1
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- I just wanted to know 
what your inspiration was,

2
00:00:02,700 --> 00:00:04,200
for How You Dance.

3
00:00:04,200 --> 00:00:05,566
- Oh, for I Hope You Dance?

4
00:00:05,566 --> 00:00:07,033
- [Audience Member] I 
Hope You Dance, yeah.

5
00:00:07,033 --> 00:00:08,200
- Oh, you know, I 
didn't write it.

6
00:00:09,100 --> 00:00:10,400
Mark Sanders and Tia Sillers,

7
00:00:10,400 --> 00:00:12,166
two writers from 
Nashville, wrote it.

8
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It was written 
about her divorce,

9
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which people don't know.

10
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But for me, when 
I heard the song,

11
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and I have to decide, you know,

12
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"I didn't write this, 
so is this something

13
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"that I would wanna sing,

14
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"is this something that 
makes sense for me to sing,

15
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"that I can convey believably?"

16
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I thought about my children,

17
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and what I wanted 
for them in life.

18
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That was the first thing 
that popped into my mind.

19
00:00:33,433 --> 00:00:35,766
- And that's the 
calculation that you make

20
00:00:35,766 --> 00:00:38,400
when you're presented with 
somebody else's words,

21
00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:40,300
is, "Can I pull this off?

22
00:00:40,300 --> 00:00:43,266
"Can this sound credible 
coming out of my mouth?"

23
00:00:43,266 --> 00:00:45,133
Well, that seems 
like a perfectly

24
00:00:45,133 --> 00:00:46,666
reasonable way to approach it.

25
00:00:46,666 --> 00:00:50,233
You probably have declined 
to sing really good songs--

26
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- Or hit songs.

27
00:00:51,766 --> 00:00:55,500
- So give us an example 
of one song that you wish,

28
00:00:55,500 --> 00:00:57,766
if you'd go back in 
the world of "I regret,

29
00:00:57,766 --> 00:00:59,000
"if I could go back 
and then do it,"

30
00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:01,233
tell us a song 
that you passed on

31
00:01:01,233 --> 00:01:03,033
that ultimately became 
a hit for somebody else.

32
00:01:03,033 --> 00:01:07,433
- I don't know if there 
was a song that I regret.

33
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But there were many 
that I passed on

34
00:01:09,133 --> 00:01:10,666
that became hits 
for other people.

35
00:01:10,666 --> 00:01:12,933
- But you never went, "Oh god, 
I wish I could do that over"?

36
00:01:12,933 --> 00:01:13,866
- No. 
- 'Cause you made the right

37
00:01:13,866 --> 00:01:14,933
decision at the right time.

38
00:01:14,933 --> 00:01:16,433
- Yeah. 
- I like that attitude.

39
00:01:16,433 --> 00:01:17,900
(Lee Ann laughing)

40
00:01:17,900 --> 00:01:20,266
- I don't know if you 
wanna go this way or not,

41
00:01:20,266 --> 00:01:23,266
but I have a question, I've 
always been curious about

42
00:01:23,266 --> 00:01:26,766
the audience that you 
see for country music

43
00:01:26,766 --> 00:01:30,700
and the connection to 
possible politics or beliefs--

44
00:01:30,700 --> 00:01:32,300
- [Host] Politics always 
comes up on this show.

45
00:01:32,300 --> 00:01:35,400
- It does, yeah, but I mean 
do you see a difference

46
00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:39,200
or is the music generally 
for both sides of the aisle,

47
00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,566
so to say, or do you 
see a split with,

48
00:01:42,566 --> 00:01:44,833
you were talking about 
growing up in churches

49
00:01:44,833 --> 00:01:49,800
and gospel music, does that 
open up to more diversity?

50
00:01:51,033 --> 00:01:53,200
I'm just asking kind of 
a real general question.

51
00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:58,166
- You know, I don't know, but 
I hope there's not a split,

52
00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:01,233
because if there's 
one thing that

53
00:02:01,233 --> 00:02:02,866
can bring everybody together 
it's music, you know?

54
00:02:02,866 --> 00:02:04,666
- Audience is audience, 
no matter who they are,

55
00:02:04,666 --> 00:02:05,700
no matter what they believe.

56
00:02:05,700 --> 00:02:06,933
- Yeah, yeah.

57
00:02:06,933 --> 00:02:09,400
- You've stayed largely 
clear of that tendency

58
00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:11,133
these days to get more 
involved politically.

59
00:02:11,133 --> 00:02:13,333
I remember you played 
at President Bush's

60
00:02:13,333 --> 00:02:15,533
second Republican 
convention, right,

61
00:02:15,533 --> 00:02:17,200
when he was being renominated.

62
00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:18,833
But other than that 
I'm not aware of you

63
00:02:18,833 --> 00:02:22,266
or your music in any way 
getting caught up in the--

64
00:02:22,266 --> 00:02:24,566
- No, I did that 'cause 
he's a Texan (laughs).

65
00:02:26,966 --> 00:02:30,500
- So the next Texan, we can 
count on you coming back?

66
00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:32,233
- Well, probably, probably.

67
00:02:32,233 --> 00:02:33,433
- [Host] Depends upon 
who it is, probably,

68
00:02:33,433 --> 00:02:34,933
like everything else.

69
00:02:34,933 --> 00:02:36,066
- Maybe it'll be me. 
- Sir.

70
00:02:36,066 --> 00:02:37,533
- I wanna test your memory.

71
00:02:37,533 --> 00:02:39,066
What do you remember about 
South Plains College?

72
00:02:39,066 --> 00:02:40,566
- Right, so you went 
from Jacksonville

73
00:02:40,566 --> 00:02:42,133
to South Plains 
College in Levelland

74
00:02:42,133 --> 00:02:43,800
before going on to 
Belmont University,

75
00:02:43,800 --> 00:02:44,966
right, in Nashville.

76
00:02:44,966 --> 00:02:45,900
So you went to 
South Plains College

77
00:02:45,900 --> 00:02:47,166
immediately after high school.

78
00:02:47,166 --> 00:02:48,700
Yeah, what do you 
remember about that?

79
00:02:48,700 --> 00:02:49,800
What do you remember about 
that part of the state?

80
00:02:49,800 --> 00:02:51,633
Very different from east Texas.

81
00:02:51,633 --> 00:02:54,233
- It is, the people though 
are still great, you know.

82
00:02:55,566 --> 00:02:57,166
But yes, it's very different.

83
00:02:57,166 --> 00:02:59,733
What do I remember about it?

84
00:02:59,733 --> 00:03:03,166
I remember that that was 
the first time in my life

85
00:03:03,166 --> 00:03:06,266
that I was surrounded 
by people like me,

86
00:03:06,266 --> 00:03:08,400
because when I was growing up,

87
00:03:08,400 --> 00:03:10,200
everybody thought I was weird

88
00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:12,300
'cause I wanted to 
go be a country star.

89
00:03:14,133 --> 00:03:15,800
And I wanted out of 
there and everybody else

90
00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:18,133
wanted to stay right 
there in that town.

91
00:03:19,333 --> 00:03:20,966
And so I remember 
being around people

92
00:03:20,966 --> 00:03:23,566
who were a little bit 
weird and different

93
00:03:23,566 --> 00:03:26,166
and sat around 
listened to music 24/7.

94
00:03:26,166 --> 00:03:27,500
- It's like living in Austin.

95
00:03:27,500 --> 00:03:29,000
(Lee Ann laughing)

96
00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:30,966
I don't know that "Keep 
Levelland Weird" works.

97
00:03:30,966 --> 00:03:33,833
(Lee Ann laughing) 
That's okay, ma'am?

98
00:03:33,833 --> 00:03:37,100
- Hi Lee Ann, my 
sister and I are here,

99
00:03:37,100 --> 00:03:38,600
we both grew up in 
Jacksonville too,

100
00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:41,833
Kirkendall-Dolans, and so 
we just wanted to say hi

101
00:03:41,833 --> 00:03:43,433
and we love your music. 
- Aw, thank you.

102
00:03:43,433 --> 00:03:44,800
- But I wanted to 
hear about some of

103
00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:46,333
your favorite 
memories, growing up in

104
00:03:46,333 --> 00:03:48,100
our small town of Jacksonville.

105
00:03:48,100 --> 00:03:49,633
- [Host] What do you remember?

106
00:03:49,633 --> 00:03:53,533
- Oh, (sighs) I remember 
driving around a lot,

107
00:03:53,533 --> 00:03:55,433
there was not a lot to do,

108
00:03:55,433 --> 00:03:57,333
so we would drive around.

109
00:03:59,033 --> 00:04:01,000
We drank a lot of beer.

110
00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:04,000
(audience laughing)

111
00:04:06,500 --> 00:04:07,900
And I remember just 
thinking, you know,

112
00:04:07,900 --> 00:04:11,300
"I'm gonna go to Nashville 
and make records"

113
00:04:11,300 --> 00:04:13,233
and just dreamed about 
that all the time.

114
00:04:13,233 --> 00:04:15,200
- Did you think to yourself, 
"I have to get out of here"?

115
00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:16,933
- Oh yeah. 
(audience laughing)

116
00:04:16,933 --> 00:04:18,433
- Which these days, 
one of the persistent

117
00:04:18,433 --> 00:04:20,333
conversations in Texas 
is that rural communities

118
00:04:20,333 --> 00:04:22,200
are losing population, 
that counties

119
00:04:22,200 --> 00:04:24,600
are losing population, 
the urban areas

120
00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:26,133
of Texas are growing 
and part is because

121
00:04:26,133 --> 00:04:27,366
kids grow up in 
these communities,

122
00:04:27,366 --> 00:04:28,800
they drive around, 
drink a lot of beer,

123
00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:31,400
and then they go off to college 
and they don't come back.

124
00:04:31,400 --> 00:04:33,000
That was kind of what you 
thought you would do also,

125
00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:34,533
go away and not come back.

126
00:04:36,033 --> 00:04:39,100
- Yeah, I mean, I love it,

127
00:04:39,100 --> 00:04:40,700
I have a lot of friends there,

128
00:04:42,133 --> 00:04:44,000
but that's what I 
mostly remember,

129
00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:47,033
was going to the lake-- 
- I was gonna say the lake.

130
00:04:47,033 --> 00:04:48,300
(audience laughing)

131
00:04:48,300 --> 00:04:50,000
- The Tomato Bowl. 
- The Tomato Bowl.

132
00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:52,566
- [Host] It was a simpler 
time then too, right?

133
00:04:52,566 --> 00:04:53,800
- Yeah. 
- I mean, we're the same age,

134
00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:55,133
I know when you grew 
up in Jacksonville

135
00:04:55,133 --> 00:04:57,033
and at that point it 
was a vastly different

136
00:04:57,033 --> 00:04:58,400
world than it is today.

137
00:04:58,400 --> 00:05:00,733
- It was, I mean, 
obviously with the internet

138
00:05:00,733 --> 00:05:02,433
it changed everything.

139
00:05:02,433 --> 00:05:06,333
So you go back there now and 
people are more connected

140
00:05:06,333 --> 00:05:08,933
than we were at that time, 
to the rest of the world.

141
00:05:08,933 --> 00:05:12,500
- Well, one result of 
that I think is that

142
00:05:12,500 --> 00:05:14,600
younger people grow 
up faster, right?

143
00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:16,066
Younger people are 
much more aware

144
00:05:16,066 --> 00:05:17,333
of the outside world.

145
00:05:17,333 --> 00:05:18,566
I'm not sure that's a 
positive around here.

146
00:05:18,566 --> 00:05:19,633
- I don't think 
it is (chuckles).

147
00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:22,066
- We're very fortunate to have

148
00:05:22,066 --> 00:05:23,966
such a nice and talented 
person as Lee Ann Womack

149
00:05:23,966 --> 00:05:24,900
here with us today.

150
00:05:24,900 --> 00:05:26,066
Please give her a big hand.

151
00:05:26,066 --> 00:05:27,833
(audience applauding) 
- Thank you.

152
00:05:27,833 --> 00:05:29,333
- [Host] Thank 
you all for coming

153
00:05:29,333 --> 00:05:30,800
and we'll see you again soon.