{"id":1318197,"date":"2020-02-12T09:11:54","date_gmt":"2020-02-12T16:11:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/?p=1817729"},"modified":"2020-02-12T09:11:54","modified_gmt":"2020-02-12T16:11:54","slug":"granger-smith-finds-a-new-way-to-traverse-dirt-roads","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/music-news\/granger-smith-finds-a-new-way-to-traverse-dirt-roads\/","title":{"rendered":"Granger Smith Finds a New Way to Traverse Dirt Roads"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/cmt.mtvnimages.com\/uri\/mgid:ao:image:cmt.com:657296?width=1200&amp;height=675&amp;.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"byline\"> by <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/author\/bonaguroa\/\" title=\"Posts by Alison Bonaguro\" rel=\"author\">Alison Bonaguro<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"date\"><br \/>\n29m ago<\/span><br \/>\n<\/span> <\/p>\n<div class=\"deferred_content\"> Embedded from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UvlWF4g8XA0?feature=oembed\">www.youtube.com<\/a>. <noscript class=\"deferred_content\" data-deferred-info=\"{&quot;type&quot;:&quot;iframe&quot;}\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UvlWF4g8XA0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen>\t<\/iframe><\/noscript>\n<\/div>\n<p>This new Granger Smith song is special. <\/p>\n<p>Because it\u2019s so good, and it\u2019s so him. But also because it\u2019s the first new one he\u2019s shared since his youngest son, River Kelly Smith, died at the age of three in a drowning at the Smith\u2019s home in Texas last summer. Smith\u2019s last single was \u201cYou\u2019re in It,\u201d which was released in 2018. <\/p>\n<p>And in a press release, Smith talked about how this isn\u2019t just another dirt roads song. He penned the tune with Chris DeStefano, Bradley Rempel and Jon Nite.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s interesting to take a song title like \u2018That\u2019s Why I Love Dirt Roads\u2019 and spin it against the grain from the typical country song. Instead of covering beer, girls, and tailgates, what if that song turned the setting into an introspective anthem for living life in the present moment; almost a country meditation,\u201d Smith said of the song that recommends dirt roads as a place for talking to God, getting lost, finding your way, getting stuck and falling in love. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat if dirt roads were the place to escape, get lost in thought, and be closest to God? We tried to write this song where dirt roads became the sanctuary, a place where we feel most at peace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>We hope the Smiths find that sanctuary and not stay dark forever, as they explained in the half-hour video they made shortly after River\u2019s death.<\/p>\n<div class=\"deferred_content\"> Embedded from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9LMmUBsD308?feature=oembed\">www.youtube.com<\/a>. <noscript class=\"deferred_content\" data-deferred-info=\"{&quot;type&quot;:&quot;iframe&quot;}\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9LMmUBsD308?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen>\t<\/iframe><\/noscript>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve been on quite the journey these past few weeks. I\u2019ve been dark on social media, but I still have a full understanding of the responsibility placed upon me as a public figure. I can choose to snuff that influence, or instead use my platform (in relevancy big or small) towards what I believe is right. I believe I\u2019m obligated on certain levels to include you guys in my current journey, as I\u2019ve been involved either personally or musically in yours,\u201d they shared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe finality and mortality brought on by death makes life feel fragile. It can weaken, terrify and separate those close to it. But it can also awaken us. It can remind us never to take a moment with those we love for granted. In my house, we have united stronger and closer than we\u2019ve ever been. We\u2019ve cried. We\u2019ve smiled. I\u2019ve held my family tight. I\u2019ve found strength from God and used that in the face of adversity so that my wife and children can rely on me. I\u2019ve guarded my heart and my mind during weak moments and graciously accepted all of the encouragement and empathy from so many. I have realized that I will not slave over a search for answers, but instead for meaning. I will focus and then cultivate the light from a dark place, the good from the bad, God\u2019s will from my own plans. I can rest assured knowing that River\u2019s assignment on earth was always intended for 1116 days and not only did he live it to the fullest, but he lived it loved by so many, including a mother, father, sister and brother who held nothing back and have no regrets on how much he felt that love.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe should all be so blessed to be able to live like Riv.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"author\">\n<div class=\"description\"> Alison makes her living loving country music. She&#8217;s based in Chicago, but she&#8217;s always leaving her heart in Nashville. <\/div>\n<p> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/alisonbonaguro\" target=\"_BLANK\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@alisonbonaguro<\/a> <\/div>\n<p> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/1817729\/granger-smith-finds-a-new-way-to-traverse-dirt-roads\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: CMT News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Alison Bonaguro 29m ago Embedded from www.youtube.com. This new Granger Smith song is special. Because it\u2019s so good, and it\u2019s so him. But also because it\u2019s the first new one he\u2019s shared since his youngest son, River Kelly Smith, died at the age of three in a drowning at the Smith\u2019s home in Texas [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[159],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1318197","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-15 05:12:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1318197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1318197"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1318197\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1318197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1318197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1318197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}