Just in time for Mother’s Day, Dalton Dover has released a vulnerable ode to his mom, “I Wouldn’t Be Here.”
The heartfelt tune shows a new side of the Georgia native’s personality, praising his mother for standing by his side. The lyrics of the chorus tell how the singer wouldn’t be here if his mother hadn’t been there.
Listen Dalton Dover’s “I Wouldn’t Be Here” Below
“Every time I hit rock bottom / you pick me right back up / When I felt like I was nothing / You said son, you’re more than enough / And I’m the man I am today ‘cause you cared / I wouldn’t be here / If you hadn’t been there,” Dover sings on the tune.
Sharing a photo of himself as a baby with his mother in an Instagram post, Dover says “This Mother’s Day is all about my momma, I wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t been there… I love you 🤍 🌹”
The Aragon, Georgia native sat down with Music Mayhem to talk about the inspiration behind his latest release, how his current radio single “Giving Up on That” came to life, and more.
“My Mom Is Probably One Of My Biggest Advocates”
Dover wrote “I Wouldn’t Be Here” with Dan Isbell and Russell Sutton, bringing them the idea for the title.
“I really want to write it about my mom,” he told his co-writers. “My mom is probably one of the biggest advocates. She’s one of my biggest supporters. Me and my brother both, my sister… she’s our champion and I really wanted to capitalize on that.”
His mother was brought to tears when she heard it for the first time. Dover played her the song in his car, telling her, “I wrote this song for you for Mother’s Day and I just wanted to see what you thought about it.” He captured the tender moment on video, showing how his mother fought back tears with each line of the song and hugging him by the end of the chorus.
“Giving Up On That”
Dover currently has a single at country radio, “Giving Up On That,” which he wrote with Adam Craig and John Pierce. The trio were tossing around titles and Craig suggested “Giving Up On That” while humming a melody.
“And boom, it just fell out of the sky,” Dover recalls. “It’s definitely one of my favorite songs I’ve ever written.” He feels that the message is universal. “There are so many things that we can, as humans, give up on daily. Whether it be love, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, partying too much on Friday night. Sometimes you got to give up on that shit, but then sometimes some things you just don’t want to give up on, and that’s the kind of attitude I wanted to bring to the song.”
Reflecting on his own journey, Dover revealed what he gave up on that changed the direction of his life.
“I quit high school. I gave up on high school, but that was a really tough time for me. And that’s something I thought about whenever we were writing this, how I felt whenever I was giving up on something and I gave up on it. And now looking back, I don’t regret it, but it had to happen for me to be who I am today.”
Dalton Dover Had “Giving Up On That” For 9 Months Before Cutting It
Dover had the song for almost nine months before there were ever any discussions about cutting it.
“I was really excited about seeing this song come to life,” he recalls. “The demo was just so weird and really just really bright. The drums were just fake. You could tell they were fake. And I had a whole other idea for the song. I knew what I wanted the song to sound like, how we hear it today. That’s how I wanted it to sound… That was the dream that I had. That’s how I wanted it.”
Even though becoming an artist has been Dover’s dream, he didn’t realize it would happen so fast and how many people he would meet so quickly.
“This is what is the dream right here. And I don’t think I knew I’d meet so many people. I would shake so many hands. I would have to remember so many names. I have to remember so many faces. I never knew that I was going to have to do that until now. And I’m just like, holy shit, this is all happening so fast.”
Served As Support On Priscilla Block’s Tour Last Fall
Dover’s first tour was opening for Priscilla Block last fall, where he didn’t know what to expect.
“I went out and I was really nervous,” he admits. “I never really played in front of a crowd that large every single day.” He learned the importance of capturing – and holding – an audience’s attention. “I learned that people get bored really easy and you have to keep them very intrigued, whether it be singing, whether it be dancing around the stage, jumping around. I learned you just make wise decisions on stage and be careful what you say because it can really mess you up on TikTok,” he laughed.
With some touring experience under his belt, Dover says that his future shows will be “very rowdy, very honky tonk, but also it’s going to have that sweet side.”
Focusing On Music That Resonates With His Fans
Now that he is gaining some traction as a recording artist, Dover says he’s focusing on writing music that his audience will feel.
“Before I signed my deal, I was literally just writing songs that would go viral. And now I feel like we’ve done that enough to where now I can write songs that I love, or songs that I feel, and songs that are going to, whenever I sing ’em for an audience, that they’re going to feel ’em also. I feel like I could show a different side of myself now and not just TikTok. It’s not just TikTok.”
Authenticity is the name of the game these days. “If I’m singing it, it means something in my world. And whether it be a heartbreak song, a fun song, sad song, anything, it means something in my world if I’m singing it.”
