Brantley Gilbert Honors The Military and Veterans With ‘Hard Days’ Performance On ‘A Capitol Fourth!’ PBS Special

Country superstar, Brantley Gilbert performed his latest single “Hard Days” on Saturday (July 4) during the 40th anniversary presentation of A Capitol Fourth!.

Gilbert is known to be a huge supporter of the military and veterans through the years, from USO tours to benefit shows. Most of his music often speaking directly to our service men and women.

The country singer also told CBS Eye on Veterans that he has dedicated a unique part of his house to our military and veterans, a project that he called the “Dog House.”

“We’ve actually had a project and built what we’re calling the ‘Dog House’. It’s just a giant man-cave,” he told CBS Eye on Veterans. “The bus goes in it, we got some cars going in it and motorcycles … it’s like a game room/showroom/shop.”

In the center of the “Dog House,” is what really salutes the men and women in the armed forces and that’s a bar that is solely dedicated to them with medals and patches that he’s been given throughout the years.

“The bar itself is actually a shadow box with all the medals and patches men and women have given me through the years,” Gilbert said.  “You don’t know what to do with them, because I didn’t earn them. But I wanted to have a place where I could keep them … and people could look at ’em, ask questions and start conversations.”

Gilbert even has some real meaningful pieces including metal wristbands and some rare coins that would make most veterans proud.

“One of the things in there are the metal wristbands, that say ‘Gone but not forgotten’.   We put as many as we could fit in there, and I tell ya, looking at ‘em last night, I was looking at some of the dates that people passed away or were taken from us, killed in action … and I was like, I wonder what I was doing on October 31st 2006.  I guarantee I wasn’t doing what that guy was doing.  Whatever I was going through just pales in comparison to that,” Gilbert explained.

He continued: “I’ve got a SEAL Team Six coin … and I’ve got one from the Joint Chiefs of Staff, so that’s pretty cool. They’re all so unique in their own way and I just think what they represent is incredible.”

“‘Hard Days’ is about finding and acknowledging hope in the midst of turmoil and taking the good with the bad,” the country superstar shared about the song. “I look back on some of the harder times in my life and think about where things are now, and I’m thankful for the bad that led to the good.”

“This song means a lot to me,” he continues to explain. “It’s been a long time since I’ve heard a song that can stand on its own lyrically. Brock Berryhill, Logan Wall, Jimi Bell and Jay Brunswick gave me the opportunity to work with them, and it’s something I’m extremely proud to be a part of. I feel like all of us are in need of a little bit of healing and in need of a little bit of hope. And this song offers that.”

The song was released on June 5 and is co-written by Gilbert alongside Jimi Bell, Brock Berryhill, Jay Brunswick and Logan Wall.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Gilbert was recently forced to postpone his Fire’t Tour.

Other performances on the A Capitol Fourth! special include Lauren Alaina, Trace Adkins, Chrissy Metz, Vanessa Williams, Patti LaBelle, The Temptations and many more. You can watch Brantley Gilbert’s “Hard Days” performance above and the others on the 40th anniversary presentation of A Capitol Fourth! that originally aired on Saturday, July 4, 8:00 p.m. ET/PT.

The PBS Special was also broadcasted to the troops serving around the world on the American Forces Network.