Riley Green Reveals How Life On His Farm Fuels His Music
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Coinciding with the release of Riley Green‘s fourth studio album, That’s Just Me, the country crooner was featured with a digital cover on Country Living.
One of the major themes of this profile of Green is his authenticity, and that’s reflected by the way he enjoys to disconnect, as well as the inspiration he gains from being on his farm in Jacksonville, Alabama.
Of course, life on a farm also includes some farm critters, as well as time with his trusty Corgi, Carl.
“With a lot of the craziness going on in the world, there’s some comfort in this kind of living,” Green told Country Living.
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See What Life On Riley Green’s Farm Is Like
For Country Living to do its profile on Riley Green, they met with him on his farm in his hometown of Jacksonville, Alabama.
In this rural area that he has now made his own, Green has embraced his roots while forging his own path.
In fact, his farm is on land that was once owned by his great-uncle, Bill.
“I grew up running around in these woods for years when I was a kid, even before they were mine,” Green recalled. “For me to be able to get a farm like this and make it a really nice, enjoyable place for people to come hang out, it’s less about me enjoying it now, more about my family having a place to all gather. And for me, as much as I’m gone, that’s more important now than ever.”
When he’s not performing at concerts, recording new music, or coaching on NBC’s The Voice, it’s his time with family that he cherishes most.
Country Living describes his farm as giving “man cave vibes,” at least upon first inspection, but noted that there’s a consistency in Green’s taste as well as a heart for accommodating family.
Sure, he’s got his trophies and football memorabilia from his days as a quarterback for the Gamecocks at Jacksonville State University on display, as well as a car collection, but he’s also ensured that he has every surface in his home made from either wood or leather.
Yes, he’s got some rocking chairs, but they’re positioned by an unpretentious potbellied stove.
There’s also a blackjack room, but he balances that out with a loft that includes a bunkbed for his niece and nephew.
Admitting that life as a country artist “would make anybody a little reclusive and a little stingy of their time,” Green stated, “Obviously, I don’t even see my family that much. So I always spend a day or two and kind of catch up with everybody, take everybody out to dinner. If my niece and nephew are around, they always run around over here. So I love to have them over a little bit.”
As surrounding parcels of land become available, Green told Country Living that he’s been purchasing them to increase his acreage, adding:
“I can remember sitting right here on a bucket. There wasn’t a barn here. I looked at this going, ‘Man, a lake would work out there if I kind of pushed that up and did this,’ and now there’s a lake there. I remember sitting on the tractor up here on the side of the hill thinking, ‘Maybe it’d be nice to kind of dig into this and build a fire pit and a little tee box, hit golf balls across the lake,’ and now it’s a waterfall up there.”
Now, he has all of these things that he dreamt of when he first got the land, but he also has a busy life when he’s not on the farm.
When he’s free from his responsibilities, Green said that his “biggest disconnect” is working on his land, saying that “getting on a bulldozer, a tractor, and tilling up or bush-hogging or planting something or clearing roads” will usually do the trick.
He then added, “You forget you have a phone when you’re out there. There’s no point bringing it with you. You can’t get any service anyway.”
From out of this hard work on the land, he says his music begins to take shape.
Speaking on the solitude of farm life, he told Country Living, “It’s gonna influence everything I do musically. I’m probably more mindful about it now than I used to be, because when I started writing songs, it was just because I got tired of playing the same covers every week. But I wrote from a place that was very relatable to a lot of people who grew up the way I did. I had a great family around me that influenced me in a lot of ways.”
He then said:
“When I started having a little success and signed a record deal, I went to town and started writing with great writers. I realized that I need to make sure I always come back to this place for inspiration, because that’s what got me here. It’s more important now than ever that I come home, and this is where I write not only my favorite songs, but a lot of my biggest songs are written in this barn right here.”
Alongside that feature, Country Living made several videos showing life on his farm.
In the profile, it was noted that his dog, a Corgi named Carl, has a girlfriend, named Carol Anne, and that they had two puppies.
There’s also a yellow Lab named Jazz, as well as Highland cows, chickens, pigs, goats, and more.
See Green interacting with some of the farm critters, here:
Country Living also recorded a fun video in which Riley Green shares some animal superlatives, including which animal is CEO of the farm, and more.
Watch Riley Green talk about his animals, here:
Riley Green also answered a series of questions about his country lifestyle for a video made by Country Living, which can be seen, here:
Access the full Country Living profile on Green, titled “Riley Green Takes Us Inside the Alabama Farm That Keeps Him Grounded,” here.
See more of Riley Green’s farm, as featured in a 2023 video by Polaris Off Road, here:
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