It makes sense that Dierks Bentley declared Zach Top the future of country music earlier this year. Finding success with his first-ever single “Sounds Like the Radio,” Top’s debut studio album, Cold Beer & Country Music, reached No. 4 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. Now, the Washington native, 27, is gearing up to release a follow-up album. Ain’t in It for My Health hits the airwaves this Friday, Aug. 29. Sitting down for an interview with Bentley, Top revealed just what the title means for his country music career.
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Zach Top Was Not a One-Hit Wonder
An album’s title can make or break a record, and Zach Top had a couple in mind for his sophomore project. He considered two songs as the title track — “Guitar” and “Loving the Wrong Things” — before producer Carson Chamberlain tossed him a curveball.
“I was just thinking, let’s pick a title of one of the songs, and I call the album that,” Top told Bentley. “But he was like, ‘I’ll throw one out of left field at you a little bit.’
Chamberlain then suggested Ain’t in It for My Health, and that was the end of the discussion. “I was like, oh, it’s perfect,” Top said.
And with that, the “I Never Lie” hitmaker has declared his career intentions for the future. “It’s also kind of got a little deeper meaning to me, where it’s, like, sort of a ‘I’m here to stay’ type of thing. It wasn’t a one-hit wonder thing. The first album, people like that and whatnot, but I’m I’m here to stay… I ain’t in it for my health.”
While it may seem like a bold declaration, Top currently has country music fans in a chokehold with his timeless sound and expert guitar skills. It’s not hard to imagine him still ruling the charts a decade or two from now.
See Him On Tour
Zach Top fans will have plenty of opportunities to hear his new material live this year. The Academy of Country Music’s reigning New Male Artist has a few more stops remaining on Dierks Bentley’s Broken Branches tour. And on Sept. 27, he will kick off the latest round of his Cold Beer & Country Music tour at Cook’s Garage in Lubbock, Texas.
Featured image by Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images
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