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Tyler Hubbard Says that Florida Georgia Line is ‘Stronger’ Because of Solo Projects

Recently, Florida Georgia Line‘s Tyler Hubbard spoke out about the creative freedom of going solo and said it also makes the band stronger.

Hubbard joined country star Tim McGraw on Episode 5 of his Beyond the Influence Radio show. Fans have worried for months that FGL may break up, therefore, Hubbard’s comments will once again be welcome news. Hubbard and his bandmate Brian Kelley share different political beliefs and that came to a head around election time last year. In fact, the country singer even unfollowed Kelley on social media, which led to mass speculation about their possible split.

However, the pair has publicly disregarded those rumors numerous times. Additionally, FGL is releasing their fifth studio album Life Rolls On later this week. The duo are also each working on solo material that they each plan on releasing later this year. According to Hubbard, their projects outside of FGL have strengthened their partnership.

“I was just with [Kelley] yesterday. We were doing a photoshoot and doing some press for the new record. There’s just a freedom that feels exhilarating, man, on both sides. And something about that really channels creativity,” Tyler Hubbard explained on McGraw’s Apple Music show. “And so, now we’re getting to experience a really cool wave of creativity on our own and grow that and nurture that and be supportive of each other.”

“It feels like it’s only going to make us stronger and able to grow outside of our typical boundary that we’ve set, our FGL box that we’ve built for ourselves over the last decade. We were always a package deal. With that comes moments where you can’t quite grow on both sides. And so I think this season of growth for both of us is going to be amazing. It already has been amazing,” Hubbard added.

Tyler Hubbard Talks About Florida Georgia Line’s Early Influences

During the radio show interview, Tyler Hubbard shared that he and Kelley connected well because of their parallel music tastes. They both grew up listening to a wide-range of artists and genres, which influenced their eclectic tastes in music.

“[He] and I both grew up … listening to everything from Alabama, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Alan Jackson to Tim McGraw. … And to Dr. Dre and Lil Wayne, and to Chris Tomlin. Do you know what I’m saying?” Hubbard told McGraw. “So it was such a broad – even to AC/DC, when we were listening to Southern rock, rock ‘n’ roll and then we went Metallica, and digging deep on some of this stuff and really going through phases with it.”

The country duo have been making music together for more than a decade. They’ve worked closely in the studio and toured together for years, so McGraw understands why FGL has decided to work on other projects as well.

“All creatives do that. Gosh, I do the same thing,” McGraw said. “My wife [Faith Hill] and I’ve done three or four tours together, made albums together and then we go our separate ways and do our own work.

“Joe Walsh is a great example of that. He’s[maintained] a solo career and a career with the Eagles for all these years. And what he told me is that he feels fulfilled as a musician being able to do this. Not only that, the two avenues complement each other,” McGraw explained.

Florida Georgia Line’s fifth studio album Life Rolls On releases this Friday, Feb. 12 from Big Machine Label Group.