The Fatherhood Playlist
Music says things most of us can't say plainly, even to ourselves.
A song can hold the pride and the exhaustion and the fear and the love all at once, in a way a conversation rarely manages. This is a collection of songs Steady Fatherhood keeps coming back to - not because they're all about fatherhood directly, but because between them they speak to the different parts of a man as he becomes the father he hopes to be. The loneliness some days. The hardship that's somehow necessary. The father you had, or didn't. The father you're trying to be. The plain, uncomplicated joy of it, when that shows up too.
Alright - Darius Rucker
No hidden depth to this one. Just the plain pleasure of having a family. Sometimes that's the whole point.
Anything Like Me - Brad Paisley
Looking back at the boy you were, and wondering if your son is about to become him.
A Father's Song - Allen Stone
Written from a father to a son, for when he's older. One line does it: "I'll do my best not to cushion every fall, even though my heart tells me to save you from it all." That's the whole job in a sentence - the strength to let your son fail so he can become a man.
For My Daughter - Kane Brown
Full of grace, and honest about the gap it's written from - a father determined to give his daughter what he didn't get from his own. Expressive, inspiring, and unashamed about wanting to be different.
Front Door Famous - Luke Combs
Being loved by your children beats any version of success the world sells you. This one says it plainly, and it's right.
God Bless the Boy (Cori's Song) - Cody Johnson
A letter to the boy his daughter will one day marry. Making sure she'll be looked after, long before you know who that boy is.
HARD LOVE - NEEDTOBREATHE
Growth needs hardship. That's not a comfortable idea, but it's a true one. What makes it survivable is the love you're doing it for.
I Loved Her First - Heartland
A father's love for his daughter, and what it costs to give her away when she marries. Don't play this one in public. You'll well up.
It Won't Be Like This For Long - Darius Rucker
For anyone in the middle of the early years right now. What feels like it will never end is shorter than it looks from inside it.
Just The Two Of Us - Will Smith
I grew up with divorced parents and played this whenever I missed my father. It's not only for that. It's for any father not living under the same roof as his child, who still needs them to know they're loved.
The Man He Sees in Me - Luke Combs
Wanting to become the man your son already thinks you are, knowing you don't quite measure up yet. Most fathers will recognise that gap.
Sanctuary - Welshly Arms
Being the safe place. Not fixing everything - just being somewhere someone can turn to and feel safe when things are difficult.
She's the Song - Nathan Angelo
The father-daughter bond, put simply and well.
'Til You Can't - Cody Johnson
An honest and celebratory reminder you don't get unlimited time.
To Be A Man - Dax (feat. Darius Rucker)
The loneliness nobody talks about. A lot of men love their family completely and still feel like they don't quite fit inside it. This one says that out loud.
Trying to Drive - Zac Brown Band
The arguments. The friction that comes with loving someone for the long haul. Not a song about a relationship falling apart - a song about two people still trying to get somewhere together.
Walk Like Him - Mitchell Tenpenny
Written from the son's side - wanting to be as good a man as his father. It's the example we're all hoping we're setting, whether we know it or not.
Walk With Me - GoldFord
Being someone your child can simply walk alongside when things get difficult.
When I'm Gone - Eminem
A lot of fathers recognise the pull between compulsions you've carried since before you had a child and the love that's bigger than anything you've felt. Along with that, the emotion of trying (and sometimes failing) to live up. This song doesn't resolve that tension. It just names it.
You Can Make It - Will Smith, Friidayy, Sunday Service Choir
Perseverance, and what you learn on the other side of it.