Driving in your beat up truck down backroads
Listening to Joni way up loud
Drawing out the seconds til it’s over
Cause they say that’s what being young is about

Now we might not grow old together
And we might not tell stories to our kids
Cause baby we ain’t meant to be
I’m not your only one
But I will always have 

This Tennessee boy with the stars in his eyes
Drinking Tennessee whiskey ‘neath the Tennessee sky
Chasing muddy waters where the smokies meet their end
Spending nights wrapped up in pretend
I will always have Tennessee
And Tennessee will always have me

Wasting nights just getting lost in neon
Dancing to the songs that you don’t know
Acting like we’ll be this way forever
We just ignore the signs that say we should let go

Cause this ain’t what they write about in movies
Just booze and passion, mixed with lonely nights
But baby when you look at me
You see into my soul
So it helps the hurt to know

This Tennessee boy with the stars in his eyes
Drinking Tennessee whiskey ‘neath the Tennessee sky
Chasing muddy waters where the smokies meet their end
Spending nights wrapped up in pretend
I will always have Tennessee
And Tennessee will always have me

I can see a life without you, and it’s good
Cause I know I’ll never love you like I should
But years from now I’ll look back at these months
Just happy to remember what I had once

This Tennessee boy with the stars in his eyes
Drinking Tennessee whiskey ‘neath the Tennessee sky
Chasing muddy waters where the smokies meet their end
Spending nights wrapped up in pretend
I will always have Tennessee
And Tennessee will always have me
Yes Tennessee will always have me

I wrote Tennessee a few months after moving to Nashville in 2021. I was totally infatuated with the city, and the summer was a whirlwind of sunny days, first dates, lake swims, long hikes... basically living in a bit of a fantasy land - summer camp for adults. But as I started to settle in, I also started to snap back to reality. I had moved here for a reason; plus, I'm a real adult now (yikes!) and had responsibilities. 

I think that the pairing of whimsy and realism creates a sense of nostalgia that is almost tangible throughout the song. We all have those days that, 50 years from now, we'll look back on and smile. The people might not still be around; maybe you've moved; maybe your life looks completely different. But those days shaped you and gave you life. For me, those days will always include my first summer in Tennessee. Those carefree days were fleeting, but they paved the way for me to build a stable life in this city that will always hold a place in my heart. The song will always serve as a reminder of that.