Tragedy and hardship have seemed to strike all corners of the world lately. From the Russian invasion of Ukraine to record flooding in Australia, bad news can be found everywhere. Amid all of it, the Oak Ridge Boys‘ William Lee Golden shared his thoughts on blocking out the negative headlines. In a recent interview, the country singer gave his perspective on shutting out “negativity, hate, and violence.”
The pandemic definitely put a downer on society internationally. William Lee Golden shared with Fox News Digital his thoughts on the situation.
“Early on in 2020, with the pandemic and everything else going on, we saw that there was so much negativity, hate, and violence in the news.”
Some people honed in, searching for constant updates and positive developments. However, the Oak Ridge Boys artist said, “I had to shut that off and get out of the house and get under a tree out here {in the Tennessee countryside].”
Instead of grasping on to what was upsetting, William Lee Golden shared with the outlet he had to “allow my mind to assess where I was coming from, where we were at and where we wanted to go.”
Apparently, the next steps for the country star led to his sons. Amid the crisis, he shared he’d wanted to do a project with them for a long time.
“When the pandemic hit,” he began, “about three or four weeks into it, I called my sons over to the house.”
In doing so, “I saw we were dealing with a negative situation in life, and I decided to take them back to my childhood, to the old songs that I started out singing in the very beginning.”
If there’s any way to drown out the negativity of the present, it’s with pleasant memories of the past.
Oak Ridge Boys Speak to Inspiration for ‘Front Porch Swingin’
The Oak Ridge Boys made their debut in country music decades ago. However, Front Porch Swingin happens to be the name of William Lee Golden and his band members’ latest album.
In speaking with the Paris-Post Intelligencer, the bandmates said the inspiration for their album came from the Oak Ridge Boys’ producer, Dave Cobb. Prior to release, Cobb asked the bandmates what they might sing if they were just sitting on a front porch.
Band member Richard Sterban said, “There’s an informal feeling there that we and Dave wanted to capture on the record.”
Following its release, it appears the country artists have managed to do just that. But in addition to new music, Golden and his bandmates were even happier to head back out on the road.
“[We] are four guys who are so thankful that we’re still able to get up on stage and sing for our fans,” Sterban said.
