Billy Currington Says ‘Thank You’ Every Time He Hears His Songs on Radio

“I always heard if you keep saying ‘thank you’ to everything that you love, you'll get more of it," said Currington.

Written by Lauren Laffer
Billy Currington Says ‘Thank You’ Every Time He Hears His Songs on Radio
Billy Currington; Photo by Joseph Llanes

It has been 14 years since Billy Currington released his debut single “Walk A Little Straighter,” a song he wrote about his relationship with his alcoholic stepfather. The single peaked at No.8 on the Hot Country Songs chart, but launched quite the successful career, including 19 Top 40 hits and 11 No.1 singles.

Although he’s been on radio many times since the release of his debut single, Currington will never forget the first time he heard himself on the radio.

“I was actually writing with a guy named Casey Beathard. We worked a lot co-writing together before my first album, and a lot of those songs ended up on that album. We continued to do that at that time after the album came out. We were in Destin, Florida. It seems like a lot of Nashville people go to Destin, have homes there and things like that, and that was where he had a place,” Currington explained to Sounds Like Nashville and other media while setting the scene.

“We were writing a couple songs down there and then I had to go back to Savannah,” he continued. “I was halfway in between Jacksonville and Savannah, just started picking up the local station, and the DJ came on and said, ‘Here’s local boy Billy Currington’s first single,’ and it was ‘Walk a Little Straighter.’ I turned it up real loud and I got to hear the whole song. There’s no feeling like it. I’ll never feel that feeling again. It’s very special. It’s a memory I won’t ever forget.”

Although the feeling may not quite be the same as the first time, the Georgia native appreciates each and every time a radio programmer or DJ spins one of his songs.

“Every time, I say, ‘thank you.’ Every time,” he explained. “I always heard if you keep saying ‘thank you’ to everything that you love, you’ll get more of it. Every time I hear it, that’s the first thing I say.”

Currington is currently back at radio with his latest single “Do I Make You Wanna,” which is the follow-up track to his No.1 “It Don’t Hurt Like It Used To.” The new single is the fourth release from his 2015 album, Summer Forever.