Thomas Rhett is a singer-songwriter who's given us megahits like "Marry Me" and "Where We Started". It certainly seems like he was born to write songs that both get us out of our seats and touch our emotions. But the road to getting where he is today wasn't always an easy one.
When you have a goal in mind, you tend to let everyone in your support system know what you're planning, but especially your parents. At one point, even country star Rhett had to break the news to his mother that he was going to take what many might consider a nontraditional path to the stardom he envisioned. That meant dropping out of college to make his dreams come true.
During a recent appearance on podcast Got It from My Momma, Rhett's mother Paige Lankford recounted the time Rhett came to her and let her know what he felt he needed to do if he wanted to pursue music seriously. Speaking to Jennifer Vickery Smith, Lankford revealed the difficult conversations the pair had, going back and forth about Rhett's ambitious plans.
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"There was that dreaded day where he came home and said, 'Mom, you need to sit down,'" said Lankford. "I sat down, and he said, 'I'm going to drop out of school.' He was a junior. He said, 'I want to drop out of school and sign this writing deal.' And I was like, 'No, no, no.'"
Obviously, Lankford eventually gave in, and Rhett skyrocketed to stardom. He's amassed 20 multi-platinum and gold-certified No. 1 hits and a staggering 12 billion streams. But at the time, there weren't any sure indicators that Rhett would end up becoming the superstar he is now.
"I'm like, 'No, you need to finish school,'" Lankford continued. "He was only 19 or 20 years old. Just finish school and then do it. It'll still be there." Rhett had made it very clear at this point that he didn't want to be in school, and was planning to follow in his country music star father Rhett Akins' footsteps. He was adamant that music was "what he wanted to do."
"I tried a few more times and then I did go and sit across from the guy who had signed him to the writing deal," Lankford conceded. "And I said, 'You know, how would you feel if your child was dropping out of school to go be a songwriter?'" Eventually, Lankford gave in, as we know, and the rest is history. But this just goes to show, sometimes your favorite stars go through many of the same struggles you do, especially when it comes to agreeing how you'll spend your career (or burgeoning one).
READ MORE: Thomas Rhett's Kids: Meet the Country Superstar's Four Daughters
