Cole Swindell Shares A 10-Year Update To ‘You Should Be Here’ In Emotional New Song, ‘Girl Dad’

When Cole Swindell released “You Should Be Here” in 2015, he was grieving the sudden loss of his father and reflecting on all the milestones he wished they could have shared together. A decade later, life looks much different for the country hitmaker. Now married and raising a daughter of his own, Swindell has found himself writing the next chapter of that story through a new song titled “Girl Dad.”

Swindell may be embracing life as a proud girl dad these days with his daughter, Rainey Gail Swindell, whom he and his wife Courtney welcomed in August 2025, but the title of his new song carries a much deeper meaning.

Penned alongside Michael Tyler and Ben Stennis, the tender ballad is anchored by a stunning piano arrangement as the Georgia native shares the life updates he wishes he could deliver to his late father in person, from marrying the love of his life to becoming a father himself.

He immediately tugs at listeners’ heartstrings, opening the song with a visit to his father’s gravesite and admitting that, despite the years that have passed, the pain of that loss has never fully faded. From there, he begins recounting the milestones that have shaped his life since they saw each other for the last time.

“I met a girl dad/ Told her I loved her/ We got married out in California/ Sunset on her white dress/ God it was beautiful/ We saved a cold one and a chair for you/ I know you’re looking down from up there I believe it/ I just wish I could see you seeing this/ Little black and white picture/ Yeah, I wanted so bad to tell you in person, we’re having a girl, dad.”

Wrapped in heartfelt lyrics and bittersweet emotions, “Girl Dad” blends gratitude for life’s greatest blessings with the painful reality of loss, capturing the emotions that come with reaching long-awaited milestones and realizing the people you most want to tell aren’t there to hear the news.

Swindell first debuted the track privately to a select group of fans who have been on this journey with him. He explained that when deciding what to do next with his music, he came to his label and played a song straight from the heart. The singer/songwriter instantly felt himself get taken back 10 years ago, experiencing the same kind of nervousness he felt when putting out “You Should Be Here,” in fear what people would think. However he quickly learned that releasing that song was the “best decision” he ever made because of the people that it has touched over the years.

“I don’t know, it’s like we helped each other through it. And I hope y’all know that showing up at my shows and being there for me, even if I don’t get a chance to see you, I hope you know that it means the world to have you out there,” he admitted. “And we may be off in some other state and I might not know anybody but a few people on the front row, but it makes it feel like home.”

Hoping to carry that same sentiment into “Girl Dad,” he took things one step further and recreated elements of the “You Should Be Here” music video, offering a glimpse into the things that have changed and what has remained the same.

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“The whole idea behind it was like, man, this song’s like, I didn’t plan on it being this but it’s almost like a 10 year update of my life and what’s happened since then. And as heavy as that video may be or that song, I think a lot of people need it. I say it at my shows, I think that’s why we love country music songs that hit us right here and say what you’re feeling, but you might not have the words for. Songs like that are why I fell in love with country music in the first place.”

He goes on to say that for a long time, many of his “You Should Be Here” moments were career-related but he always knew that one day life would bring even more significant milestones in his personal life that he would desperately wish he could share with his parents.

“I always looked out in the crowd and saw people with families and knew that their ‘You Should Be Here’ moments were way more serious and way more heavy than mine. I wouldn’t let myself go there, but I would kind of think like, ‘Man, I can’t imagine a wedding day or a child or something like that.’ That’s going to be the real ‘You Should Be Here’ moments. And you know what though I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Swindell continued, “I know for blessings like Rainey and Courtney and her family and just how much her dad reminds me of mine, it’s just crazy. Nothing happens by accident. I’m so thankful that the Lord just led me to a place that I never knew I could get to. And I just want you to know I’m sharing what’s on my heart with y’all for a reason because you’re the reason I’m still doing this.”

By sharing “Girl Dad” with the world, Cole Swindell hopes to offer the same sense of comfort that “You Should Be Here” has continued to provide so many listeners, as he reminds those navigating similar journeys that they are not alone.