Stephen Wilson Jr. Opens Up About the Roadside Tragedy That Inspired ‘Gary’

Stephen Wilson Jr. is pulling back the curtain on the story behind his emotional single, “Gary.” For the Indiana-born singer-songwriter, the idea behind this powerful story struck him unexpectedly after he caught a glimpse of a roadside memorial. About 30 minutes later, the lyrics came to life and now tell a story about the kind of person many listeners recognize, even if they’ve never known specifically know someone named Gary.

Listeners were first introduced to “Gary” when the song was released last November. Wilson Jr. ’s grungy and emotive vocals depict a character who shares his name with the title of the song. He describes “Gary” as being blue-collar worker with quiet routines and deeply ingrained traditions. Through specific details, Gary slowly starts to take shape as someone who often exists in the background and because of that people don’t always notice him until they stop and look closer.

“There ain’t a lot of boys named Gary these days/ Born with a cigarette glued to their face/ Fix about anything a hammer can handle/ Saving all their money ’cause a Gary don’t gamble/ Ain’t a lot of girls going by Debbie anymore/ But they got the same nicotine pouring out their pores/ Time leaves town, but the minute hand stays/ Ain’t a lot of boys named Gary these days,” he sings.

In a recent interview with Cody Alan on SiriusXM’s The Highway, the Nashville-based artist shared when exactly this realization struck him. He was driving home when he noticed a memorial on the side of the road that read “In memory of Gary” and featured an image of a young boy. Wilson Jr.  started to imagine what this boy must have been like before he died and then thought about how Gary is no longer a common name in today’s world.

“I would guess that maybe he was killed, you know, he died on that highway and perhaps a car accident, if I was just to deduce things. And it broke my heart, just the whole memorial, and like, there was trees growing around it and the first thing I said was, ‘Dang there ain’t a lot of boys named Gary these days,’” Wilson Jr.  recalled. “I got my phone out and I literally wrote the song…I just drove around for like 30 minutes around my neighborhood after that because I was just on my way home.”

A few hours later, Wilson Jr. paired the lyrics with a haunting melody rooted in sadness and tragedy. Drawing from his background as a former scientist, he goes on to explain that he often leans on science when songwriting and in this case, that corner of his mind led him to think of “Gary” as an “endangered species.”

“I was like, let’s think about Gary as like a subspecies of human and Gary’s endangered. So, okay, what is that story? Where does that story go?”

From there, “Gary” evolved into being a “subliminal subconscious kind of figure,” as Wilson Jr.  described.

“I think, in our culture, so to speak. I grew up in a blue-collar society, so Gary was, you know, kind of everywhere as a big part of our town, like the I guess the metaphorical Gary that is. And then, you know, I found that like, you know, there is something about the name Gary. Like most Garys have these like really similar attributes that come with them. It’s usually like very good at fixing things, usually to themselves, don’t have a lot to say, but when they do say something, it is usually very intentional.”

What begins as a portrait of this dependable figure ultimately turns heavier, as the song comes to a close with him describing the moment the rarity of a “Gary” officially comes to an end with his death.

“I had a weird suspicion with the light out on the front porch/ Heart medication poured down where the drain pours/ He holds his left arm while his parakeet prays/ Has anybody seen much of Gary these days?/ Has anybody seen much of Gary these days?,” Wilson Jr.  sings in the final verse.

Stephen Wilson Jr. will honor the song’s deep meaning as he embarks on the Gary The Torch Tour this spring. The trek opens March 6 in Columbus, Ohio and includes stops in Toronto, Boston, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Chicago and many more. Tickets are on sale now.