At around the same time on Monday morning (Jan. 26), four country superstars — Tim McGraw, Eric Church, Morgan Wallen and Hardy — each posted something curious to social media, with no explanation.
Each one shared an image of what looks like a beat-up, leather-bound book, or perhaps a family album, with a man’s name written in the center in cursive. That man’s first name is different in every post, but they all share the same last name: McArthur.
Each name bears a set of dates beneath it, presumably the dates the person was born and died. Only one name appears to be someone who’s still alive. That’s Wallen’s Hunter McArthur, born May 13, 1993 (which also happens to be Wallen’s own exact birthdate.)
What does it all mean? The stars aren’t sharing yet. But fans were quick to speculate, and Internet sleuths also produced some cold hard clues.
What Do We Know About Morgan Wallen, Eric Church, Tim McGraw + Hardy’s Social Media Tease?
During two recent shows, Church told his fans that on Jan. 30, “something’s gonna happen, [and] you’re gonna f–kin’ love it.”
Jan. 30 is a Friday, which is typically the day of the week that new country songs tend to come out. Several fans have guessed that the country foursome could be teasing a song collaboration, potentially with each of them singing from the perspective of each of the characters named in their posts.
On top of that, A German fan page dedicated to Morgan Wallen discovered that a song called “McArthur” is registered to ASCAP, and Hardy is one of the co-writers. (The other writers are singer Jameson Rodgers, Chase McGill and Joshua Dennis Anthony Bagles.)
Hardy Morgan Wallen Eric Church Tim McGraw Song Tease
While we don’t know for sure that a song release is involved, it seems like a pretty good bet. Starting there, let’s dive into some of the wilder fan theories and Taste of Country’s own educated guesses about what these four stars have brewing.
Guess No. 1: This is a Concept Story Song, Like Hardy’s “Wait in the Truck”
If you know Hardy’s work, you know he likes to challenge himself with intricate narratives and edgy concept songs.
He also does not shy away from darkness and tragedy. Just look at Hardy’s 2023 Lainey Wilson duet “Wait in the Truck,” which finds a man doing life in prison after he has a chance encounter with a woman suffering from domestic violence and decides to stop her abuser — with a firearm.
Church isn’t listed as a writer on this song, but he’s also been known to wade into murder ballad territory, like when he wrote the 2022 Chris Janson duet “You, Me & the River.” Tim McGraw and Wallen have both put out their fair share of evocative, dark story-song material, too.
We’re guessing that a song dealing with these four characters would have its fair share of tragedy. Look at the dates on the four McArthurs listed in the singers’ social media teases: None of them really lived long lives. Junior McArthur — Church’s character — died before his 22nd birthday.
Guess No. 2: The McArthurs Are a Family Tree, But Not a Direct Father-Son Line
Since they’ve all got the same last name, and they lived during mostly-overlapping time periods between the 1920s and today, it’s easy to assume that this song might be the story of a great-grandfather, grandfather, father and son.
But that can’t be exactly true.
Here’s the breakdown of everybody’s dates, complete with the artist who posted each corresponding character:
John McArthur (Tim McGraw): Nov. 2, 1920 — Nov. 22, 1963
Junior McArthur (Eric Church): Sept. 20, 1945 — Apr. 4, 1967
Jones McArthur (Hardy): June 5, 1968 — Jan. 5, 2025
Hunter McArthur (Morgan Wallen): May 13, 1993
Junior could easily be John’s son, born when John was in his mid-20s. Same goes for Hunter and Jones. But Jones is definitely not Junior’s son. If Junior died in April 1967, there’s no way he could have fathered Jones, who was born the following June — 14 months later.
Guess No. 3: There Might Be a Tie-In to History or Politics
Some of the dates and years mentioned ring a bell, and not just because one — May 13, 1993 — is Wallen’s birthday.
It’s almost surely not a coincidence that the artists chose for Wallen and his character to share a birthday, but does that mean that they picked other dates that held significance, too?
One fan laid out some of the historical events corresponding to the dates picked for days that the characters were born or died. Among them is Nov. 22, 1963 — the day that John F. Kennedy was killed — Sept. 2, 1945 — the official end date of World War II and June 5, 1968 — the date of Robert F. Kennedy’s assassination.
Tim McGraw, Instagram
It’s certainly likely that the artists were, at the very least, aware of the coincidences. Tim McGraw’s a history buff who once co-wrote a book called Songs of America with presidential biographer Jon Meacham.
But it’s also a solid possibility that they chose those dates for other reasons, or selected them at random.
Guess No 4: Morgan Wallen is the Main Character
Wallen’s character, Hunter McArthur, is the only one still living, and he shares a birthday with the singer, suggesting that perhaps, in this story line, Hunter might be partially based on Wallen himself.
If the tease is indeed about a song written by Hardy, that theory gets even more credible. Hardy’s one of Wallen’s best friends and most trusted co-writers, and he knows Wallen’s story better than most.
Morgan Wallen Instagram
Plus, there’s a vague correspondence between the generations of McArthur men and the generations of country men participating in this tease. McGraw, the most veteran of the set, is associated with the oldest McArthur. Next is Church, who is also one country music generation below McGraw, but above Hardy and Wallen.
Could there be a link between the generations of McArthurs and the generations of men in country music?
Guess No. 5: It’s More Than Just a Song
This guess is a complete shot in the dark.
But multiple fans noticed the similarities between the McArthur tease and the song “Highwayman,” which was more than just a collaboration between Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson — it turned into a full-blown supergroup.
Could these four artists be planning a similar trajectory? Well, probably not. But crazier things have happened.
Hardy is also known for his collaborative Hixtape album projects, so it’s not entirely out of the question that he could be the brainchild behind a more expansive project than just a one-off collaboration.
No matter what it is that Church, Wallen, McGraw and Hardy have cooking, fans will likely have more details soon enough. Church’s hint about more details dropping Friday is likely related to this tease.
The 50 Saddest Country Songs of All Time
Each one of the 50 saddest country songs of all time tells a story. Some of those stories are about the pain of heartbreak, while others explore the grief of losing a loved one. Some are about more unconventional subject matter — from infertility to the loss of the beloved family dog — while others tap into the universal subjects of heartbreak and loneliness. Flip through the gallery below for a list of the saddest country songs, ever.
