Tyler Hubbard is looking back on the good old days in his new single, “Back Then Right Now.” The song explores a simpler time when that Walmart was just a fishin’ hole and a “how ya been?” came through a phone call.
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I could use a little more wide-open/Back when all I wanted was the hand I was holdin’/Livin’ in the moment with the good-time crowd/Makin’ life count/Damn, I could use a little more/Back then, right now, Hubbard sings in the chorus.
“Back Then Right Now” follows Hubbard’s back-to-back No. 1 hits as a solo artist, “5 Foot 9” and the Keith Urban co-penned “Dancin’ in the Country.” “Back Then” is the first new song Hubbard has released that was not featured on the album. “These past few months I’ve been writing a ton of songs and working in the studio,” he explained on Instagram. “I’m super excited to share all the new music I’ve been workin on but this song is one of my favorites – ‘Back Then Right Now’ is out now. Play it loud y’all.”
[RELATED: Tyler Hubbard and Keith Urban Share The Story Behind “Dancin’ In the Country”]
For 12 years, Hubbard was one-half of the wildly successful country duo Florida Georgia Line alongside Brian Kelley. The pair announced in 2022 that they were going on an indefinite hiatus to embark on solo careers. The Georgia native released his debut album in January 2023 and the project reached the Top 10 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.
“I think as a songwriter, it’s sometimes easier to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and write from a different perspective and not have to be as real and vulnerable from your own. The majority of this album is fairly direct and very authentic and it’s real,” he told American Songwriter.
The hitmaker is set to open for Old Dominion on a handful of dates on their 2023 No Bad Vibes Tour in September and October. Hubbard co-wrote the deep cut “Inside and Out” with Jordan Schmidt and OD’s Brad Tursi and Trevor Rosen that’s featured on his album.
Photo by Mat Hayward/WireImage
