Scotty McCreery‘s wife, Gabi, might be a nurse by trade, but he trusts her more than anyone else when it comes to his music. The singer-songwriter praises Gabi, whom he wed in 2018, for how she supports and inspires every aspect of his career.

“She’s right there in the middle of it. She’s my right-hand gal,” McCreery told Everything Nash and other outlets at a recent media event. “She hears every demo first. She hears the non-edited, work-tape version, when it’s just me and a bad vocal and a guitar. She’s really honest, and she’s great about ideas and what she’s thinking.”

Gabi has not only influenced a lot of McCreery’s songs, but she also helps him put his albums together, including his forthcoming, still-untitled project.

“A lot of times when I’m trying to put a record together — we do this in the setlist on the road too — I’ll write all the titles down, because I’m a visual guy,” McCreery expalined. “I’ll cut them out in individual pieces, and then I work them around to get the flow of the album, and also what fits, and what doesn’t fit … She was right there with me, moving songs around, and helping me decide what would fit, what wouldn’t fit.

“She’ll tell you, ‘Sometimes he’ll listen to me, and sometimes he couldn’t care less,'” he added with a laugh. “But she’s right there in the middle of helping me make those decisions.”

Ever since McCreery’s freshman as Clear as Day record came out in 2011, Gabi has been with McCreery. Although not necessarily immune to the songs he’s written about her, like “This Is It,” “You Time,” “It Matters To Her” and more, it’s a song on his new record, about their son, Avery, that got her the most.

 

“As far as love songs go, I think she’s heard them,” McCreery said. “She’s been there. That’s kind of how I started dating her in the first place, was casting her as the lead role in ‘The Trouble With Girls’ video. She’s been there from the beginning and heard them all. But when she heard Avery’s song that’s on the record, that’s when the waterworks hit.”

Although McCreery is busier than ever, with plenty of concert dates on the calendar, along with putting the finishing touches on his next album, the North Carolina native still makes sure his first priority is his family.

“If I’m off, I’m off,” McCreery maintained. “And if I’m home, I’m with the family … This has probably been the busiest year of my life, as far as the road and making an album.”

“Cab In A Solo,” McCreery’s debut single from his new record, is in the Top 35. Find music and tour dates at ScottyMcCreery.com.

Read ‘Scotty McCreery: 11 Things to Know About the Country Music Star’ here.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of NBC