You're not using everyone's first names [laughs], but isn't it interesting for you to, to take that message of him imagining his life without his wife and then delivering it to a crowd of people who can then imagine their lives without the person that they love?

I guess I just kinda zero in on the, the message of the song.

Um, and I don't focus on so much of, of where it came from.

Uh, I guess that, that doesn't really run through my head when I'm singing it, the same way, you know, I'm Still Fine is about me doesn't run through my head when I'm, when I'm singing it.

It's, it's the message that I'm really focused on, on getting across.

Uh, whether it's a message of having hope or a message of appreciating your loved one or a- acknowledging that, uh, you know, your loved one wouldn't...

Your life wouldn't be what it is today and as good as it is today without meeting that s- certain person, you know? It's, it's that message that I become, uh, focused on trying to, to get out and share.

What about you, Brandon? What's a Northstar song for you?

How was the relationship with y'all three kind

of formulated? And then what did y'all work on? Yeah, for sure.

So it was actually out in Alabama.

Alabama, okay.

Tuscaloosa, yeah.

His strength coach works for university, so we're able to use their facilities.

It was cool.

In terms of, you know, this offseason and what you were able to accomplish with your body, what was the thing that you, like, cut out? And what did you learn that, hey, this is healthy, but I really, really like it? Yeah,

After getting to work with him last year, how does that kind of bridge the communication and make, you know, plays and moments like that more, more easy for you?

Yeah, man, um, it was, it was definitely, I didn't get to work with him a lot obviously last year after the injury, but um, just those first two training practices and, um, like the games, I was able to see how he sets.

Now even in camp, like actually doing it day by day-

Right, right.

So it's like it takes the thinking out of my day to where I'm just eating what they bring me, which is nice.

You know, that's like the investments I'm talking about.

Like, I can always buy ce- certain things and all that stuff, but at the end of the day, like there's a longer, like a bigger goal that I have in mind that takes a little longer, and right now I have to invest in myself.

Um, a lot of it's also like rehab.

Yeah.

When I started, I had to invite myself more often.

Yeah.

You know, like where I did a teaching tour with my friend Owen, and I made the teaching tour, because he had to move to LA.

So we were driving from New York to LA.

And I said, I'm gonna need some money to make this happen.

So I said, hey, I'm passing through Nashville.

on that in multiple ways but

critic, right? What changed them? Like, what is the biggest thing that has kind of developed for you as a teacher over

the years? Uh, yeah, I feel like the biggest, I feel like in those early days when I wasn't getting a lot of people or a lot of consistent people, I also wasn't too clear on what I was teaching or what I wanted the class to be.

I wanted, I didn't have, um, I guess the greatest roots in what I wanted that class to be.

I had a lot of ideas.

I was like, okay, cool.

I have these, this information from a slew of like brilliant teachers in my life that I want to bring to the class.

And I think that's how the best classes are made.

Can you tell us how you define beginner contemporary and what you might see elsewhere in the industry and where we might be lacking in the use of that word beginner correctly?

And we were like, we should probably pull over and get some fresh air.

But we got it towed to a shop in Birmingham and they rebuilt the engine.

and redid the front end and everything.

It ended up being like 14 grand.

And we had an American Express card with a $15,000 credit limit.

And so we just put it on that card and we went into debt.

Long story short though, then we had to leave our band trailer up there as well.

Yeah.

Is that how you grew up?

I, I grew up, um, that way.

Yeah, my, my mother used to read us the Bible as, as children and stuff, so we always grew up knowing about Jesus and everything.

And then, so that's pretty much what led me to make the leap, I guess.

You know what I mean? We ...

I never had parents that were pushing me to go to college or pushing me to do something.

They were just like, "Have a relationship with God." That's really the only thing that I got pushed by my parents.

Yeah.