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“Bro, Those Dudes Are Weird”: Country Star Shares Honest Take on Artists Who Listen to Their Own Music
Country singer Brantley Gilbert has revealed he avoids listening to his own songs on the radio, describing artists who repeatedly tune in to their own music as "weird". The comments come as he prepares to release his new album, Sins of the Father, on 24 July, nearly two years after his last record, Tattoos, in 2024, and offer a candid glimpse into how he handles hearing his own work played back publicly.
Speaking to Evan Paul on Taste of Country Nights, Gilbert explained he has a personal rule of listening all the way through a song only the first time he hears it on the radio; any repeat listens, he said, strike him as strange. He is not alone in this habit, as fellow country star Sam Hunt, known for hits including "Body Like a Back Road", has made similar remarks, comparing hearing his own music to an actor rewatching their own films. Despite his reluctance, Gilbert's music has proven hugely popular, with his 2013 single "Bottoms Up" topping the US Country Airplay and Hot Country Songs charts and reaching the Billboard Hot 100's Top 20.
In short
- Brantley Gilbert avoids repeatedly listening to his own songs on radio
- Calls artists who habitually replay their own music "weird"
- New album Sins of the Father releases 24 July
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Artists who avoid repeatedly listening to their own songs maintain healthier psychological and creative distances from their work. Constant re-exposure can breed self-doubt, overthinking, and obsessive rumination, whereas the artist has already encountered the material extensively during production. Directing creative energy towards future projects rather than dwelling on finished work represents a more productive and psychologically sound artistic practice.
The case against
Artists maintaining genuine professional interest in how their completed work sounds to audiences represents natural curiosity rather than narcissism or vanity. Hearing one's music in its final, mastered form offers valuable insights into production quality, sonic clarity, and audience reception that differ meaningfully from studio iterations. Many serious musicians analyse their own work as part of professional craft development, making this behaviour entirely reasonable rather than 'weird'.
Explained simply
Musicians have varying relationships with hearing their own recorded music. Country singer Brantley Gilbert has shared his personal approach: he listens all the way through his own songs only the first time he hears them on the radio, and he considers it unusual when other artists repeatedly tune in to their own music.
Brantley Gilbert is an established country music performer with a record of significant commercial success; his 2013 single "Bottoms Up" topped country music charts and reached the top twenty of the broader Billboard Hot 100. He is not alone in holding this view; fellow country artist Sam Hunt has expressed similar sentiments, comparing the experience of hearing his own music to an actor repeatedly rewatching their own films.
These perspectives from musicians reveal how artists relate to their own creative work once it becomes part of the public sphere. They show the varying psychological responses performers have to hearing their own music broadcast.
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