There’s a reason why Granger Smith walked away, and now, he can’t help but feel for the country music stars that might feel “stuck” by their stardom.
Smith shocked the country music world when he announced back in April of 2023 that he would be leaving country music to pursue a career in ministry. Smith conceded that the decision was incredibly difficult considering that he had dedicated so much of his life to his country music career, but he felt as though it was the right move after losing his his 3-year-old son River.
Since he left the music industry, he’s dedicated himself to ministry. Whether it be preaching, his podcast, or the books he’s written, Smith has gone all in on leading others to know God. His first book, Like a River, explored the grief that he felt tragically losing his son, and how God led him through that challenging time.
Smith’s next book, Poison in the Well, is set to come out later this year on September 8. He told Fox News Digital that it’s a bit of a sequel to his 2023 book:
“This one is more exciting to me because ‘Like a River’ was wrapped so much in my personal story of losing my son, River, our journey through grief, loss and recovery, and then the birth of my son Maverick. And that really encompasses that era. And in that era, God saved me.
God saving me was what spurred so much change in my life. I left an entire music career. It changed the whole direction of my life and my family’s life. The new book walks directly down that journey so that if anyone says, ‘Your book ‘Like a River’ was inspiring,’ then I could hand them ‘Poison in the Well’ and say, ‘These are the mechanics of why everything changed after.’”
Smith touched on some of the catalysts that caused him to walk away from music later in the interview.
The former country music singer says that even though he had accomplished all he had set out to do as an artist, he felt hopeless, and didn’t feel like he was standing on a firm foundation. Smith believes God led him to realize those things and do something different:
“I thought, ‘I’m a Christian. Why do I feel hopeless? Doesn’t the Bible say we’re supposed to have hope? And I don’t. If that’s the case, then what am I standing on? Because this feels like sand. That was a time of deep reflection.
I think I became less interested in entertaining people and more interested in helping people. That has given me so much joy. I sleep so much better at night knowing that today’s work was enough — it’s not about the next single, the next album, the next tour.”
One of Granger Smith’s biggest problems with being a musician was being pulled away from his family, and other things he truly cared about, like his faith. He grew tired of touring and always having something else to get to in his career. At one point, he realized it was unsustainable, and that the fame was poisonous… and he’s sure other artists feel the same way, but push through anyways:
“In music, it was usually about trying to get adoration from the crowd, needing applause. It means you’re succeeding in the thing that you’re trying to do, which is dangerous. It’s dangerous for a human… Your heart just breaks for these megastars. The goal of all the touring, all the concerts, and all the music releases is ultimate stardom.
And it’s never satisfied by a certain level of being famous. It always craves more. The result is a man or a woman who’s lost all sense of who they are. Men and women are not meant to be worshiped. We’re not created to be worshiped. And if we are, it actually hurts us. It becomes poison in our veins.”
That’s ultimately why Smith walked away. The thing he worked so hard to build up was tearing him down on a daily basis.
Now that he’s changed course and dedicated himself to ministry, he doesn’t feel the effects of that poison. He’s hopeful that him speaking about it – and his book coming out later this year that delves further into it all – will help those who need to hear it.
