Tonight, on Sunday, February 23, 2015, Tim McGraw performed at the Oscars, cowboy hat and all. He didn’t belt out one of his classics, but instead performed an original song by Glen Campbell, from the movie, Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me.
The song, “I’m Not Going to Miss You” was sad and beautiful, describing the experience of getting Alzheimer’s and losing your family and the experience that country singer Glen Campbell is going through. And Tim McGraw, without much production, let his performance speak for itself.
I am a huge Oscars person. I love all awards shows in general, but as a movie fanatic, this one takes the cake. I am also a Tim McGraw fan. (I have seen him at the Houston rodeo a ridiculous amount of times.) I absolutely loved seeing him perform, staying true to his roots with his country style simplicity up on that stage.
Watching McGraw’s performance made me think about his evolution as a performer. Growing up in Houston where country music dominates half of the radio stations, I was very familiar with his dozens and dozens of chart topping hits, like “Live Like You Were Dying” or “Just to See You Smile.” But as I grew older, McGraw’s presence in popular culture continued to evolve and expand. He was no longer just known for his country twang, but instead for his acting chops. From Friday Night Lights to The Blindside, Tim McGraw was all of the sudden on my television more than on my radio.
What I found really interesting about this change in career path for McGraw is that he somehow still felt like the same country singer. While I do struggle to recognize him without his beard he sported for the better part of a decade, his personality and career decisions still line up with the Tim McGraw country star persona. He’s not starring in action flicks or comic book movies, but instead he is playing roles pretty similar to himself or related to the roots of country music. Whether it’s Sandra Bullock’s husband hanging out in his native Tennessee in The Blindside, or playing a guy in the country music world in Country Strong, there’s an element of Tim McGraw in every role he picks.
The song he performed tonight might not have been his own, but it certainly made me nostalgic for some McGraw hits and it also made me wonder what next movie he will be in. Hey, maybe next time he will be up on that stage accepting an Oscar! You never know!
I completely agree that Tim McGraw did a great job performing this song. I really liked that you not only evaluated the song but also reflected on Tim’s past acting experiences and his older songs. I also thought it was really interesting that most of his roles in movies have been similar to who he is or have included his country roots. I think it is so fascinating that since Glen Campbell could not be there to perform “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” he picked Tim McGraw to do his song justice. Tim McGraw certainly did not let him down. I do wish that the blog post commented more on Glen Campbell’s life and his struggles as well due to this being his song. However, overall the blog post was interesting to read.
This post is very similar to mine and I really enjoyed it. I think you did a great job evaluating both Tim McGraw’s performance last night and his evolving career, both in music and movies. I’ve grown up a huge fan of Tim McGraw and it’s nice to see that someone else also appreciates his effort to keep up with modern sound and times. Many older fans who believe he should stick with what he started out with, which I strongly disagree with. How is he (or anyone else really) supposed to grow as an artist and a performer if he never changes things up?
I was on a couple blog sites last night and this morning that talked about how sharp Tim McGraw looked in his tux last night. I find it interesting that he can go from Hollywood Glam in his tux back to his country roots in his hat and boots for his performance. All the sites were also talking about how good Tim and Faith looked all dressed up together last night. It is funny how you touch on the evolution of his career because it could be said that his evolution almost mirrors his appearance last night, except backwards. From Hollywood Glam walking the red carpet back to his cowboy boots and hat for his performance. I also very much agree that his performance was amazing and a great tribute to Glen Campbell.
Haha. I don’t know what y’all have been reading, but the live tweets, etc., that I was reading during the ceremony went on and on about how boring Tim’s performance was an what a bore his version of the song was. I guess these people probably preferred the frantic “Everything Is Awesome” performance, which I hated. One thing I did not anticipate about teaching this class is being made into a fan of Tim McGraw… but it’s happening.
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