Tim McGraw is revisiting one of the biggest gambles of his career — a song he says almost never made it onto an album and could have ended everything before it truly began.
During a recent appearance on The Tim Ferriss Show, the 58-year-old country star identified “Indian Outlaw” as the most controversial track he ever fought to record. When asked about a “lightning in a bottle” moment in his career, McGraw didn’t hesitate.
“‘Indian Outlaw’ — because I had that song for my first album and nobody liked it,” he said. According to McGraw, his label and producer James Stroud pushed back hard, telling him the song was too controversial, wasn’t truly country music, and wouldn’t receive radio play.
McGraw first heard the song performed live in Nashville by songwriters Tommy and Max D. Barnes. He said he immediately connected with it and began performing it regularly in clubs and honky-tonks. The crowd reaction, he recalled, was overwhelming.
“We’d end up having to play it two or three times a night, four times a night, because people loved it so much,” McGraw said.
Despite that response, the track was left off his debut album because he lacked creative control at the time. When recording his second album, Not a Moment Too Soon, McGraw made it clear he was willing to stake his career on the song.
“I felt like this is either going to work in a huge way or it’s going to ruin my career forever,” he said.
The risk paid off. “Indian Outlaw” became McGraw’s first top 10 country hit and eventually went platinum. He believes pairing it with the emotionally resonant “Don’t Take the Girl” helped prevent him from being labeled a novelty act. The back-to-back success of those two singles, he said, created the momentum that launched his long-running career.
McGraw acknowledged the controversy surrounding the song, which some critics viewed as playing into Native American stereotypes. He said he understood those concerns and even met with Native American leaders to discuss the issue.
“Some liked the song, some didn’t like the song,” he said. “The song’s not meant to be that way, I understand your concerns.”
He added that when performing at Native American casinos, he offers to remove the song from his setlist. “Ninety-nine percent of the time, ‘That’s why we hired you, is to sing that song,’” he said.
Beyond revisiting past controversy, McGraw also reflected on recent personal struggles. In October 2025, he revealed he had undergone four back surgeries and double knee replacements in just a few years. At one point, he considered stepping away from performing altogether.
“I was seriously contemplating and figuring out how to walk away,” he told a concert crowd in California, explaining that the physical toll had become overwhelming.
During his recovery, McGraw wrote “King Rodeo,” a song that grapples with aging and fading spotlight. The lyrics — “Adoring crowds are not around you / Whispers and shadows, they surround you” — reflect a more introspective chapter in the country star’s life.
