Bare Bones (26 page)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I'd like to thank Rebecca Paley, who led me through the entire writing process.

Thanks to Carrie Thornton, my editor, for trusting me, guiding me, and most important, for being patient with me through the process. Thanks also to all the crew at HarperCollins and Dey Street Books.

Thanks to my iHeartRadio family. There are lots to name, so I won't even try to list them all.

Bob Pittman, thank you.

Rich Bressler, thank you.

Rod Phillips, thank you.

Jennifer Leimgruber, Julie Talbot, and Darren Davis, thank you. To my manager, Coran Capshaw, who read this book and sternly told me what was worth getting in trouble for and what wasn't, thank you.

To my manager Mary Forrest Findlay, who read this book and told me I was going to get in trouble for everything! Ha ha. Thanks!

To my literary agent, Alan Nevins, and my radio agent, Paul Anderson, I really appreciate you guys. To Jay Shannon, you're always my dude! Thanks to Charlamagne Tha God and Kennedy for being great friends but even greater professional influences.

To Amy, my cohost forever and one of my best friends in life. Thanks for keeping me in rails.

Special thanks to John Mayer for making the album
Continuum
.

Also, a big sad hug to the Counting Crows for making lots of great music that makes me sad.

Thanks to all of the great Nashville artists who I've mentioned in this book. And who have really helped my love for Nashville grow.

I love Arkansas and the Razorbacks.

I love Austin, Texas,

I love my dog, Dusty.

To _______, thanks for marrying me and making me the happiest guy ever. (Still waiting to fill that blank.)

To every listener who has let me ramble on and still continues listening. Without you guys, this wouldn't exist.

#FightGrindRepeat

PHOTO SECTION

My little sister and me. I was probably around twenty-five in this picture. Or five. Probably five, but I could be wrong.

That's a cute kid. And I bet there are a lot of socks in those gifts around me.

I was in ninth grade at this time but still hadn't grown yet. It was football game day, so I had to wear a tie. Also, check out my sweet mullet.

I won a poetry contest in fifth grade. The first lines of my poem were “If I had a wish, there would be world peace. I'd stop all the wars, there'd be no more deceased.”

I was a five-star wide receiver recruited out of Mountain Pine High School. And by “five-star,” I mean, very mediocre.

I had sweet bangs. I also did all the school announcements. But mostly I had sweet bangs.

HOLY CRAP.

I GRADUATED COLLEGE.

THE FIRST PERSON IN MY FAMILY!

A Polaroid of my mom, my sister, and me. My goatee was rocking. Don't hate.

Here I am about to go on Fox News to talk to one of my best friends, Kennedy, on her show. I was in Austin, but she was in New York.

My band, The Raging Idiots, onstage with Lindsay Ell.

On the air during my show with my producer Ray at my side. Ray is one of the hardest-working guys I've ever met, and he first started with me as an “illegal” intern. He wasn't getting paid and didn't even get school credit, but he still showed up every day. For a year.