They filmed themselves burning his T-shirts and concert tickets. How, they asked, had an artist who had come to represent the rural, working-class spirit of the mountain South put his stamp of approval on a gay romance? He no longer fit their stereotypical expectations of what an Appalachian singer - or person - believes and honors. It met an explosion of both praise - from many longtime fans and fellow artists like Brandi Carlile and Jason Isbell - and consternation from disgruntled listeners whose chief complaint was that Childers had “gone woke.” The ability to find a place of tranquillity would prove helpful a couple months later, after the release of the song’s video, which portrayed the first-ever gay romance and gay kiss in a country music video released by a major label. That stillness on his face wasn’t concentration as much as it was peace. Childers wasn’t performing this song - he was playing it for himself. Perhaps he was mesmerized by the rich notes of the old standard.
In a moment when there were no actors or crew around, Childers slipped into the notes of “Bonaparte’s Retreat.” His eyes were open but focused on the strings of the fiddle his face relaxed. Everyone was there to film a scene for the video of Childers’ latest single, “In Your Love,” co-written with Geno Seale. An occasional golf cart sped by, and a group of actors outfitted as 1950s-era coal miners marched along with picks and shovels propped on their shoulders. Childers wore a thin jacket but seemed unfazed by the chill or the activity. Outside, the cicadas screamed in the heat, but the mine was so cold that many crew members hurried about in coats. Tyler Childers sat alone, playing his fiddle, deep in a limestone mine near Cumberland Furnace, Tennessee.
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