My original struggle in life was trying to close down thoughts that I was gay, and when the rumors and questions started coming from other kids at school and from inside my own house, I needed an alibi.

So, I did what many of us gay teens do, and claimed to have a crush on our God given pop diva, and mine was @MileyCyrus— and boy did I stick with it!

As an adult, I find it funny because I can make more sense of it— but as a 16year old, I did confuse my fascination with her to be romantic love.

In a world of Nepo Babies and finance bros, isn’t it nice to just call it out??? As I thought about my human message for the next generation of dreamers, I had to think, what is my true message?

The truth is, there is a lot to what I’m saying in the song, and of course it’s humorous, but family wealth IS a huge indicator of a persona’s level of opportunity in life! This is my ode to Patrick Schwarzenegger and folks like him :)

When I first traveled to Nashville, I had all these fears about how I might be perceived on the streets with painted nails or bright clothes—

I had my own pre-conceptions of what “The South” would think of me— I learned that, yes, it was a bit more conservative than I’m used to, but the folks I met were so kind and welcoming— then I found myself in the middle of 2 big strong cowboys— and I found myself assuming we don’t have anything in common— this is a song about the hope of long term male friendship.

I wrote this song around 11pm on a weeknight and immediately called my good friend Marno to start tweaking it up—we both love fast food, chain restaurants, snacks, and the likes of which, and we had so much fun writing about Cheddar Bay Biscuits, Shirley Temples, and joining all the famous slogans together. This is probably my favorite song I’ve had a part in writing.

It’s true that I was very independent as a 7th grader— this song speaks to the moments I had alone after school— it was the only time I wasn’t stressed— nobody bullying me at school, no siblings home to pester me— making PBJs and wearing my sweats— a magical time. Then the phone rings, and that’s where the adventure begins.