Texas singer-songwriter Ty Myers talks cattle ranches, John Mayer and writing drinking songs

Ty Myers was born with country music in his blood, surrounded by the sounds and smells of Texas honky tonks and growing up on his family’s six-generation cattle ranch south of Austin.

His debut album “The Select” was released in January and his music is drawing nearly 10 million streams a month and growing rapidly, according to The Tennessean. Myers, who turns 18 in July, and his four-piece band, plays their first headlining show at Billy Bob’s Texas on Friday, March 21.

Even at such a young age, he feels most at home on a stage, he said, after growing up tagging along with his Texas swing-performing father Michael Myers.

In 2023, Myers’ released his debut single, “Tie That Binds,” and “Drinkin’ Alone,” which has more than 65 million streams. A handful of tunes written by Myers have drawn more than 300 million total global streams.

Ahead of his Fort Worth show, Myers spoke by phone with the Star-Telegram about his musical inspirations, growing up on a cattle ranch, and writing drinking songs at 17.

How old were you when you first started singing or playing guitar?

I’ve been kind of addicted to it since I can remember, you know, since I was real little. That’s always kind of been where my brain’s been. It’s kind of just been second nature to me. It’s always what I wanted to do.

When did you get serious about it as a career?

I’d say seriously when I was probably in that 6 or 7 range. I started to really try to learn guitar. I was getting serious about it and it was less something that I just liked to do and making noise with instruments.

How quickly did you show real talent?

My mom [Karysa Myers] likes to say that I knew every word to every song on the radio before most kids learned how to talk. That’s kind of her line she likes to say.

Who was it that put music in front of you? I mean, how did that happen?

Oh, for sure, my parents probably immediately, but my whole family is involved in music for the most part. My dad was a singer-songwriter in the Central Texas area. So growing up, I kind of always followed him pretty much every weekend going to all the dance halls and the honky tonks around Central Texas. And my mom is just a huge music lover. So I’ve got a lot of different tastes in music from my mom — all over the place. My uncle [Dean Sams] started a band called Lonestar. My uncle [Ron Huckabay], on my grandma’s side, is the piano player for George Strait’s Ace of the Hole band.

So you were surrounded by it?

Oh, yeah. That’s why I always tell everybody that thank God I loved it, because if I didn’t I’d have pulled my hair out probably.

To do it so young, and where did that confidence come from? I’m sure you loved it and that’s easy to understand, but I think a lot of people as young kids — and you’re still a young kid — they love it, but they don’t have the confidence. Where did that come from?

I think it’s just the culmination of starting so young, and I don’t really know a life without it, you know? So it’s kind of just a part of me. Also, I honestly feel like this is kind of my purpose. It’s kind of weird to say that, but I really believe that’s true. There’s a lot of things that are just strange, you know? Like, it’s weird that I love it so much, it’s weird that I was obviously put into this family tree of a lot of musicians, you know? And then a lot of weird things like that. I really do believe that that’s why I was put here, and so [my confidence comes from] a mix of all of that. I really do not remember life without music, so it’s really just, as easy as you breathe, that’s how my brain thinks with music.

How serious is the ‘growing up on a Texas cattle ranch’ storyline? Is that a publicist-driven thing?

It’s pretty serious. I’m sitting here right now looking at them.

So do you ride horses all of the time?

No, no, no. Unless you have a huge, huge [ranch], they’re somewhat unnecessary. Our cows come with the honk of a horn. You can honk your horn, and they’ll run from across the pasture, so [horses] are really unnecessary. We haven’t owned horses since I’ve been alive. I’ve ridden horses, but not often.

Who really inspires you musically? What do you listen to?

I have a huge variety of music that I listen to. Pretty much all the music you can think of. A lot of credit to my mom for that. When I first started in music, it was old school country swing music. That’s what piqued my interest in music, because that’s just what I was around. That’s what my dad played and that’s what was playing for the most part in my early childhood. So, that kind of was my original spark to music. But then my mom showed me soul and blues and that old Motown sound, which is what she really loves. And that kind of sparked me, not only to get out of the country — that mindset — and think out of the box and explore more genres. I listen to everything between country, rock, blues, R&B and rap, obviously, because I am still young. That’s what my buddies listen to if we’re out.

Who’s an artist who has inspired you?

John Mayer is probably my biggest hero, my biggest influence, especially right now as a guitar player and songwriter. Songwriting, mostly,

Did he get you into the Grateful Dead since he’s been playing with them so much lately?

Oh, I love the Grateful Dead. Oh, my God, you’re making me think of my band. My band cannot get enough of the Grateful Dead. I’ve been listening to a lot of Little Feet recently. It’s kind of a big influence for this next record we’re kind of working on. Chris Stapleton is a huge influence on me. He’s probably my favorite vocalist of all time and I got to see him at Moody Center [in Austin] last year. It was one of my favorite shows ever. Just sonically, it was perfection.

Do you always write a song with the guitar in your hands?

Yeah, probably 98% of the time. There have been times I’ve written a song on an airplane or something while I’ve just had the itch, but for the most part, I write with the guitar, just the guitar.

Speaking of writing songs, how did you get away with writing a song called “Drinkin’ Alone?”

Well, I don’t know when you started drinking … you know, that’s what I love about music right now. I feel like it’s, as opposed to maybe 20, 15 years ago, I feel like you can be really truthful in your music, not try to hide anything, which is really what music should be. I mean, I’m not going to sit here and lie to everybody and talk about going to school because nobody really wants to listen to that anyways, and it’s just not true. [He has homeschooled since a major knee injury put an end to his football and baseball career in the 10th grade.]

So, I try to write from the heart and put stuff out there that I really believe in and I’m passionate about. And sometimes it comes out as maybe there’s some alcohol involved and I don’t know what to tell you.

Did you get any second looks from your mom or dad?

They absolutely understand. They’re just such music lovers that it’s really an art form to them. Even when I was little, I remember they would tell me, ‘Look, if you really want to and you feel it, you can say cuss words in songs.’ know? I maybe took advantage of that a little bit and [sang] those parts a little louder.

But they’ve always been cool like that. It’s art and it’s meant to be expressed.

How important is it for you to write your own songs?

Oh, massive. There’s something special about it. You don’t get closer to a song any other way — that song is yours and there’s just something, I can’t explain, but there’s just something so special about that and something I wouldn’t trade for anything. When you spend time with a song and it’s all yours and there’s no other hands on it, you just don’t get closer, there’s no way to get any closer to a song than that. It’s really magical and probably my favorite part about the whole thing.