HARDY Pays Tribute To His Late Bus Driver

HARDY paid tribute to his former bus driver and friend Ricky at a show in Texas recently (11/18). During his show in Houston, HARDY dedicated his performance of "Give Heaven Some Hell" after hearing his friend passed away.

He said from the stage, "I never dedicate this song to anybody, but I just found out yesterday that my bus driver, who was driving that bus, passed away yesterday. So tonight, I want to dedicate this song to my bus driver, Ricky, and his family."

A fan posted the moment on Instagram. See that post here.

Ricky was diagnosed with brain cancer following a bus accident where HARDY, and his crew were involved in the Fall of 2022. Ricky's daughter paid tribute to her dad on Facebook on November 17. She wrote, along with a photo of Ricky on a motorcycle, "As of this morning, Daddy is resting in the arms of Jesus. I imagine his laugh being such a joyous sound in heaven. I will never be able to put into words just how much he means to me or how thankful I am God chose him to be mine. He passed peacefully in his sleep, surrounded by Rachel and I. "

She added, "Throughout this entire process, he has shown so much strength, and I'm so proud of him. He never missed the opportunity to tell me just how much he loved me or how proud of me he is, and I hope to make him proud always. We will post arrangements when they are confirmed. Thank you for praying for us as we are suffering such a great loss."

See that post here.

At the time of the bus crash, HARDY wrote on Insta Stories, "Following tonight's show, our tour bus was in an accident on our way home from Bristol. There were just four of us, including myself; however, we were all treated for significant injuries. Our friend and bus driver needs your prayers as he is still in the hospital. His family is with him while he is being treated, and we're all pulling and praying for him."

He concluded at the time, "My team and I will keep the fans updated on that as I rest in the coming days. Please keep our road family in your prayers. God bless our medics and local and state officials for their quick response and incredible service."

The tour bus overturned on a portion of Interstate 40 West near Nashville at the Wilson and Davidson County line at approximately 2:30 AM CT, Sunday, October 2, 2022.

HARDY has been making a big splash in country music in the last couple of years. "Wait In The Truck," in particular, has become an huge hit and an award winner.

Last week, CMA nominations were announced for the 57th Annual CMA Awards, and HARDY landed four nominations this year with his hit collaboration "Wait In The Truck," which features fellow nominee Lainey Wilson. "Wait In The Truck" was co-produced and co-written by HARDY. Justin Clough directed the music video for the song. HARDY now has nine career nominations, three of which are for Song of the Year.

As he celebrates his 33rd birthday today (9/13), he is headlining his own "The Mockingbird & THE CROW Fall Tour" with his duet partner and friend Lainey Wilson as an opener. This week, the tour plays shows in Kentucky and Ohio.

In a recent interview, HARDY said his signature song, "Wait In The Truck," is based on something that happened one night with his then-girlfriend. He noted that the song came about fairly simply. He explained, "I was in Atlanta, and my girlfriend was at a party and said a guy made a pass at her." HARDY said he was "fired up about it" and thought if it had gotten any worse, he would have found out where he lived and told my girlfriend to "wait in the truck." Then he decided to write a story about it. He noted that "The song wrote itself."

HARDY added that the song got heavier than he originally intended. He said in the second verse when he murdered and "say how we did it," he didn't think he would do that at the start. By then, he knew he was going to cut the song. He said to himself, "'If I'm doin' it, we're killin' the guy.'"

As HARDY celebrates his 33rd year in this world today (9/13) with his wife Caleigh by his side, we share what we believe are four songs he released as an artist that made him a country music star.

HARDY said that "Give Heaven Some Hell" is a "stirring" tribute to anyone who has lost a loved one. He said it is one of his favorite songs that he has ever written. When he released it, he said, "I just hope this helps anyone that's ever suffered a loss of a loved one. I'm excited for this song to exist in the world." The chorus includes the lyrics, "I hope you hit those gold streets on two wheels / I hope your mansion in the sky's got a ten-acre field / With some mud and some hubs you can lock in / Make some thunder, make 'em wonder how you got in / Hide your beer, hide your clear from the man upstairs / Crank it loud, hold it down 'til I get there / And when I do, I hope you got some new stories to tell / 'Til then, give Heaven some hell."

"One Beer" tells a story about how just a single Bud Light led to an out-of-wedlock pregnancy and a shotgun marriage. Though the twist of fate resulted in the shelving of life plans, there is the ultimate blessing of a happy family of three. The song reached number one on the country charts, becoming HARDY's first number-one as an artist.

This was HARDY's very first single from his debut album. The music video was shot on a farm in Cottontown, Tennessee, and features some of HARDY's songwriting collaborators: Brett Tyler, Joe Clemmons, and Benjy Davis. The group was able to relax and have a fun day just being buddies and hanging out. Their day consisted of mudding, mattress surfing via his jacked-up 4x4, shooting catfish in a lake, paintballing, and shotgunning Busch Lights.

HARDY's biggest hit as an artist. This modern day murder ballad has been certified platinum, selling almost one million copies. The song's dramatic video won Collaborative Music Video of the Year at the 2023 CMT Music Awards and was nominated for Video of the Year. The song and video won Musical Event and Video of the Year at the 2023 ACM Awards. The song depicts a man who, upon finding a battered woman on the side of the road, confronts her abuser in his trailer, shooting him when he reaches for his shotgun, killing the abuser. The video has been viewed on YouTube over 63 million times.