George Strait included “The Weight of the Badge” on his 2019 record Honky Tonk Time Machine. Since then, first responders and those who support them have gravitated to the tune. Strait took notice and released a lyric video for the song last year. Until yesterday, he had that video pinned to the top of his Twitter feed. Yesterday, he replaced that pinned tweet with a new and exciting announcement.
George Strait announced that he will release the official video for “The Weight of the Badge” this Thursday. For some, that might seem like an odd day to drop a new video. After all, most new music drops on Friday these days. However, Strait picked the day for a reason. Thursday is October 28th which is National First Responders Day. If you were to pick an official song to encapsulate the day, this one would be it. Check out the teaser that Strait posted below.
The video shows officers outside of the New York State Police Academy raising their flags for the day. That could be a hint as to what the upcoming video will contain. The song celebrates the lives of upstanding law enforcement personnel by telling the story of one dedicated policeman. In doing so, it highlights how heavy the job is not only for the ones who are out there in the middle of everything but also for their families. As a result, it would make perfect sense for the video to focus on those training to carry the heavyweight of the badge.
We won’t have to wait too long to find out what George Strait has in store for us. In the teaser, we learn that the video for “The Weight of the Badge” drops tomorrow morning at 12 PM ET/11 AM CT. So, most of us will be able to catch the brand new video on our lunch breaks.
Digging into George Strait’s Song for First Responders
George Strait co-penned the song with his son Bubba and his frequent songwriting partner Dean Dillon. The idea came to Strait after an interaction with a security officer the night he took home the Texan of the Year Award. According to Songfacts, the officer was talking to Strait’s grandson Harvey. At one point, he let the youngster play with and even wear his badge. This made him think about the literal and metaphorical weight of the badge that the little guy pinned to his shirt.
About the inspiration, George Strait said, “I just got to thinking about that because it really wasn’t that heavy until you put it on, and then… it really gets heavy.” He went on to say that he found an important message in that sentiment.
