George Keeps Away From The Press
Part of being a country singer means that everybody wants to talk to you all the time. As a general rule, artists are happy to talk to publications about their life and their music. They know that interviews can be a good way to get the word out about a new single or album, and fans love them.
Not all country stars have relied on interviews to help them propel their career. One such star is the “King of Country” himself, George Strait, who rarely agrees to an interview.
But that wasn’t always the case, as Strait took part in his fair share of interviews during the early years of his career.
His Reason For It All Will Break Your Heart
That all changed in 1986, after Strait’s 13-year-old daughter Jenifer lost her life in an accident. The loss of his daughter weighed on Strait, and he didn’t want to get the public involved in his private struggle.
Still, his fans grieved alongside him, with some creating videos in honor of Jenifer. One such video plays photos of Jenifer in a slideshow, accompanied by her father’s heartbreaking song “Baby Blue.”
Speaking to The New Yorker magazine in one of few interviews he has granted since losing Jenifer, Strait explained why the loss of his daughter prompted him to cut the number of interviews he agreed to.
It all rested in the fact that he didn’t want to be asked about Jenifer’s death, because he didn’t think he could handle discussing it:
“I just didn’t feel like talking about it, so I quit…I did want to keep singing, absolutely. But I was at the point where I’m [like], ‘Alright, if this is going to cost me my career, then so be it, but it’s the only way I’m going to be able to cope with it.’ It just kind of turned out the way it did. It wasn’t an intentional thing.“
His Career Still Flourished
Although Strait felt that his career could suffer due to his lack of interviews, the opposite occurred. Throughout the next three decades he scored one chart-topping hit after the next, and he now has more number ones than any other artist in country music history.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8a6mpMVhWQ
“Everything just kept on going,” Strait said, “it didn’t make a bit of difference.”
It goes to show that Strait’s talent speaks entirely for itself.
But since Strait’s interviews are so rare, we do enjoy reading and listening to them whenever they occur. You can check out his full interview with The New Yorker in the sound clip below.
Once you’re done, watch Strait do what he does best in the video below as he sings his hit song “Write This Down.” It’s clear to see why he has earned the title as “The King of Country!”