Tim McGraw Shares New Song, ‘I Called Mama’

Tim McGraw is here with a new song just in time for Mother’s Day, releasing the reflective “I Called Mama” on Friday. The song, written by Lance Miller, Marv Green and Jimmy Yeary, finds the narrator feeling an urge to call his mom after hearing some sad news about a friend that made him think of home. “I stopped off at a Texaco / Bought a Slim Jim and a Coke / Parked out by the water just to watch that river flow,” McGraw sings in the chorus. “Grabbed my guitar from the backseat / Wrote a song just for me / I sung it for the blue sky and a couple live oak trees / I thought of home, grabbed my phone from my pocket / And I called Mama.”

Also on Friday, McGraw released a lyric video for the song that intersperses lyrics with footage from his personal life including never-before-seen footage of Tim as a baby with his mom, Betty Trimble, footage of an older McGraw with his mom and clips of McGraw and wife Faith Hill. A music video for the song featuring videos and photos of fans and their moms will follow later this month. “I Called Mama” is McGraw’s first release since returning to Big Machine Records earlier this year.

“On the one hand this song is literally, ‘hey, call your mom,’” McGraw said in a statement. “On the other hand, you look at a time like this, there are real hardships for everyone, and it’s a great reminder that hearing someone’s voice who knows you and loves you can help you get through anything. I think it’s at these very difficult times that music can help and the power of a song can give someone a moment of clarity or comfort, or just a smile. Especially now, when we seem to need it more than ever.”

“Now more than ever, I’ve been reminded of the importance of human connection in our lives,” the father of three added on Instagram. “‘I Called Mama’ is a song about connecting back to what grounds us when life shakes us up. We should all call Mama more often… or whoever those people in our lives are that keep us connected to what really matters. This song really hits home for me, and I hope it does for you, too.” McGraw will share the first performance of the song later today during a live concert streaming on PopCulture.com where he will also perform other fan-favorite hits. The performance will take place at 5 p.m. ET on Friday.