Parker McCollum Sets The Record Straight About His Future In Country Music

Parker McCollum recently raised concerns among fans that he would be stepping away from country music after an interview that found him discussing the evolving music scene. He has since come out to set the record straight regarding his future status in the industry.

While speaking with a local Tupelo, Mississippi, news station, the Texas native was asked if he might be open to exploring a different genre at any point. McCollum made it clear that he has no intentions of switching genres. However, with the way his songwriting and sound has evolved over the years, he’s found himself questioning whether or not he still views himself as a country singer in the same way he once did.

“I wanted to be a country singer for as long as I remember, and the longer I do this, the more I kind of realize I may just not be one. The more I try to write country songs and make country records, the further I get away from what really has always made me, me.”

This quote sparked a slew of conversations online with listeners wondering if this meant the end of music from Parker McCollum. Shortly after, this speculation was shut down when he announced his new album during his third consecutive sold-out appearance at Rodeo Houston on Friday, March 21.

We can now breath a sign of relief knowing that the self-titled collection produced by Grammy award-winning, Frank Liddell, is set to be be released June 27 via UMG Nashville.

Just to make it abundantly clear, McCollum confirmed in a new interview with “>Kiss Country 99.9 that there is no reason to worry about his place in country music. What he actually meant in the original comment wasn’t that he was stepping away from the genre, but that he’s learning to embrace his own style and stop trying to confine himself to one lane.

“I always was like trying to be what I thought I should be to be a country singer. And there’s been a couple of times in my career, like when I wrote ‘The Limestone Kid,’ my very first record, like I didn’t know anything. I was just writing songs and just becoming whatever it was that I was in the moment. And it’s such a great, beautiful way to create and write songs and record songs.”

He continued, “I feel like the longer I did it, the longer I was, you know, just trying to do something instead of just doing whatever it is that I do. Which I still don’t really know what that is. When I think about country music and especially what country music is nowadays, I’m just like I don’t really sound like either of those, and so that’s really what I meant by that.”

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McCollum concludes his new statement by explaining that he was simply “thinking too much” about the question and ended up saying something that didn’t exactly reflect what he’s feeling.

“I was thinking too much about it. But no, (not leaving country) at least until this new record comes out. So at least one more…”

He even admitted that whenever he takes a bit of time off, he ends up missing the work, thus reminding him that he’s nowhere near done making music.

“Nah, I’m not going anywhere, man. At the end of the year, I’m like, man, how long do I want to do this? And then once I have a month off, I’m like, ‘I’m good.’ I want to keep doing this.”

Parker McCollum’s new album will be released on June 27 and is expected to feature stories that capture the feelings tied to his carefree “wild years,” the mistakes he made along the way and the blessings that have shaped his journey up until now.

In addition to the project, he announced that his 2025 run of headlining shows dubbed the Parker McCollum Tour will launch on June 26 and run through October.