Childers began performing in Lexington, Kentucky and Huntington, West Virginia.[18] In 2011, when he was 19, Childers released his first album, Bottles And Bibles. He released two EPs recorded in 2013 at Red Barn Radio, a radio show from Lexington.[13] The two EPs were later released as one recording called Live on Red Barn Radio I & II after the success of his album Purgatory; they reached No. 5 on Heatseekers Albums.[19] He performed with a backing band, The Food Stamps.[20]
He first had success with Purgatory which was released on August 4, 2017.[21][22] It was produced by Sturgill Simpson and David Ferguson and recorded at The Butcher Shoppe in Nashville.[23] Simpson also played guitar and sang backing vocals on the album; Miles Miller is on drums, Stuart Duncan on fiddle and Russ Paul played other instruments.[24] It debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Heatseekers Albums chart, No. 17 on the Country albums chart and No. 4 on the Americana/Folk albums chart.[14] In September 2018, Childers won Emerging Artist of the Year at the 2018 Americana Music Honors & Awards; he gave an acceptance speech noted for its criticism of the Americana genre label saying after the awarder mispronounced his last name that "as a man who identifies as a country music singer, I feel Americana ain't no part of nothing and is a distraction from the issues that we're facing on a bigger level as country music singers. It kind of feels like purgatory."[2]
Country Squire, a second album under the Hickman Holler label and Childers' third overall, was released on August 2, 2019. The album was also produced by Simpson and Ferguson.[25] The video of the lead single from the album House Fire was released on May 16, 2019.[26] "All Your'n", the second single from the album, was nominated for Best Country Solo Performance at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.[27]
On September 18, 2020, Childers released Long Violent History,[28] an album consisting mainly of traditional fiddle tracks.[29] The album closes with the title track, which discusses racism, civil unrest, and police brutality. He released a video message to accompany the song; in it he discussed his intention for the album in general and the title track in particular, calling for empathy above all else.[30] He said the profits from the album would support underserved communities in the Appalachian region, through Childers' Hickman Holler Appalachian Relief Fund.
On September 30, 2022, Childers released a triple album Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven?. The album is divided into three parts: Hallelujah, Jubilee, and Joyful Noise; eight songs are presented in three different ways (Jubilee versions for example have additional instruments added to the Hallelujah version).[31] The album charted at No. 8, which is Childers' first top 10 album on Billboard 200, based on 27,000 units earned in the first week.[32]
Childers released a new single in July 2023 titled "In Your Love", which was co-written with Geno Seale. The release was followed by the announcement of a new upcoming album Rustin' In the Rain. The accompanying music video for the single was written by Silas House and depicts a relationship between two gay coal miners in the 1950s.[33]Rustin' In the Rain was released on September 8, 2023. The album features a cover of S.G. Goodman's song "Space and Time".
Childers was announced as one of the headliners in the 2024 Bourbon & Beyond festival in his home state, taking place in Louisville in September.[34]
Musical style
Childers' music is influenced by his home state of Kentucky and its connection to country music and bluegrass.[17] He often writes about coal mining, which was his father's occupation, and its effects. Rebecca Bengal, writing for The Guardian, described Childers' songs as a "counternarrative to the outsiders who seek to perpetuate stereotypes of backwardness and poverty."[35] He emphasizes lyrical content in songs, comparing the songwriting process to telling short stories about past relationships and his youth.[36]
In January 2020, Childers spoke of his position on Americana during an interview with World Cafe:[37]
Everybody always talks about the state of country music and puts down commercial country and [says] "something's gotta be done" and "we need to be elevating artists that are doing more traditional country." But then we're not calling those artists country artists, they're getting put into this Americana thing. It is what it is, and I don't really know how to define what Americana is. We're our own thing, it's a new time, and I don't know what it's called but I've been calling it country, y'know? I think, a lot of times, it's kind of become just a costume.[1]
Personal life
In 2015, Childers married fellow performer Senora May, who is also a Kentucky native. In May 2022, they announced that they were expecting their first child.[38] Tyler and Senora started Hickman Holler Appalachian Relief Fund in 2020 to bring awareness and financial support for philanthropic efforts in the Appalachian Region.[39]
While not explicitly affiliated with any political party, Tyler Childers expressed support for coal miners' rights as well as same-sex marriage, in the music video of his 2023 song "In Your Love".[40] He supported Charles Booker's campaign for the U.S. Senate in 2022[41] and sang at the second inauguration of Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear.[42]
Childers has described himself in 2020 as a "recovering alcoholic" who had "drunk and drugged himself around the world playing music for the better part of eleven years." He noted in September 2020 that he had "six months of sobriety."[43] During a New Year's Eve performance in Lexington in 2023, Childers referenced drinking his last beer a day before he and Sturgill Simpson played a show at Rupp Arena[44] on February 28, 2020.[45]
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