South Dakota native Tyler Halverson has been steadily carving out his own lane in modern country, blending outlaw spirit with contemporary influences as his career gathers pace. Recently tipped as an artist to watch and shaped by a mix of rural upbringing and wide-ranging musical tastes, Halverson has built a reputation for storytelling that balances swagger with vulnerability. That duality sits at the heart of his latest album ‘In Defense of Drinking,' a record that captures life on the road, personal missteps and hard-earned self-awareness while refusing to smooth over the rough edges that make his music feel lived-in and authentic. Read our review right here.
The album pushes further into alt-country territory while deepening the Western mood that has become central to his sound, pairing barroom energy with introspective songwriting about heartbreak, redemption and identity. Critics have highlighted the project as an honest snapshot of an artist coming to terms with his past while looking ahead, with Halverson himself acknowledging a career shaped by falling in and out of love and turning those experiences into songs. As he continues to build momentum internationally, ‘In Defense of Drinking' feels like both a defining artistic statement and an ideal jumping-off point for a conversation about his journey so far and what comes next.
Thank you for your time today Tyler, we appreciate it.
Yes sir!!
‘In Defense of Drinking' is going to do some big things for you. You must be excited for it to come out?
I'm very excited to get it out, it feels like it's been in my pocket for a while now so it's time to get it out there.
The album deals with all sorts of issues. I love the craft of songwriting, clever, emotive lyrics and top melodies too – this album has them all. Was it a hard album to write from your point of view?
I feel like I've been writing the album for a while now, some of the songs date back a good couple of years so I've been immersed in it for a good while now. We managed to find a common thread through a number of songs which makes it a cohesive listen and it turned out really satisfying.
It deals with a lot of personal conflict and personal growth. Can you talk about the emotional arc you want listens to go on when listening to this album?
I think the album has some triumphs, some tribulations and some troubles across it. It's a little all over the place – from self loathing, harder, heavier hitting songs to songs that a stripped down like ‘Son, Brother, Believer.' I like the fact that it's a little all over the board – I kinda structured it in the same way that you would a live show – it was important to get the ups and downs right, the flow of the whole piece, I think that's very important.
Your last project, ‘Western Amerijuana' was a really defining concept for you and your brand. Are you redefining your identity now with ‘In Defense of Drinking' or is it simply an evolution to the next phase?
I don't know if I'm redefining…… I think we took some chances, sonically, on some songs. I think it all ties together from the first song we put out a couple of years ago, ‘Beer Garden Baby,' to the album being released. I think the songwriting all ties it together really neatly i n one defined project.
Let's pick up on ‘Beer Garden Baby,' which was a very early release song for you that you have re-done as a duet with Parker McCollum. What drew you to revisit that song at this particular time?
I threw the option of cutting ‘Mac Miller' or ‘Beer Garden Baby' out to him as he is a buddy of mine who has always supported what we've been doing and he picked ‘Beer Garden….' It felt right. It brings a lighter vibe to the album which can get a little serious or heavy at times so I was pleased with his choice.
You are not adverse to revamping your old songs – you've done it was '94 Camaro' and ‘Her.' Are there any other songs in your back catalogue that you'd consider having a second run at?
Man, maybe someday I'd love to re-do ‘Mac Miller' one of these times. We'll see.
Would you say that ‘Mac Miller' is your signature song?
I think that's the one that kinda helped us to put our boot in Texas, for sure. It was a song that really helped us create the momentum that we have going up into this latest album.
How does your love of Merle Haggard and Garth Brooks pair with your love for artists like Drake and Mac Miller in terms of your writing and creativity?
It all kinda pulls in together, I drew inspiration from a little bit of everything. I think it's helped my vocal phrasing and keeps me a little different from everyone else out there doing this thing. I think that's one of the best / worst things about me – those different takes and different tastes that you can hear in my sound.
‘In Defense of Drinking' is one of those albums that provides me with a different favourite song every time I listen to it. It's currently ‘Fort Worth Losing,' which feels like a confession and a real punch to the gut. Was that song written about a specific moment in your life or is it an amalgam of experiences and stories?
There are some specific moments that I've pulled on for that song but it was inspired by seeing a girl wearing a T shirt in the Fort Worth stockyard which said ‘I'm Fort Worth It!' Credit to my buddy Jon Decious, who also wrote the title track, because the two of us turned it into a story about how she wasn't worth it at all! You're pulling some fiction and non-fiction all at the same time to create something bigger than the sum of its parts.
I've just finished series 2 of Landman in which the characters spend all their time driving or flying up to Fort Worth from the Permian basin and Midland. Is Fort Worth the party town it looks like on that show?
Oh yeah, man. There's a whole load of things to do there, the stockyards have a reputation for a reason! (laughing) You can make some of your best and your worst decisions right there, for sure!
So, if I was going to Texas soon, would you recommend going to Austin or Fort Worth first?
Man, I think you hit Fort Worth first then cruise on down to Austin and do both! Go hang out with the cowboys and then find the hippies in Austin for a premium trip! (laughing)
On a different day, the title track is my favourite song. There's this gentle melody that carries such a weight in the lyrics. Is that song the emotional core of the album?
I think so, absolutely. The song, the melody and then that recognition that you are the problem at the centre of all the problems that you have created.
Did you come to that realisation yourself or did somebody tell or show you that you were the problem?
I mean, I think a little bit of both to be honest. On its own, my buddy Jon Decious has written that and it caught me at a time that it me hard, that song……. it was the right song at the wrong time! (laughing) It gave me a little bit of a wake up and I knew that I had to record it for the album, and it became the title track!
For a young fella like yourself, there's a lot of maturity and heartbreak on this album. Why is heartbreak such a powerful subject in Country music?
Man, everyone in Country music is addicted to feeling. That's where it hits the deepest, right in the feelings, that's what makes good Country music. Heartbreak. Misery. It's all been there – making something pretty out of something pretty ugly.
The album opens with ‘More Hearts Than Horses' which appears to be you warding or warning off any potential women who might be interested in you. Will that now work against you in the long term?
(laughing) I'm sure it will!! Maybe I'll have to write something else for the next album to contradict it! That's the great thing about the album, I think, because you can listen to that but also listen to a sweet song like ‘Cowboy Babies' and still be dreaming of love.
‘Son, Brother, Believer' was never going to go anywhere else than the final track on the album, right?
I think that's always where that song was going to be, the bookend of the album. That was me and Jon Decious again, we were living together in a house on Murphy Road in Nashville and we wrote that in the dead of winter when everyone in Nashville is depressed because of the rain and the cold. It was a very reflective headspace we were in when we wrote that song. It feels different to anything else on the album.
What's 2026 looking like for you in terms of tours and shows? How are you going to get this album out to as many people as you possibly can?
Man, we're gonna drop the album and then take it out on the road to as many places as we possibly can! We're starting in Mississippi and ending up in Massachusetts – we're all over the place! We want to play everywhere we can. I'm hoping that we get a chance to come on back over to the UK also, too. I've heard some rumours!!!
I loved coming over for C2C and seeing all you Brits singing '94 Camaro' despite the fact that none of would have owned one of those cars, the cultural link is with the music, it brings us all together.
Rolling Stone magazine highlighted you as being part of a next generation of Outlaw musicians to keep an eye on. What does the term ‘Outlaw' mean to you in Country music in 2026?
I don't know, I'm not that hard! (laughing) I pay my taxes so I'm not that much of an outlaw. I think it's a different sound that be a little left of centre and not just right down the middle. That was the tip of the hat that I got from them right there.
What's going to be the metrics of success for this new album and this part of your career? Are you aiming to get on a big arena tour or is it more worth while playing clubs to your own crowds and building up from there?
I hope this record helps us do a little bit of all of that. We want to build up our own fan base by playing headline shows in clubs and rock rooms but I also hope we get to do more arena shows, like the ones with my buddy Parker (McCollum) too. I think we need a mix of both moving forward.
Check out Tyler Halverson's fabulous new album ‘In Defense of Drinking' which is out today. Our review is in the first paragraph at the top of the page.
