it. It's good. As much good as he does. I Know, you know, troubled youth. And I know all the correctional stuff he does. Like. Yeah, I mean, come on. You think you'd earn it by now.

[Bunny]

The whole point of.

[Parker McCollum]

Of that entire system is so people end up like jelly roll.

[Bunny]

Yeah, no, exactly.

[Parker McCollum]

Like, he is a successful product of that system.

[Bunny]

One is this thing on. Hi, babies. Welcome to another episode of Dumb Blonde Ladies. Today we have a special guest that you guys have been asking and begging for. And now he is here. Mr. Parker McCollum, baby.

[Parker McCollum]

The dumbest blonde of all.

[Bunny]

Are you a natural blonde?

[Parker McCollum]

Not really. I kind of like a little strawberry blonde. When I was little, so my brother always swore I was a ging, but I mean, I think he just a little brother. He was trying to give me a hard time. It's not true. And the. The carpet don't match the curtain, so I think it all has to match to be a true ginger.

[Bunny]

I love that. I love that so much. You are always talking about your brother. Is that Tyler?

[Parker McCollum]

Yes, ma' am.

[Bunny]

Okay. You're always talking about him. I love the relationship that you guys have with each other. Who's older?

[Parker McCollum]

He's older than. He's six years older than me.

[Bunny]

Oh, okay. That's amazing.

[Parker McCollum]

His birthday's in, like, two days.

[Bunny]

A. Well, four days. Happy birthday, Tyler.

[Parker McCollum]

Happy birthday, Tyler.

[Bunny]

That's amazing, though, that you guys are so far apart in age. Like six years. That's me and my sister. And you guys are close?

[Parker McCollum]

Very close. Always were. You know, our parents split when we were really young, so I think, you know, me and my siblings just kind of really, you know, I think that just makes that bond a lot tighter. Over a lot of times it can. And so for us, that was kind of the case. And we have a sister that's between us, Michael. And she's three, four years older than me, a couple years younger than Tyler. And I mean, we've always been really close. And my brother, he's just a great songwriter. He's the reason that, you know, I've said this a million times, but I'm like. The reason that I play music is because that's what my older brother did when I was really little. So he was always writing songs into songwriters and stuff when he was, you know, pretty young. And I'm six years younger, so I was, you know, in, like, fourth and fifth grade wanting to, you know, be like, big brother. And so I've always said, he could have been ice skating and I'd probably still be trying to ice skates. It just so happened to be that it was songwriting and playing guitar.

[Bunny]

I love that. So you're from Texas. I'm from Texas. I.

[Parker McCollum]

Wait, you are. You are from Texas.

[Bunny]

I'm from Houston.

[Parker McCollum]

No.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah. Y way.

[Bunny]

So I lived in Texas till I was five, and then I ended up moving to Vegas. But when I found out that you were from Conroe, I was so happy because. Okay. Don't you feel like, as Texans, we just have a different set?

[Parker McCollum]

Like, pride, and the sun shines brighter there if anybody notices that.

[Bunny]

But yeah. No, Like, Texas is like its own just.

[Parker McCollum]

It is its own thing.

[Bunny]

Its own thing, and people that are from there just love Texas. Like, we are so proud to be from Texas.

[Parker McCollum]

I. I lived here for two years in Nashville and moved right back to Texas, and I liked it here a lot. I just think, especially coming down here today, I was like, we used to live close down here. And I was like, you just forget how. I mean, it's gorgeous out here. Like, the landscape, the topography is beautiful. But I've never. One second since I've been back home in Texas.

[Bunny]

Missed it. Missed it. Not one minute, which is okay. Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

I just. My. I don't know. It's just, you know, I mean, it's. It's probably pretty simple. Mother Nature, something there. Just. Why humans, like being what's familiar around what's familiar. But I don't know when I'm. Even when we play, like, when we're on tour. We just did a festival in South Texas in Gonzalez, this past weekend, and just. I rode my bus from my house. Like, I never do that anymore. You know, back in the day, I had to get in the van or get on the bus or whatever, and we were playing Texas and Oklahoma stuff. You're always coming home. Very rare that you do that now. And I don't know, I just. I. I told the crowd, I was like, when we play here, I just said, a little more pep in my step. It's just, you know, you're. These are. Those are your people. So it's just. I love it.

[Bunny]

Texas pride thing. So let's take it back to Conroe, Texas. I hear you talk about your family a lot. And for the listeners at home, let's. Let's kind of give them a little bit of your backstory, which I found to be really cool. Your mom was a barrel racer.

[Parker McCollum]

She was in high school. Yes.

[Bunny]

Yeah. That's awesome. That's not. That's not an easy feat.

[Parker McCollum]

No, my. My. My granddad, her dad was. Was. I mean, I've Always said he's one of the greatest cowboys to ever live. Was just old school. I mean, just red, white and blue American, Texas Cowboy.

[Bunny]

That's Mr. Bobby Yancey.

[Parker McCollum]

Right? Bobby Yancey. And I've got his initials tattooed right here. But he just a great, great man. And you know, so my mom and her siblings, my uncles rode rough stock. My mom and her sister rode barrels and erase barrels. And you know, then my dad's side of the family, they all went to one high school in my hometown. So like all of my mom and her siblings and my dad and his siblings all went to high school together. No, and so it's just, it's like.

[Bunny]

Some small town lore.

[Parker McCollum]

It is, it's kind of. It is. I've tried to explain to people sometimes and they're just like, wait, wait what? This person who was married to who. But it's. They. I kind of had these two very different worlds. My dad's family was mostly in the car business and in super, super crazy hard working. My mom's sides of the side of the family is the same way, but, you know, it was more like my grand. My mom's side of family owned a concrete company. My dad's side of the family, they sold cars. And so two very different worlds. But I just kind of floated in between those two things for my entire childhood. So it's my. I think my background's underwhelming, but I guess it could be interesting to somebody.

[Bunny]

I don't think it is. I actually found out a couple things about you and we'll talk about a little bit more down the line too, that I was like, okay, Parker, like, it was really cool. Okay, well, we'll talk about it right now. I was actually the. The fact that you smoke weed and have done DMT and like, how did you know this?

[Parker McCollum]

How did you know?

[Bunny]

I was like, he's one of us. Like, I was so happy whenever I saw you talking about it in an interview. And I even told Jay, I was like, have you guys got to smoke weed together yet? Have you got to.

[Parker McCollum]

I think we have at some point or another. But I, you know, I never really drank. Alcohol was never my thing. There was times, I think, when I was younger and going pretty hard on the road and stuff that I would just. Because that was kind of the. Just what you do.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

But I never really liked alcohol and I always, you know, enjoy. And I would just, you know, when I sit there and like weigh the benefits and like, which one's worse for you and which one can ruin your life. And which one's not going to ruin your life, right? Weed has always been the lesser of the two. And I just. I don't know, I. I did some of the best songs I've ever written in my career. I wrote just, you know, after taking a little hit and. And just kind of letting it go. It just. It sparks. It's. You know, some of the greatest records of all time are written stoned.

[Bunny]

DMT is some heavy, though. Like, that's one thing that I'm scared of. How old were you when you did the DM?

[Parker McCollum]

Oh, I don't know, probably 21.

[Bunny]

And you were just like, where were you at, like a party and everybody's passing.

[Parker McCollum]

This is crazy. I was living in Austin and I was living on the University of Texas's campus, what they call west campus. But I never went to the University of Texas and I went to community college for like a couple weeks and. But I was just living there and that's where I wrote that record. The Limestone kid. But there was this kid that we had gone to high school. I didn't know him in high school. My buddy did. He had gone to our high school and he was going to University of Texas. And he was a chemist, I think, and he was like, making it in his telling this now I'm like, this is terrible. That, that I.

[Bunny]

This is why.

[Parker McCollum]

It was on like a Monday morning and on like the second store, this like, co op he was living in.

[Bunny]

So this dude was making DMT just.

[Parker McCollum]

In his house, in his, like a co op. Like, they lived like. Yeah, she had like random people that lived all in one house.

[Bunny]

You're a brave soul.

[Parker McCollum]

I was just, you know, I was. I don't know, I was living.

[Bunny]

I love that.

[Parker McCollum]

Back then I was really, really living.

[Bunny]

I love that though. You gotta live life to the fullest. And what was it like whenever you took a hit of the dmt?

[Parker McCollum]

It just, you know, it was really. It was really strange, like. And it sounds really honestly like a lie, like I'm making it up, but I'm not. I. There was. He had a fire escape outside of his window. So I was like sitting on the fire escape outside the window and just saw like, my. My mom used to take us to like this bed and breakfast for like, summer vacation, for a few days in the summertime in the hill country in Fredericksburg, on the river. And like, I saw that, like, out on the street. It didn't last very long. Yeah, it was pretty quick. It felt longer than it really Was. I think it was, you know, maybe less than a couple minutes, but it wasn't anything like, you know, I wasn't. I didn't feel like I was, you know, tripping out, like, going crazy. It was just. And then afterwards, I was extremely calm, kind of rejuvenated. Felt crazy clarity, mentally.

[Bunny]

Yeah. Would you do it again?

[Parker McCollum]

I think so.

[Bunny]

Yeah. From the same chemist or would you want to get.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't know. You know, I just. I went hard for a long time, and. And it kind of got out of hand there for a little while at one point, and I just, you know, I didn't, like, go to rehab or, like, go do anything crazy. I just kind of. I was my. I didn't want to disappoint my family. I was like, you know, my career was going really well, and I was like, man, I'm not the kind that can hold all this together while living like this. Like, I have to get it. I got to get my shit together.

[Bunny]

Do you think that was just a part of, like, being young? Possibly 100%, yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And, like, growing up in, like, you know, these songwriters and these artists that. That I admired and just thought I walked on water. I wanted to be like these guys. Like, most of them lived very hard and lived the songs that they wrote, and I, like, was, like, fully convicted on that. I was like, I've got to live the songs that I'm writing. So I think I said a lisp when I said that. Live the songs that I'm writing. And it just, you know, I was so into that. And then it just kind of got.

[Bunny]

To be on that outlaw. Just want to be like, I was never.

[Parker McCollum]

I was never a good outlaw, if I. If I would ever be referred to as one. But I just. I don't know. I was. I was really, really into that, and I thought I had to go do that to write the kind of songs I wanted to write. And I. And I. You know, those songs changed my life. They. They gave me the career I have now, and so I don't regret any of it. I'm just like, you know, I don't know how entirely necessary it probably was looking, which, you know, hindsight's 20 20, but it. You know, there were good times. It's not. It wasn't bad.

[Bunny]

Yeah. I mean, memories. You get memories of. Priceless.

[Parker McCollum]

My memories are good. I'm grateful that my memories in life are good.

[Bunny]

Memories are priceless. Do you feel like you still need to be under the influence to write music now, or do you Write it completely sober.

[Parker McCollum]

Not really. You know, like that song Rest of My Life that I wrote during COVID I was dead sober when I wrote that song. Like nine o' clock in the morning, got out of the shower, had the melody in my head from the night before, and had gone pretty hard the night before and was kind of at. That was really, really close to being like, this is like, you're gonna blow it. You know, you're gonna blow it. And. And I didn't want to do that. Like, I really always wanted to make my family very proud, and I just never wanted to, like, embarrass them or go do. You know, I just. I felt a lot of pressure to, like, kind of clean it up and. And handle it the right way. And I didn't want to get to be like 40 and 50 years old one day and be like, oh, man, he was doing it for a little while, you know.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah, he really had it. And so I just kind of became super aware of that kind of stuff. And it just. That's a long winded way of saying not really. But, you know, like, I'll take an Adderall to write songs sometimes, and that gets me super into it.

[Bunny]

Because you can focus.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah. And just. It makes me emotional and super. Just passionate and engaged about a melody that I've created on the guitar. And I will just. I mean, I'll be by myself. I mean, just singing at the top of my lungs, ripping on guitar, trying to write this song. And. But I've also done it stone cold.

[Bunny]

Sober, so my husband prefers to be under the influence when he's writing, which, you know, it. I feel like as an artist, you guys always have some sort of an angst that needs to get out anyways. And I feel like whenever you're under the influence, whether it's weed or alcohol or when I say under the influence, it means like any. A range of things. I feel like it helps with the creative with you guys because you guys do have so much emotion inside.

[Parker McCollum]

There has to be something to it because it. I just. I've seen firsthand how many times it's worked for me, but, you know, I just. There's. There's just like anything else. Bunny. I mean, it's moderation.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And especially when you're young and you're doing it and you're, you know, trying to go to these places, basically self sabotage to go write these songs, you know, it can just get out of hand and you can start abusing that, and all of a sudden you're not being creative and you're not writing and you're really just can be counterproductive. Yes. And. And so I just kind of noticed when that started to happen and I was like, all right, what do you really have if you can't do it without it?

[Bunny]

But the self awareness is amazing because some people don't have that, you know, so the fact that you were able to have that introspect of yourself is.

[Parker McCollum]

And it's weird because I always knew, like, the whole time I was like, aware that I shouldn't be doing that. It just took a little while for me to be like, all right.

[Bunny]

Well, it's also because you were raised with morals and the way you're feeling.

[Parker McCollum]

And you get older. Like, you know, when you're. When you're your 30s, it's not as cool to be messed up all the time.

[Bunny]

No. You're 24 and you're a songwriter and.

[Parker McCollum]

It'S going really well and you're selling out bars in Texas and it's, you know, it's like, it's just kind of expected and accepted. And so once, like. And like Halle Ray, like, I'm married now, I have a child, like, major, my son. It's like, what am I going to do? You know, be self sabotage, sad dad, songwriter?

[Bunny]

Like. Yeah, right.

[Parker McCollum]

Just only for every now and then for about a week at a time.

[Bunny]

Let's dial it back to when you fell in love with George Straight Amarillo by morning. You have pretty much credited George and your brother for your love of music. Take me back to when you knew that. When did you write your first song?

[Parker McCollum]

I mean, I was trying to write songs when I was like, probably 12 years old. 12, 13, something like that. And then I never really, you know, I just didn't know anything. I didn't know, like, I wasn't learning how to play other singer songs. Like, I was just playing guitar and trying to write. And then so once I started to kind of learn to play like a George Strait song or a Chris Knight song was the first song ever learned to play on guitar and sing at the same time. And so I'd like. Once I started doing that, then I really started like learning how to formulate a song. And. And it's. I. I write. I write songs now the exact same way I did then, like, just sit down and just make some. Up until something sounds cool or sounds pretty or, you know, move something in you or, you know, is an earworm for yourself or whatever. And. And I've done that since I mean, even when I was 12, 13, I wrote like a song called West Texas lover.

[Bunny]

At 12 or 13, I was like.

[Parker McCollum]

12 or 13 years old. And my grandma, my dad's mom, she's 90 and she still asked me to play that song. I don't think she knows any of my other songs. I think that's the only one she knows.

[Bunny]

But where did the inspiration at 12 or 13 come from?

[Parker McCollum]

That girl I was dating and I got dating when you're 12, I guess my, my girlfriend had a crush on. Yeah, like fifth grade, fourth grade, whatever it was. So, yeah, I don't know, I was just super aware when I was really young. Like I was, I was very aware of the Texas scene, the Pat Greens, the Randy Rogers, the Cross Canadian Ragweeds, you know, the, and then like the, you know, Steve Earl and Rodney Crowell and, and Hayes Carl and all these just incredibly like raw, real songwriters. I was very aware of, like what they were doing and what they looked like and how they dressed and how they toured and when I was very young and so I just kind of started to, I was like, those are the guys I want to be like.

[Bunny]

Would you ever release West Texas Lover?

[Parker McCollum]

I don't think so. No, it's not. It like name drops like Stoney LaRue, Todd Snyder. It's very bad. It's. It's. Yeah, I can't remember all the words. I could probably remember most of them, but it's no, it's not very good.

[Bunny]

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[Parker McCollum]

And I just love sad songs. Like, I love evoking that emotion, singing. I like to sing those kind of songs and just like, I mean, just rip on on a sad, beautiful melody. Like it just does it for me. Yeah, but you know, like, I mean, I worked for my granddad, you know, several summers in my childhood and he was old school. I mean it was, it was the real deal. It was cowboy to the fullest extent. But I've never like, ran around and Been like, you know, I'm a cowboy, you know, Like, I don't. Like, I don't think I would enjoy it if I had to do it for a living, right? But the fact that I get to do it in my spare time, like even just ranching or like mowing my grass at my house, like, if I had to do it every week of my life, I probably wouldn't enjoy it as much as I do when I have time to do it.

[Bunny]

Right?

[Parker McCollum]

Does that make sense? So that's kind of my relationship with that. But it was just such a part of my childhood and such a mass. It's just ingrained in the DNA of my family. You know, I'll raise Major that way. Like, he'll grow up the same way. But I don't know. I've never. I've never really known what I was or who I was supposed to be. I've like, at times known who I wanted to be. And I mean that like in, like my music career, you know, at the house, by myself, like, I'm like, I don't know what I want to do or how I want to be. I just always just literally been winging it my entire life.

[Bunny]

You strike me as somebody who doesn't put labels on themselves. Like, you kind of just like, I.

[Parker McCollum]

Just don't really care, you know, Like, I'm just like, you know, I really, really try to focus on, like, am I working hard? You know, are my intentions pure? And, you know, how's my relationship with Halle Ray? How's my relationship with my. With my family and. And the people that I work with? Like, am I being a pleasant, hard working, non complaining human being? If yes, you know, yeah. The other stuff is, you know, you're not gonna get it all right? You can't. You know, as much as I want to and I think about it, I'm super hard on myself with that stuff. But no, it's. I don't know. I just. I don't know. I don't worry a ton.

[Bunny]

Yeah, absolutely. If you were not singing now and, you know, touring and being who you are, being Parker McCollum, what would you have done? Would you have gone into ranching or.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't know. You know, I. I actually wonder that all the time. I really don't know. I don't know if I might have gone and sold cars and tried to do the car business thing. That sounds like it would have been a possibility. I don't think I would.

[Bunny]

I could not see you as a cartoonist.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't think I would have enjoyed that. It's just. It's really, really hard to say because I've been doing this. You know, I graduated high school 10 days later. I moved to Austin. I went to community college for, like, you know, I think a month in that summer. And then I've just been doing this ever since. And my first album, I won that songwriter competition. Stephenville, Texas, when I was like, 21, 22, like, right after I'd put out my first album. And the radio station in Fort Worth started playing Meet yout in the Middle. And then we started selling tickets, and it's just been doing this ever since, and I just don't remember, you know, anything else. Yeah, I don't know. Yeah, I don't know. I have no idea. I don't remember what it was like before this, really.

[Bunny]

You've always seemed to have been musically inclined, though, because you were playing the violin and guitar and. What else were you playing? There was another instrument.

[Parker McCollum]

Harmonica.

[Bunny]

Harmonica, when I was really little.

[Parker McCollum]

But, like, I mean, people always, like. I think my Wikipedia page, someone sent it to me one time, it says, I'm a multi instrumentalist, which is not exactly accurate because, like, I play harmonica a little bit. And I played the violin in the orchestra in, like, fifth and sixth grade.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And I was second to last.

[Bunny]

I played the viola.

[Parker McCollum]

Yes. Well, there was only two. Right, right. And I was second to last chair. But I really, like. I really liked it. I just didn't keep doing it because it wasn't cool in seventh grade and I wanted to play football and stuff. And. And. And so I just, you know, and then I think, you know, my. My. When my parents divorced, my dad lived on the other side of the country for. For a while. And so, like, when I was junior high and stuff, I was just in high school. I just kind of floated and did kind of whatever I wanted and didn't really want to, you know, kind of got lazy, didn't want to play ball, you know, just was kind of smoking weed and, you know, like, hanging out and didn't really have. I wasn't going to go to college. I was just. It was like playing guitar and singing songs.

[Bunny]

Do you feel like your parents divorce maybe put you in a little bit of a depression?

[Parker McCollum]

No, I've never been depressed in my entire life, ever, to any degree whatsoever. But I. I think, you know, I think it just affects you more than you realize until you're older.

[Bunny]

Right.

[Parker McCollum]

You know, like. Like nowadays I'll be like. I think the, like, that may Be like part of the reason why I am the way I am in this aspect. But no, I mean, I've. I mean, look, my, my childhood was incredible. Like both sides of my family are as good as God makes. Absolutely top notch. And I'm. The older I get, I just become so much more grateful for that year after year. I just, you know, everything. Every. I don't blame anybody but myself for any of my shortcomings. You know what I mean? Like, I'm very serious about that. Like, I, a hundred percent am very hard on myself. Like, I know what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong and I don't ever really. I'm never. Like, I don't blame anything other than myself.

[Bunny]

Right.

[Parker McCollum]

Like, genuinely. Absolutely. Probably to like, to a. To a fault. It's probably a little overkill with it.

[Bunny]

But no, you are, you are very, very, very self aware. And I, I think it might be a little too self aware because you take so much accountability for everything that you don't want to put the blame on anybody else. And when I asked the question about the parents, I was just asking because, you know, that's heavy to watch your parents split. Because my parents were divorced too. It's heavy to watch your parents. And sometimes as a kid you just automatically go into survival mode and you don't realize, like, hey, maybe this really affected me like this, you know, so well, just.

[Parker McCollum]

And it's all, you know, you know, it's like when you're a kid, you don't know any different and then you get older and like you start analyzing it and then you just kind of get to the point where you're like, yeah, there's like, what has happened has happened. Like you're. It's so cliche but like, you know, all you have is tomorrow. And like, that is the mentality I always try to have. But I, I say that and then like my, my addiction to nostalgia is like crippling.

[Bunny]

Oh, I'm always romanticizing the past.

[Parker McCollum]

I know I got a song on this new record called Sunny Days. And it's like I've been trying to write that song for so long, but I just. I don't know. It's like I have this weird, crazy, sad part of my brain that I go to at least once a day where I'm like, those days are never coming back they're so gone, gone they're so gone.

[Bunny]

100 relate. I'm always yearning for a time that's never gonna never come back Never gonna come back have you ever had like an extreme heartbreak?

[Parker McCollum]

I mean, not that wasn't my fault.

[Bunny]

There's a self awareness.

[Parker McCollum]

As terrible as it is to say somewhat intentional to go to that place and write those songs.

[Bunny]

Right. What would you say your biggest green flag is?

[Parker McCollum]

Biggest green flag. Oh. Oh, golly.

[Bunny]

Let's talk. Good. About yourself.

[Parker McCollum]

I think I'm extremely easygoing.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

I think very. Like I just, you know, if somebody invites me to their birthday party. Thank you. If you don't also thank you. Like just. I'm not. I'm not ever tripping about anything like that. And part of that I think is because for so long I've been so busy and so the less things you have to go to in life, the. But I would say that's probably my. My biggest green flag.

[Bunny]

What would you say?

[Parker McCollum]

I think that's weird to. To pick a thing.

[Bunny]

Yeah. What would you say your biggest red flag is?

[Parker McCollum]

Pretty inconsistent. Very. And that's the one thing I like. I just envy so much about Holly Ray. Like she's the most. She's the same exact person every day. And I'm so jealous of that. Yeah. Pretty inconsistent all over the place. Probably 31 different people a day.

[Bunny]

You're Gemini, so I mean that's expected.

[Parker McCollum]

Split personalities, but it's been split. We're raising a gym exponential over and over again.

[Bunny]

Yep. Our daughter is a Gemini. So I 100 understand everything that you're saying. We never know which one we're gonna get when she wakes up in the morning.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah. And I think Halle Ray probably says that the same day or says that same thing every day. I'm just. But I'm like, golly, I don't know. I mean I. And I think about it every day. I mean I'm constantly just like, man, I want. I don't want to be 31 different people every day. But a lot of it's self inflicted. Like in. You know, I think it's the way that I handle a lot of the stuff that this business and this thing that I do in. In the music business and being a songwriter and being a touring artist, like, it just wear you out, you know? And you. You kind of. I'll. I just. Sometimes I don't make the best decisions and I. Instead of, you know, I don't know. It's like I don't ever learn my lesson. You know, I'm always just making the same mistakes over again.

[Bunny]

I have witnessed my husband, you know, touring. You guys have to wear so many different hats that you actually have to be different people. To who? Whoever's coming.

[Parker McCollum]

You live two lives.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Like, I literally. I'm con. I'm in constant limbo between being, you know, dad and husband and still out here chasing this thing that I've been chasing since I was 12.

[Bunny]

No, I see it every day with mine.

[Parker McCollum]

It'll worry. It'll wear your ass out.

[Bunny]

No, it's exhausting, especially because everybody wants a piece of you. So when you're out on the road, you're literally giving pieces of yourself to everybody around you. And then when you come home, everybody wants a piece of you and you have to give, you know, and it's. It's a very, very thin line, Fine line that you guys have to walk.

[Parker McCollum]

And nobody really can relate. Like, they can understand and they can sympathize, and it's not. And that's the other side of this. Like, it's not anything to sympathize because the life you're living is just. Just not real life. It's unbelievable. So it's like nobody really wants to hear how tired you are of this and that, you know, because all you've been doing is just the craziest. Every day is just, you know, it's. It's an incredible blessing. But.

[Bunny]

But that's still not fair because it is very exhausting. I've seen my husband literally be in two different countries in 24 hours, and I'm just like. And still have to show up and put a smile on his face and tell the story.

[Parker McCollum]

But it's a lot easier if you're taking care of yourself and you're sober.

[Bunny]

Yes.

[Parker McCollum]

And you are doing what you know you're supposed to do. And sometimes I'm very good at that, and other times I'm not good at that. And that's what I mean about the inconsistent thing is like, you're human. It's like I can't seem to do it 365 days out of the year.

[Bunny]

You're human, Parker. I hope you know that. You're not a machine. You're not a robot.

[Parker McCollum]

So, you know, I feel like one a lot, though.

[Bunny]

Oh, you need a break. When was the last time you had a break? Because you've been touring.

[Parker McCollum]

We've kind of had one. It's been pretty light in March, March marches. We did a five week winter tour. January, February, and then March. We only played two shows. But, like, I got a new album coming out, so I'm about to just go, absolutely. It's all about to start again. And, like, I can feel it. It's like. It's like out there every day, like, behind me, looking over my shoulder, just like, here I come, you know, you better get ready.

[Bunny]

And I'm like, do you still get excited about it, or does. Do you have to, like, gear yourself up for it?

[Parker McCollum]

I'm as excited about this album as. As I've ever been. It's the only record I've ever recorded that I didn't immediately say, now I know what I want to do. It's the first time I Like when I left the studio. We recorded this whole album in New York back in October in seven days.

[Bunny]

Wow.

[Parker McCollum]

And. And when I left, I was like, yes.

[Bunny]

What makes this album so different? Let's talk about.

[Parker McCollum]

I think I just was able to, kind of out of pure luck, like, rope the best version of myself at the right time.

[Bunny]

Wow.

[Parker McCollum]

And I flew from the last. We've been on tour all year, the Burn It Down Tour. And I flew from the last show of the tour in. I think we're in South Lake Tahoe and flew to New York on a Sunday. And for the next seven days, we cut that album. And so I was just like. But I'd been. I. I showed up with, like, this crazy. I just was as focused and as bought in and as just. Just prepared, but also had no idea what I was doing. Just said this perfect storm of the scenario when we recorded this record. And it's, like, really hard for me to, like, get that version of myself every time I cut a record, because I do tour a lot. And I tore hard, and I liked. I like to work hard. I like to earn it. You know, I never wanted anybody able to say, I didn't earn every single thing. And. And I still am that away. Still always say, still trying to make it. But I just. When I got to New York, I was, you know, I was dialed in. Yes. For the first time probably ever.

[Bunny]

What's the sound like on this album?

[Parker McCollum]

I don't know.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

I have no idea what it sounds like.

[Bunny]

Do you? Because you. You know, because you listen to it so much, it's hard. It, like, bleeds like you. I know how that goes. Because when Jay is.

[Parker McCollum]

But I've never known who I sounded like.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

You know, like, even, like, I've never made a record that I was like, this sounds like this. Because I would always be like, you know, say dumb stuff and be like, what if Ryan Bingham and Kings of Leon got together and made a record? What would that be like? And then it'd Be incredible, but I can't. Like, that was a. It was dumb for me to probably say at the time because. Not capable of pulling that off. But, you know, I just. And this is. This is also the first album that I was like, you know, I just didn't give a anymore. I was like, man, I'm sorry. Tired of just kind of making an album and just tour, you know, and just like, being like, oh, we got to cut a record. Let's go cut a record and put a record out like this one. I was like, no, we're going to New York. But, like, we are at. We are doing this like this. And we went and we did it, and I don't know, it just. It was worth it. It worked.

[Bunny]

You just had a game plan, and you literally just went in and.

[Parker McCollum]

We had a game plan, and at the same time, we had zero game plan whatsoever.

[Bunny]

Right. You knew what you wanted to do, just not how to do it.

[Parker McCollum]

Yes. And I had the story songs I wanted to cut. And we just. We literally went in and the band had not heard any of them, and we just started playing them until they were all recorded, and we all had a take of one that, you know, we thought was good enough. So it. I don't know. Frank Liddell produced it. Eric Masser is an engineer, and. And they just. I've enjoyed working with them so much. I was just with him. I was just in the studio with him this morning, and I don't know, it. It just. I've been doing it for so long, and it's like, I always wondered if I was good enough to make this kind of record. And it's the. It's the one. I always wondered if I was good enough to make. Like, do I have what it takes to go there and do it like that? And I think we pulled it off.

[Bunny]

I can't wait to hear it. When does it drop?

[Parker McCollum]

June 27th.

[Bunny]

June 27th. I'm excited.

[Parker McCollum]

We recorded in October. I feel like it's been 10 years since we recorded it. So hopefully, you know, the next. What is that, three months?

[Bunny]

Yep.

[Parker McCollum]

April, May, and most of June.

[Bunny]

So do you have any singles coming off the record before it drops?

[Parker McCollum]

We have a single on the radar right now. What Kind of Man? And then, I don't know. I've no idea what song would be the next single. I don't know if there is one. It's like, I just. It's different. I think people are going to hear it and. And think for a split second they're gonna Go, you know, what the hell did he do? And then I think they're gonna get it.

[Bunny]

I love that. I love that you're just like, you know what? I'm gonna put it in the universe and whatever happens, happens.

[Parker McCollum]

It just truly. Like, I've always been trying to be a country singer. It's like I want to be this, I want to be that. I want, you know, I want to, you know, and. And I finally just like it. I'm just gonna go do whatever it is that I am where we're gonna find out what it is on this record. And we found out.

[Bunny]

I can't wait.

[Parker McCollum]

But I have no idea what it is still. But I know what it sounds like now.

[Bunny]

I can't wait to hear the whole album. Do you think you lean more towards, like, country pop or like the traditional Texas country or.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't think either, either. Which is really what kind of. Kind of screws me up so much is because, like, I need. I, like, I have to have, like, a reason for everything. Like, I. I have to have some sort of answer. And it's like the one. The biggest thing in my life, in my career is I don't have an answer for it. Like, I don't know what to call it. I don't know what it sounds like. I don't know who. You would. Who have no idea.

[Bunny]

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[Parker McCollum]

And I don't sound like any of those people and I don't sound like any of you know what's going on right now and what country music has become. So I'm like so like I said recently I was like I don't know if I'm a country singer and like I think people took it as like I was gonna quit playing music, but. No, no, I just. I just don't think.

[Bunny]

I don't think country is country right now. Country. Okay, let me. How do I rephrase this? Country isn't what, like. Like a traditional country? Like, before, it used to be the twang and the guitars and what.

[Parker McCollum]

It was when I wanted to be a country singer.

[Bunny]

Exactly. It's way different. And, like, Ed Sheeran just did an interview where he said he's coming into country music, and it's just kind of like. I don't think. I think country singers right now are having a hard time grasping what sound is their sound, because country isn't what country used to be.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah. And just. I just don't think you can worry about it. Like, I think, you know, and that's like, the. What the realization I came to is. I was like, man, I just don't sound like any country singer when I'm saying I don't think I do. I'm like. I don't sing and be like, I sound like this person, which is great.

[Bunny]

You don't want to sound like somebody else.

[Parker McCollum]

Correct. Yeah. And I think that's, you know, it's like, that's. That's a massive blessing. But it's like, I just got to a point where I was like, I just gotta go sing the songs that I write.

[Bunny]

Right.

[Parker McCollum]

And record them.

[Bunny]

Yes.

[Parker McCollum]

And quit trying to, you know, be something that may not be a thing anymore. Maybe just never were, like, I'm like, you know, you can be. You can be as big of a country music fan as I am and write songs and be an artist and not sound that way. It's okay. So.

[Bunny]

Right.

[Parker McCollum]

You know, if they don't want to call it country music, that's fine. It's not. It's. It's. This record's incredibly raw. I mean, there's not a single nothing that was not a real instrument being played in real time or a real vocal being sang in real time. There's scratch vocals on this record, some of them. So I don't know. I just.

[Bunny]

I feel like country is such a huge genre now that there's.

[Parker McCollum]

It's just not near as narrow as it used to be.

[Bunny]

Right.

[Parker McCollum]

You know, it's just kind of. It's more of like a club in a way.

[Bunny]

Yeah. It's like the cool kids club right now.

[Parker McCollum]

Yes.

[Bunny]

Everybody wants to be a country singer.

[Parker McCollum]

And the criteria is not incredibly specific.

[Bunny]

Right. So, I mean, we got Beyonce doing country albums, you know, And I'm just.

[Parker McCollum]

Saying And I'm like, you know, Post.

[Bunny]

Malone is country now. I know so.

[Parker McCollum]

And then I don't feel like I sound like any of that. And I don't sound like any of what country music used to be. So I'm like, where am I? What am I supposed to do, you know?

[Bunny]

Well, you know, the fans will tell you.

[Parker McCollum]

Just let it ride.

[Bunny]

Yeah. You know, the fans will tell you whenever the album drops. So let's talk. Let's dial it back a little bit, and let's talk about 2020 was kind of a big year for you. I'm sorry, 2019 was kind of a big year for you. You had signed with Universal in 2019. And isn't that when you and your beautiful wifey met?

[Parker McCollum]

We did. Sometime around then. It was. I want to say it was 2019, because I think we. We broke up. She broke up with me at the end of 2020, and we broke up for, like, four months. Then we got back together and got engaged right away.

[Bunny]

And why did she break up with you?

[Parker McCollum]

I don't really remember. And she doesn't either. I just remember. I remember she had, like, gotten, you know, upset about something. Somebody had told her something, and it was 100. Not true. And I was just like. I mean, that's. It's not true. So do what you got to do, you know? And then for, like, four months. And then I called her one day, and I was actually in Nashville, and she flew to Nashville and got engaged like two months later, three months later.

[Bunny]

When, you know, you know, she's.

[Parker McCollum]

She's one of. One of one, no question.

[Bunny]

Let's talk about her. Because I really love the story that I've heard you tell is that you loved her name and a friend introduced you. Like, can we talk about that?

[Parker McCollum]

That is a true story. I was. It's my buddy, Gus west, good cowboy from West Texas. And I was playing this little. It's like the oldest rodeo in Texas, I think, way out in West Texas. And he had told me about her like, one night after we played. And he was like, man, you gotta meet this girl. Hallere lied. I went to Oklahoma State with her. He went there for, like, a semester, I think.

[Bunny]

What a perfect name, though. It's like such a ray of light, too.

[Parker McCollum]

And I said. I was like, that name's got to go in a song. So, like, I kind of started thinking about that and whatever. And then she was going to Oklahoma State, and we actually played in Stillwater one night, and Gus was there, and, you know her and some Other girls came out to the show, and it was like. I think it was my first or second night ever on a tour bus. We had gotten out of a van and gotten into tours. We had no record deal yet. Like, we were just. It was going really well for us kind of in the Texas red dirt scene. And she came out to the show. I think she was there, like, 10 minutes, and she was on the bus, and, you know, she didn't like the way I was behaving, so she left. And we love that.

[Bunny]

A woman who doesn't put up with your. We love that.

[Parker McCollum]

But I. I immediately started, like, really kind of getting my together and I really started, you know, just. I would just send like, dumb messages to her. Like, looking back now, I'm like, this is terrible. But I would just be like, hey, you know, like, when you're ready for the real deal, let me know. And boyfriend at the time or something.

[Bunny]

Smooth.

[Parker McCollum]

And. Yeah, it was. So at the time, it was money, and she probably thought I was an idiot, but it just. It was like, probably nine months, ten months later, she came. I think she came to another show, and we hung out all night, and then she came to another show and we started dating. Like, on our first date, we, like, went to dinner in, like, the steakhouse in the casino that I was playing, and I just had, like, four or five beers, got a little buzz, and asked her to be my girlfriend. And then we've been together ever since.

[Bunny]

Did you ever end up writing the song?

[Parker McCollum]

I did. I recorded on Gold Chain Cowboy. It's on the first record I put out on Universal, But I kind of wrote the. The album as she was avoiding me. And so if you listen to the song, it kind of, you know, that's why at the end it says, goodbye, Halle Ray Light. And. But I never really said goodbye.

[Bunny]

Ah, that's kind of like you were manifesting her a little bit.

[Parker McCollum]

And now I look back, I'm like, man, it kind of sounds. That's pretty weird now that I think about it.

[Bunny]

No, I think all girls love stuff like that. You could write a girl a song and an album and. And just.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't think she wanted to, like, date a singer. I think she was probably just, you know, she's like, that's trouble. Yeah, But I really, like. I cleaned it up a lot once. Once her and I met and really got to know each other, so I.

[Bunny]

Feel like a good woman always puts a great man on the right track.

[Parker McCollum]

Yes, she is. She's a good one. She's Beautiful. As good as God makes them.

[Bunny]

She's so gorgeous. I remember the first time I met her, I was like, who is this? She's so beautiful.

[Parker McCollum]

Like, she's just gorgeous, wonderful. The most pleasant, easy person I've ever met in my life. And I could not be more of the opposite.

[Bunny]

So I love that.

[Parker McCollum]

God bless her.

[Bunny]

Yeah, I love that. I love, love. You seem like a hopeless romantic at.

[Parker McCollum]

Heart, too, so, you know, I. I don't know. Maybe a little bit. But it's. It's kind of funny. Like, you know, her and I are. She's. She's me forever, you know? But I'm still trying to write. I'm always trying to write the sad, terrible heartbreak songs about it all going terribly wrong.

[Bunny]

Yeah, that's my husband, too. He's always sad about something.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah.

[Bunny]

I'm like, what is going on? But you're, like, the most jovial man.

[Parker McCollum]

A lot of it's the nostalgia stuff like that. That stuff kind of breaks my heart sometimes when I really get into that mood and think about it. And that's when I write songs about it. So, yeah, she's. For a while, she was like, can you just write a song about it going right.

[Bunny]

Like, about.

[Parker McCollum]

About the love ending? Well, yeah. Which. There's. There's a couple on this new record that kind of do that.

[Bunny]

Yeah. Sort of talk to me about being a dad now. What was that like? Just on that whole journey with you guys?

[Parker McCollum]

It's just the craziest thing I've ever seen in my life. It really is. And he's. He just turned eight months old.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And I don't know, it's just. I'm like, yeah, I guess I always want you. There was a long time where, like, you know, I've always been a huge John Mayer fan, and I knew he never got married and had kids, and I always kind of was really aware of that and always kind of said the same thing. I was like, man, I'm gonna go, you know, be a songwriter and a touring artist for the rest of my life, not getting married and had kids. And Hallie obviously changed that. And. And so a certain time came where I kind of started realizing I was like, man, there's. There's like, you're getting older and you're like. I'm kind of like, it's time. Like, this stuff's about to start. And then it does start, like, being married and having a kid, and it's like. I mean, you're in the middle of the day and you're like, damn. It's. It's not coming. It's here. Like, it has arrived. He is here, and he is not going anywhere. But it's just been. I don't know. It's. It's like the cliche thing everybody says. It's. You know, it's like the best thing in the world is having kids and you're a kid, and, like, I. I understand that now. It's. And it's just getting better. Like, he's. You know, like, when he was born, he has these two perfect dimples, and they were just ripping. He came out screaming, crying, flew up in the air like, four feet. It was wild. I was up by the shoulders.

[Bunny]

Damn. He came out swinging.

[Parker McCollum]

He came out swinging and just hollering cowboy. I mean, it's. It's the wildest thing. I look at him, I'm like, I am your dad. You are my son, you know, like, and my dad is my best friend in the world. I mean, he is the man. Me and him are incredibly close. And so I'm like, it's just. It's wild. Like, now it's my time to be in that role, you know? So it's. It's just been. I don't know. My brain still doesn't really know what to think of at all.

[Bunny]

Yeah. I see the smile on your face, though, when you.

[Parker McCollum]

It's crazy. It's just. It's just looking wild to have a kid and be like, yeah. I mean, me and her sitting there's like, where's. Where? His parents.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Like, we were. And then this broke my heart one day. It was like a month after he was born, and we were. We were doing, like, change his diaper or something. And she's like, isn't it. She just said it so nonchalant. She's like, isn't it weird to think we won't be here for his whole life?

[Bunny]

Oh.

[Parker McCollum]

And I was just like, holy. Like, I mean, like, even saying that right now, I'm like, that just shatters my. It just. I'm like, no, I don't. That can't be how it is. But it's. I don't know. Being a dad is. And, like, when they're eight months old and before. Or even, like, for the next few months, like, you know, being a dad is. You're not really showing him or teaching him anything yet. So I think when that gets here, like, I'll really be good at that. I haven't been very good at the baby stuff.

[Bunny]

I don't feel like any men are good during the infant stages, but when they start talking and like, able to communicate.

[Parker McCollum]

He said dada the other day and I was just like, I was like, dude. And like, the way I felt, I didn't even like it. I was like, I was like, I feel weak right now, you know, but it was just. I was just like, he just loves big. Then we've got these big ass blue eyes. He just look at me over and over, dad, dad, dad. And I'm like, he's son of a. Like, you know, you got me.

[Bunny]

You're just in love.

[Parker McCollum]

And I'll never quit him. And he's got me for life. You know, he'll like, he's. He's good. So it's. And then he will have impeccable manners and there will be no exception made to that rule. He will have perfect. He may not be very smart if he's like me, but you'll have impeccable manners.

[Bunny]

I think he's going to be amazing with you and, and Holly being, you know, his parents. How did you guys come up with his name? Major?

[Parker McCollum]

I was watching. So my middle name is Yancy. That's my mom's side of the family. And I really wanted to and name him Yancy Tyler after my middle name and, and my little brother and I love your family. Well, I just, they're, they're just. I'm so lucky. I don't know. And you don't really start to realize that to his fullest extent until you get older. But I just loved the name Yancey Tyler. And, and so I was trying to. For like a year, I was trying to talk Hallie into. And he would go by Yancy Tyler. Like, that would be his name. Like, that's baller. Like if he plays ball, if he's riding dirt bikes, like if he's roping, if he's a singer. Like, Yancy Tyler's good for all of those. And. But she never really 100 got on board with it. And then I was watching Major Applewhite the highlight on YouTube one night and I was like, Major McCollum. And she was like, ah. So I tried to talk her out of it, but it was. That was done. We were like, for like months. We went on like other names and I knew the whole time I was like, I know she's not going to get off a Major.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And she, she met me in the middle. Now it's Major Yancey Tyler McCollum.

[Bunny]

I love that. I saw a clip of you guys Whenever you pulled him up for the rodeo and you could just see the love that you have for her.

[Parker McCollum]

That was cool.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

That was, like, awesome. I told him I was like that. Or told Hallie I was like, that photo one day is gonna be like. It just. I don't know. My boy on stage with me. 70, 000 people.

[Bunny]

His first rodeo.

[Parker McCollum]

Houston, Texas. His first rodeo. He has no idea what anything is or what's happening, where he is or who he is. But, like, that photo will be so cool. And it just. I don't know. It's like you. I was never really that way about stuff, and now I'm like, you know.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Just a whole nother. Yes. A whole other side of your personality you didn't know existed. It's just evoked immediately.

[Bunny]

Yeah. Well, lucky that they get that side of you, and that's why you preserved it for so long, was to keep it just sacred, just for just them. So I love that. So let's talk about touring. I need to hear some crazy backstage moments because I know that you have toured with CO Pretzel, which. We've heard some crazy backstage stories with.

[Parker McCollum]

Him, but we always had a good time.

[Bunny]

Ko is great. I freaking love company. Toured with CO2. And I mean, he's.

[Parker McCollum]

He's pure.

[Bunny]

He is. So I think what people don't realize about CO Is that he really, genuinely, beneath the wild facade, he's just a sweet man.

[Parker McCollum]

And he's funnier.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

Than all get out. I mean, like, I don't think people know that either. Like, he is hysterical. We were hunting together a couple months ago, and it's the first time we've kicked it in a pretty good while, and I just. I don't know. He's one. He is. I would take a bullet for him. I. I've. I've leaned on him in some good times and. Or in some really bad times, and he's just. I don't know, man. He's. He's as good as East Texas has ever made him.

[Bunny]

You got. You guys kind of came up together too, didn't you?

[Parker McCollum]

We did. We. He actually messaged me on Twitter in probably 2015, 14. 15. And. And then I'd met this guy at that songwriter competition that I ended up winning, and he was really good buddies with CO and he was. You know, he kind of started driving my van, became my first tour manager, and he's one of my best friends in the entire world. And. And I remember him being like, hey, you got to check out my buddy CO Wetzel. And I was like, you know, people say that all the time. Nobody's ever good, you know.

[Bunny]

Yeah.

[Parker McCollum]

And. And we ended up going to. Went fishing together one time and. And he went to sleep. Me and Co stayed up in the living room just playing guitars. And he started singing and I was just like, he's special. Yeah. I was like, oh, wow. You know, he was. He. I just. Immediate, immediate. And you know, when someone opens their mouth to sing a song instantaneously, you know, whether you buy it or you don't. And he had me hook, line and sinker. But yeah, he was just, you know, and they didn't know what they were doing. I was. I was already kind of selling some tickets and playing some shows and had a band and a van and stuff. And, and, and so when it was Co what's on the Convicts? Like, you know, like he was really like kind of leaning on me a little bit, just figuring out, you know, what do you do about an agent or, you know, touring and all this stuff. And so like, we kind of learned all of that together and we were like the last few, like us and Flatland and a couple others were like the last ones that really like got in a van and went and toured really hard before you could do like the viral thing on Tick Tock and social media and stuff. So like, like we kind of had our first good run very, very young. And like right before all of that stuff became what it is now. Like we had social media, but.

[Bunny]

Yeah, no, I get it.

[Parker McCollum]

It was not what it is now.

[Bunny]

No, Jay and I, yeah, we had to come up from the 18 passenger van.

[Parker McCollum]

It's just, it just. And we. He's. He says the same thing. Like he wouldn't have it any other way. Like, we're really grateful to have gotten to do it that way.

[Bunny]

I feel like it's kind of the easy way out now because you can go so viral so fast and it's like, like you don't. Not that you don't appreciate it as much, but it's like it's not the blood, sweat and tears as it was before.

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah. And people are going to have success and probably there will be some. A few that do it that way and have very big, long, successful careers and there will be a lot of them that don't. You know, there may be a flash in the pan or whatever, but, you know, I don't know. I always just liked the. I never really liked the idea of like, you know, just blowing up. Like, I always just kind of wanted to just keep doing it and keep doing it and keep doing it. And, you know, you get one day and, you know you're set and you're taken care of and you've built a great career. And it just always seemed like a nice, slow setting. Yes.

[Bunny]

And just.

[Parker McCollum]

And I always, like, really genuinely thought about it that way. And so I think a lot of that comes from. I was kind of forced to do it that way and I'm like, really grateful for that now, so. But he's. That boy's one in a million.

[Bunny]

Yeah, he is one.

[Parker McCollum]

He's good people.

[Bunny]

So besides co. Because I know you guys have some wild stories. Tell me, like, what is one of the craziest, like, backstage moments, fan interaction or tour story that you can.

[Parker McCollum]

Oh, golly. There was. There was one night I actually wasn't technically a part of this. I kind of walked into it. I was on the bus asleep, and I, like, heard. It was after the show. We were playing some rodeo the middle of nowhere and like, damn, I can't believe Mattel. That's what I'm going to. And I won't name who it was in the band, but there were some girls who had stayed after the show and they were all having a good time and I had already gotten in my bunk and gone. This is back when we were on one bus. Everybody was. We had like two crew guys, just a few guys in the band. And anyways, I heard a bunch of noise outside the bus and so I like, got up. I think I was in my boxers and I just like, opened the door and there was a girl with a. What's the firework that she. A bottle rocket.

[Bunny]

Yes.

[Parker McCollum]

In her. In her butt. And, and, and, and like the girl, like the other girls that were there, like, one of the girls has the lighter. She's trying to light it. All the guys are, like, trying other lighters, trying to light it, and she's like, letting them shoot the bottle rocket out of there. And, and that's not the craziest. That's just like one that I think back on often and I'm like, like wonder. I wonder where she is now. You know, where did she go the next day? And where is she now?

[Bunny]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Does she ever tell that story on her own?

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah, I wonder. I wonder that same thing. But the, The. The bottle rocket never lit. I was just standing there, like, on the bottom step of the bus just like, what is going on?

[Bunny]

It's something that's just so crazy to just wake up and have to feast your eyes on. So I could only imagine the imprint that it left in your mind and.

[Parker McCollum]

Just, you know, that's. It's. Golly. That's probably the. The. The most appropriate story I could tell from back in those days. It was just. It was so. None of us knew what we were doing back then, and it was just so wild and free and like, we caught, like, even before we were on that bus, our first tour bus, like, you know, we were just in a van and we got a sprinter van a few years later. And they just. We had no responsibilities. You know, we plugged our own guitars in. You know, I had like a little dewalt tool bag with like a. A tuner and a cable and like a. Had di, I think, in it. And like, that's what I would, you know, like, take out of the van and we'd set our stuff up. And like, we were doing that, but we were selling these bars out. Like, we were selling like 2, 3, 4, 5,000 person bars out a night.

[Bunny]

Wow.

[Parker McCollum]

And Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, like, it was just. It was so, so, so fun.

[Bunny]

Yeah. Do you ever miss those days?

[Parker McCollum]

All the time.

[Bunny]

Yeah, we do too.

[Parker McCollum]

I don't think I'd want to go back to them, but I do. I just think about them all the time and how different it looks nowadays. And I. But I enjoy feeling really good all the time on the road. Like, I never felt good back then on the road. Like I was. You were always just ruined all the time on the road. And so like, you would get like this bad taste in your mouth from it because you're like, man, I don't want to go out and feel like that again. So once I like, really started kind of being a little more focused and a little more calculated with like, my approach to it, which I think is really good to do for your fans too. Like, they deserve a good product. Product every night. Like, you want to go out and put on a good show and sound good and remember all of the words and be entertaining and, you know, play those songs to where they feel they're happy that they came and heard the songs that they love live, you know. But back then we just. We weren't thinking about that stuff. We were just ripping it.

[Bunny]

Have you ever forgotten a song on stage?

[Parker McCollum]

Because all the time I did at the rodeo.

[Bunny]

But you were sober, right?

[Parker McCollum]

100 sober. And they have of these screens around the arena, around the stadium that, you know, it's saying. It's. The lyrics to the song are like being typed. They're not teleprompters. It's like, for the crowd. And, you know, I'm sure if someone's, you know, deaf or something for. For that kind of thing. And. And. But they're delayed, right? They're really delayed. And so I just. You know, that stage is rotating and, like, just came time for the second verse of why Indiana? And I was reading. I just so happen to look at that thing and it's like, it hasn't even. We're already through the course. It's like just now putting the words to the chorus up and I just.

[Bunny]

Do you just make up words in that moment?

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah, you just freestyle until you get back to the chorus and then hope you remember those words. But, yeah, it happens all the time. Yeah. At least one song a night. I'll just, you know, it's like. And they just turn around. The band's just like, wow.

[Bunny]

Because they know you messed up and.

[Parker McCollum]

It'S all being recorded and there's video of it all. It's like you get to go back and look after and it's. It's pretty funny. But, yeah, I do that all the time.

[Bunny]

We had a little blurb that happened at the Houston rodeo that my husband calls me up on stage all the time, and I'm always. I always cuss. I'm like, what's up? You know, and nobody.

[Parker McCollum]

Oh, they probably didn't like that at rodeo, right?

[Bunny]

So nobody told me that you're not supposed to cuss on the stage, right? So I get up there and I don't think I'm gonna say anything. He hands me the microphones, and I'm like, what's up? And you could see my husband go and just, like, walks away. And as he hugs me, he's like, you're not supposed to cuss on.

[Parker McCollum]

Surely they were cool about it.

[Bunny]

Oh, they were so cool about it. Because I wrote. I did a TikTok about it, and I was like, I'm so sorry. I didn't know. You know, I was like, please.

[Parker McCollum]

And that's really good for their marketing, too.

[Bunny]

Yeah, yeah, no, it was huge. It went viral.

[Parker McCollum]

Very good for the brand of Rodeo Houston for it to, like, get. It's like, you know, that's good for business. But, yeah, they are serious about that.

[Bunny]

No, they're super serious. But I was like, yeah, you could have told me that before I got on there. Can we talk about your gold chains? Because I don't see your gold chains on, right?

[Parker McCollum]

I've only got one. My. My diamond chain caught on my towel last week, I was getting a shower in the morning, and it just ripped in half.

[Bunny]

What is it with the chains? Because I heard that you said you would rather forget your guitar than forget your chains.

[Parker McCollum]

No, I don't know if I ever said that.

[Bunny]

Okay.

[Parker McCollum]

It probably. If I did, it probably sounded a lot cooler at the time. Certainly doesn't now, hearing it out loud. But. No, I. I don't know. You know, I think as much as I was into these country music and Americana songwriters, and as a kid, like, I was really also very in tune with. With, like, kind of the. I guess back then, it really wasn't the underground Houston rap scene. It was pretty big deal back then, especially when I was really young. My brother was in high school. But I don't know. I mean, we were always listening to Zero and Slim Thug and Big Mo and Little Kiki and Birdman, like, just so just, you know. And a lot of people don't know about those. Those artists. And I still listen to those guys to this day. I listen to them in the gym in the morning. I listen to them when I'm driving. You know, we're always. You know, it just. That was like. I always thought those guys were really cool, too. And that's another. Well, somewhat earlier, like, I'd never known, like, what I really was or what I was supposed to be, because, like, I'd see John Mayer, and I'd be like, that's incredible. I want to be like him. And I'd see George straight, and I'd be like, that's incredible. I want to be like him. And then I would see, you know, zero or maybe not even the Houston rat, 50 Cent, and I'd be like, he's badass. I want to be like him.

[Bunny]

Would you ever collab with a rapper.

[Parker McCollum]

If they had to? I just don't think you would believe it if I did did it. I don't think it would be believable.

[Bunny]

I think it would. I mean, Morgan has pulled it off. My dad's pulled it. My dad. My husband has pulled it. I was gonna say Daddy, but I always call him Daddy.

[Parker McCollum]

That's good.

[Bunny]

Jay has pulled it off. I think that you would totally be able to pull it off.

[Parker McCollum]

You know, I can't believe I'm gonna admit this, but you have such a.

[Bunny]

Like, a college fan base, too. They would eat that up.

[Parker McCollum]

Maybe. I don't know. I think people really, really expect the. The level of the songwriting for me to be very high. And when it's not, I. I Can hear them and. And. And I recognize that. And I want the same thing. Like, I really want to write songs. I could stand the test of time and be, you know, like, do something for somebody. So I don't think I could get that across collabing with a rapper. But there is all. There will always be a small part of me that wishes I was a rapper.

[Bunny]

Ah, you know. Have you ever rapped?

[Parker McCollum]

I freestyle every single day of my life.

[Bunny]

Life. No way.

[Parker McCollum]

That's how I write songs.

[Bunny]

Wow.

[Parker McCollum]

Is when I'm playing guitar, I'm just freestyling because I can. I mean, I can freestyle and without missing a rhyme for as long as you want to go, wow. Always been able to do that. And so that's just how I've always written. Whether it's hell of a year or whatever. It's just, you know, I'm just sitting there just making up as I'm just spitting it out. Like, Laurie McKenna, what a great songwriter who I write with, she's all. She's like, learned that that's how I write songs. And she's just like, like, just go. She's like, just start. And I'll just start singing lines and rhyming lines and describing things and just, you know, and I can do it for a long time without ever missing a rhyme.

[Bunny]

And can you do a freestyle for us right now?

[Parker McCollum]

Absolutely not. Hell no. No. It doesn't look cool. It doesn't look cool, and it doesn't sound cool, but I. I can do it for a long time and. And. And, you know, fall off the beat and fall back on the beat and. And kind of slide around the beat and just melodies and hooks and. And I just. I do it all the time. Like, if I'm. If I'm driving by myself, I'm probably freestyling and I'm just going and going and like, when I leave voicemails for my buddies, like, I'll freestyle for like a minute and a half.

[Bunny]

I love it.

[Parker McCollum]

And they'll just call them and they'll be like, you realize nobody knows you can do that. And I'm like, yeah, we need to keep it that way too.

[Bunny]

It's like a hidden talent, Parker.

[Parker McCollum]

But it's not. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's not very cool. You know, it. I am able to, like, do the, you know, freestyle and rhyme a lot for a long time, but it just. When it's me doing it, you know, I just feel like people are like, I Don't want to see him do that, you know?

[Bunny]

Okay, so what if you collabed with a rapper, but you sang a hook and let them rap?

[Parker McCollum]

I would love to do that.

[Bunny]

Would you do that?

[Parker McCollum]

I would love to do that.

[Bunny]

Who would you want to do that with? Let's manifest it right now.

[Parker McCollum]

Oh, I don't know. I think it'd be really cool to do it with Jack Harlow. Yeah, I would really. 50 Cent, obviously, I know. You know, he's just. When I was a kid, he was the man.

[Bunny]

He's like, to our lives.

[Parker McCollum]

Would love to do it with Lil Wayne. You know, there's. Yeah, but I just, you know, it would. It. I would be super honest. I'd be like, hey, yo, this sucks. And if. If we could get it right. Yeah, it'd be cool. But, yeah, you know, it's just. You don't want to see me do that. I don't think I'm looking forward to it. I don't think. I just don't think you guys want to see it.

[Bunny]

Don't you?

[Parker McCollum]

Yeah, I don't think it would look very cool.

[Bunny]

I think it would be awesome. Parker, thank you so much for coming.

[Parker McCollum]

No, thank you.

[Bunny]

I am so happy to have you sit here on the couch and please come by anytime you want. Next time you come by, bring. Bring the hot wifey, too.

[Parker McCollum]

I absolutely will. Everybody meets her, and they like her a lot more.

[Bunny]

So, yeah, I think you guys are a beautiful couple.

[Parker McCollum]

Thank you.

[Bunny]

You guys both. Both compliment each other, so thank you. Thank you so much for coming.

[Parker McCollum]

Yes, ma' am. Thanks, Bunny.

[Bunny]

Thank you. Thank you guys for listening to another episode of Dumb Blonde. I'll see you guys next week. Bye.

[Parker McCollum]

Dumb. Such a good title for a podcast.

[Bunny]

What is it? Dumb Blonde.

[Parker McCollum]

Dumb Blonde is such a good title for a podcast.