Introduction:
Walker Hayes and Kane Brown Unite on Emotional Ballad “Song For My Son”
Walker Hayes has teamed up with Kane Brown for a heartfelt new track, “Song For My Son,” featured on Hayes’ brand-new studio album, 17 Problems, released Friday (August 22).
The ballad serves as a prayer-like reflection on the challenges, fears, and hopes that come with being a father. Hayes co-wrote the song with Billy Dawson and Ben Williams, describing the writing process as more spiritual conversation than performance.
“We weren’t performing, we were just talking to God,” Hayes explained. “I don’t really love praying out loud. It’s tough for me to just focus on my conversation with the Lord, and not think how people listening could potentially be ‘grading’ my performance… That really is the heart of this whole album.”
Brown joins Hayes on the deeply personal lyrics, which include lines such as:
“Jesus, please just come on back, I need ya / I’m desperate, messed up, tryin’ to do my best but / I’m scared all I’m passin’ my son down is my bad stuff / Father, help me, how am I supposed to do this dad stuff?”
For Hayes, the song resonates with his own family life. He and his wife, Laney, are parents to seven children — daughters Lela, Loxley, and Everly, sons Chapel, Baylor, and Beckett, as well as their late daughter Oakleigh, who passed away shortly after birth in 2018.
Brown, meanwhile, is father to three young children with his wife, Katelyn: daughters Kingsley Rose and Kodi Jane, and son Krewe Allen.
The collaboration is one of three features on 17 Problems, alongside “Mayonnaise” with Nic D and “Adderall” with Colbie Caillat. For Hayes, having Brown join him on such a vulnerable track was especially meaningful.
“It’s crazy to have a song out with [Kane Brown] that’s a prayer. One for all to hear,” he said.
Fans can stream Hayes’ 17 Problems album — including “Song For My Son” with Kane Brown — now on iHeartRadio and other platforms.