Parker McCollum Gets Honest About Unexpected Challenges Of Being A First-Time Parent [Exclusive]

Less than two months have passed since Parker McCollum and his wife, Hallie Ray Light, welcomed their first child, a baby boy named Major Yancey Tyler McCollum, on August 8. The country star has since returned to the road but admits there is still plenty to learn about navigating this new chapter.  

Any new parent knows that things will change around the house when welcoming a new family member, but McCollum has found that the shift in their lack of freedom has been more than he anticipated. However, he also expressed that all the unexpected challenges have been worth it because at the end of the day, he is “grateful” to have a healthy wife and baby and a career that continues to soar. 

“I knew it was gonna be different, and you gotta make some changes and adjust to some stuff, but it’s a little more than I thought. Just leaving the house, running to town or running out to the ranch, or whatever it is, it’s all different,” he told Country Now. “I’ve just been doing whatever I wanted to do, whenever I wanted to do it for so long and that’s probably not the case as much anymore. But I’m fine with it.”

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A post shared by Hallie Ray Light McCollum (@hallieraylight)

Finding A New Perspective On The True Meaning of Success

While the hitmaker has already notched numerous professional milestones, having a child has given him a new perspective on the meaning of success and he now realizes that nothing can compare to the profound love and pride that comes with being a dad. 

“My career has gone so much crazier than I ever anticipated or really thought it could go or do when I first started. It’s in a good place now. I can get to the road quick, get home quick, and play big shows. Hallie and I are super happy and I was ready for the next chapter.”

He continued, “Another big milestone in my career is probably not gonna fill my cup as much as it used to. It’s great. I still wanna win and love being a songwriter and watching my songs succeed, I don’t think that’ll ever get old, but I was ready for the next big thing and this was it. So much bigger than anything else I’ve ever done and it’s just crazy…it’s the greatest thing ever. Him and I are both learning every day, at the same pace.”

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A post shared by Parker McCollum (@parkermccollum)

McCollum went on to praise Hallie Ray, who appears to be thriving in her new role as a mom. 

“She’s great. I mean, she looks like she’s been doing it for 20 years. She was born to be a mom,” he shared. “It’s all she ever wanted to do. And she bounced back so quick. I’m like, there’s no way you had a kid a month ago. She’s just the greatest of all time, the absolute future hall of famer in the game of life. She’s so much better than me. It’s not even funny.”

Parker McCollum’s Post-Tour Plans

At the end of October, the Texas native will wrap up his Burn It Down Tour and finally get to enjoy some downtime with his family. McCollum anticipates that during the months of November and December, the three of them will spend time at his ranch for hunting season. 

“It’ll be really fun this year because she usually doesn’t go out there with me very much, but I think now with him…he’ll be so little it’s not like he’s going to do anything, but it’ll just be fun. It’ll be cold and the fireplace will be on, we’ll be cooking chili and watching football. I’ll go out and work or go to the deer stand and come back and little man will be there. So that’s really what I’m looking forward to the most,” he explained.

Even though Major is only about two months old, Parker McCollum is already thinking about his future and revealed plans to buy his son his first horse at five years old and shortly after begin teaching him how to run the equipment on their land.

“I think by the time he’s eight, he’ll probably be pretty handy with it. He probably won’t start all that stuff as young as I did. I grew up a little different. My granddad used to say, ‘if you’re old enough to know what it is, you can do it.’ I look forward to that, and I think this holiday season will kind of be the start of that. He’s gonna be a cowboy and he’s gonna be handy young. He’s a little too young right now, but not too young to be around it,” McCollum shared.

The future is looking bright for McCollum and his family, but at the same time, he’s hoping to take things day by day and enjoy the process of watching Major grow up. 

 The Burn It Down Tour, named after his CMA-nominated track, continues this weekend with two shows in George, WA.

McCollum recently debuted his new single, “What Kinda Man,” on stage at the 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards. Check out his performance below.