Darius Rucker on his new memoir Life's Too Short, lifting other country artists up, and loving Post Malone

Darius Rucker has done a whole lot of living, and his new memoir is proof. Life’s Too Short, which is available in stores and online now, lays bare the roses and thorns on his road to stardom, from singing in his mother’s kitchen to being the frontman of Hootie and the Blowfish to achieving his lifelong dream of becoming a bonafide country artist.

Across 23 chapters named after songs that defined his experiences — both his own and more from the likes of Stevie Wonder, R.E.M., Kiss, The Black Crowes, and Lou Reed — Rucker’s memoir reads like he’s telling you his life story over a beer, with voicey asides and wisecracks strewn throughout. And according to the “Wagon Wheel” singer, that’s exactly what he and co-writer Alan Eisenstock were going for. But between anecdotes about Woody Harrelson saving his life and dunking on teens at the YMCA while on tour, a pure, unabashed love for music permeates every page.

Entertainment Weekly sat down with Rucker to discuss free speech in country music, Post Malone, and swapping songs with his kids.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: I was really intrigued by how you titled each chapter based on a song. Did you pick the stories from your life first, or did you start with the music and use that as a launching point? 

RUCKER: Oh no… the music came along after the story was being told. I really don't remember music not being something I thought about all day every day since I was little. Once we started telling the story, we were talking about music, and [these chapters] were the songs that really affected my life.

Music is so embedded in your memories. Are there any songs that are too painful to revisit? Do you ever feel like you have to distance yourself from it? 

RUCKER: No, I don't let any of 'em go. The thing for me is… when those songs come on, I get the memory of good times when that song was in my life. Even if it's when I put on “For the Good Times” by Al Green, even though that song was my mom's favorite song, [it’s also] my favorite song, and every time I play it, I think of her. I miss my mom and I could let it go, but I don't want to let it go because it reminds me of her. 

Of all the milestones throughout your career, what do you wish your mom could have seen you do? 

RUCKER: Oh, that first Grammy. When I got back to my room after that… I just really lost it because that was the moment when she would've been my date [laughs]. That was the moment I really wish she'd gotten to see. 

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You mention throughout the book all these important performances that you've done with other artists that you really admire. You touch on getting to sing with Adele and Taylor Swift. I'm curious if there are any more modern artists that inspire you in a similar way as the songs that you based your book around? 

RUCKER: Oh, absolutely. Post Malone. I mean, he could poop on a record and I think I’d buy it [laughs]. I just think he's amazing.

His Bob Dylan covers are fabulous. 

RUCKER: Everything he does is fabulous. All the country stuff he does, I'm such a fan. He's the guy right now. My kids always play songs with me… I love what's happening in music right now. Of course, I wish rock n' roll wasn't dead. I wish there were still rock bands out there on the radio having big hits. But there's some really good stuff out there. 

You’re so clearly passionate about many genres. Why do you think performing country music was always your white whale? 

RUCKER: When I sing country music, I just really think that everything led up to this. Because just getting into country music and just doing what I did with the odds against me... and seeing all these other artists getting a shot, seeing Chapel Hart and Kane [Brown] just destroy it… and knowing I was a part of them getting a chance to get in there because finally, an African American had a no. 1 hit in country music after 25 years. That is why I think I was supposed to be here… to be a part of country music and to be a part of the change in country music. 

You mentioned country music is becoming more inclusive, which is excellent. But there were also some steps backward with the “Try That in a Small Town” song and things like that. How did it feel to witness that sort of division and progress at the same time?

RUCKER: I mean, division is part of a new American fabric right now. We're so divided as a country and it's sad to see. I don't want to say music is above that, but music is music. Everybody's going to make their music and say what they want to say, and that's the thing I love about our country. Freedom of speech… that's country music: You sing the songs you're going to sing and you stand by them. I’m not one to disparage anybody about freedom of speech. Even if I may not agree with you at all, I'll die for your right to say it. 

Honestly, reading your memoir and talking about your journey to becoming a country music artist, I guess for me it just always seemed so obvious. Maybe it's because I’ve always known you as a country artist, but when I listen to Hootie, it sounds like a country singer with a rock band.

RUCKER: There's something in the book that [music producer] Mike Duncan said: “I never got that Hootie thing, but I always thought you were a country singer.” And I’ve got to tell you, the big influence of that, especially for [Hootie] records, was Radney Foster. I mean, Al Green was my guy growing up, and then Randy hit me in the face in the ‘80s with Foster & Lloyd, and I wanted to sing like that guy. That's why when you hear [our] records, it's a country singer singing with a rock n’ roll band.

Why did you decide to write this memoir now? 

RUCKER: I always said I'd write it when my kids were old enough to handle it. I’ve had a great relationship with my kids, and there's nothing that they probably don't know [laughs]. I always said if I wrote it, I was just going to tell the truth. And that's what we did.