Tim McGraw reveals 'tough' restrictions on singing after nearly 'hanging up' his career

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Country music icon Tim McGraw has long been recognized for his signature high-pitched vocals that helped define his chart-topping hits.

But now, the 58-year-old singer is revealing the strain that vocal range has placed on his voice.

Tim McGraw admits there are a few songs that are 'pushing me up a little'

During an appearance on 'The Bobby Bones Show' podcast, Tim McGraw shared that maintaining his high vocal range has become increasingly difficult.

Podcast host Bobby Bones remarked, “You still sing in the same key, you sing really high,” prompting the 'My Best Friend' hitmaker to explain how his thick voice often hides just how high he sings. 

"I don't think people realized I sing as high as I do because my voice is kinda' thick," McGraw said.

"Sometimes an artist comes out and sings a song with me like 'I Like It, I Love It', and they come out on stage for a song and they think 'Oh I know that song' and they'll go out and start singing it and go 'Whoa this is high than I realized it was,'" he explained. 

When asked if he had ever considered changing the key of his songs, McGraw admitted, "Yeah, there's a few songs that are pushing me up a little," as per Hello! Magazine.

Tim McGraw says he can pull off some songs only 'once a month'

Among the songs that pose the biggest challenge for Tim McGraw is his hit 'Standing Room Only'.

The singer explained that the track has particularly difficult parts that require vocal stamina. "That's tough to sing, there's a really high spot in it," said McGraw.

He added that some of his most popular songs are now so vocally demanding that he can only perform them occasionally.

"You find ways to adjust to it. Luckily there's been a few songs that I really love that I could probably only pull off like once a month that are so high," the singer shared.

Tim McGraw thought 'this might be it' as he couldn't perform due to health struggles

Tim McGraw had to cancel the last few dates of his 2024 tour due to serious health issues. The country star underwent surgery on both knees and his back following an injury.

During an appearance on Tracy Lawrence's 'TL's Road House' podcast, he revealed that this is the longest he has gone without performing. 

"To have almost a year of just sitting there [doing nothing], and I can tell you that after double knee replacements and three back surgeries and now a torn rotator cuff and a ruptured disc, there were times this year that I thought this might be it. This might be time to hang it up," McGraw shared.  

The surgeries forced him to rethink how he performs, as the singer said, "It has changed the way I do a live show." 

"It's gonna come to a point to where I'm either gonna have to decide to change the way I do a live show to continue to do it or just not do it anymore," the 'It's Your Love' crooner added.