We are in the final stretch before Zach Top gifts his sophomore record, Ain’t In It For My Health, to fans.
At the end of the week on August 29th, the ’90s country revival sensation is keeping the momentum going with his sophomore record. The buzz surrounding the Washington native is at an all-time high right now, with fans chomping at the bit to see what he has in store for this 15-song tracklist.
After the release of his debut record, Cold Beer & Country Music, Zach Top was tagged as the ’90s nostalgia music guy, creating sounds that transported listeners back to the golden age of country music —the ’90s. Although Zach Top never set out to make his sound a gimmick, but rather shared that he grew up on the same music the famed ’90s legends cut their teeth on, making the sound reminiscent of that time period.
Top has captured the hearts of fans across all generations, making his rise to fame one of the fastest we’ve seen as of late. The “I Never Lie” singer proved he was more than just a moment in music by winning the ACM Award for New Male Artist and a MusicRow Award for Discovery Artist of the Year.
However, when creating his sophomore record, Top still doubted at times that some country listeners might think he’s still a one-hit wonder. The need to prove himself influenced the selection of the album’s title.
In a recent Spotify interview Countdown To Ain’t In It For My Health, Top sat down with Dierks Bentley, with whom he’s been on the road this year, to talk about the new record. In this conversation, Top shared that Carson Chamberlain, his producer, helped choose the record’s name and explain its significance.
“Carson, Carson picked it out, actually. Chamberlain, producer. Yeah, he, we had thrown around… We have that other song on there, ‘Lovin’ The Wrong Things,’ and I kind of liked the idea of making that the title for a minute. And I also thought about just calling it ‘Guitar,’ ’cause I thought that was pretty indicative of what was on the album, too.
I loved that he was like ‘Man, what do you think about?’ Because I was just thinking, let’s pick a title of one of the songs and just call that album that. But he was like, ‘I’ll throw one out of left field at you a little bit.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, that’s perfect!’
It’s kind of got a deeper meaning to me, where it’s like sort of a, ‘I’m here to stay’ type of thing. It wasn’t a one-hit-wonder thing. The first album, people liked that and whatnot, but I’m here to stay, and it’s not whatever. I ain’t in it for my health.”
Bentley was a huge fan of the album’s name, as it perfectly captures how being a touring musician isn’t always good for one’s health. Whether it’s filling your days with partying or the struggles of constantly being on the road, the toll it takes on your well-being is significant. “Ain’t In It For My Health” is truly a mantra that all touring musicians live by. They are chasing their dream and making it come true, but by no means are they health gurus.
Top also revealed that when creating this record, many of the songs written have been in his vault for a long while, with his touring schedule hardly giving him the free time to write new material.
48 hours until we hear what Top has in store for fans, furthering his ’90s country music revival with flairs of bluegrass picking. Bring it on.
Ain’t In It For My Health Tracklist:
- Guitar
- Good Times & Tan Lines
- When You See Me
- Splitsville
- Between the Ditches
- Flip–Flop
- Livin’ A Lie
- I Know A Place
- She Makes
- South Of Sanity
- Like I Want You
- Country Boy Blues
- Lovin’ The Wrong Things
- Honky Tonk Till It Hurts
