When Thomas Rhett released his Center Point Road album earlier this year, I had no idea he would be unearthing so much emotion. Then I got to track No. 12, “Remember You Young.”
He penned the ballad with Ashley Gorley and Jesse Frasure, and they outdid themselves on this one. It’s all about the best friends, the loves, and the babies that stay young in your memory, no matter how much time goes by. And the video takes that mindset to the next level. Director TK McKamy worked with Thomas Rhett to weave a story line into the song that will have you feeling all the feels.
CMT.com had a chance to ask Thomas Rhett what it was like to make this video such a special one, and to paint a picture of what happens to that same young couple from his “Marry Me” video.
CMT.com: Where did you shoot all of these nostalgic scenes? Which hot dog place, which diner, and which field?
Thomas Rhett: We shot this video in and around Nashville. The hot dog place was called Daddy’s Dogs in The Nations. The diner was at a truck stop in Lebanon called Uncle Pete’s Truck Stop. And the field was a place called Horse Thief Hollow Ranch in Watertown.
Tell me about the significance of performing in your bare feet?
Honestly, that was not deliberate. I was walking around barefoot while we tried to decide what shoes to wear, and then we all just suddenly looked at it and thought, “Why not do this barefoot?” It felt more natural that way, especially in a setting that symbolized Heaven to some extent.
I love all the piano in the song, and the lyrics are just sad-country-ballad perfection. But casting the lonely old widower was straight-up heartbreaking genius. Did that idea come from you or TK McKamy?
That idea came from TK. We were really wanting to find a way to tie in my previous “Marry Me” video and tell more of that tale that was somewhat left on a cliff-hanger.* So TK came up with this idea as a way to continue that story and bring it to a conclusion of sorts. Those two narratives blended perfectly with the message of “Remember You Young,” which is very much about remembering the people you love in their prime and savoring those memories.
Do you ever picture what you and your wife Lauren might look like when the kids are all grown and flown, say about 20 years from now?
Honestly, I try not to. Life is just so busy that we really try to focus on what’s in front of us today. It’s been actually a purposeful resolution of mine the last couple of years to try and enjoy the moment and not get caught too much focusing on what’s next. Especially since we had kids. They grow so fast and there are so many moments you miss if you blink, that I am definitely not wishing away that time.
* He’s right. The ending of “Marry Me” did leave you a little perplexed. When the girl who didn’t want to marry him shows up at Gus’s, where he is wallowing in self-pity, was she there because she’d left her fiance at the altar? Or was she there because she was mad at him for leaving her wedding? I guess we finally have some closure now, all tied up with this big, bittersweet and melancholy bow.