Tim McGraw recently reflected on being a mentor to Taylor Swift in the early days of her career.
He told People, who elected the “Antihero” singer as their Most Intriguing Person of the Year, that he and wife Faith Hill would have long talks with a teenage Swift when she opened for his Soul2Soul tour 16 years ago.
He said, “We had long conversations with her in Faith’s dressing room about always being open to listening, but always know that you’re the leader, that you’re the one making decisions, that you will know what song is going to work or not and that you are the captain of your ship.”
He added, “We both absolutely fell in love with her instantly, as an artist and as a person — just a fellow professional that you realize totally knows what they are doing.”
Swift named her first single, “Tim McGraw” after the singer back in 2006.