Jamey Johnson Releases Song Written Two Decades Ago About Life Priorities
A new version of Jamey Johnson’s song “More Of What Matters” has been released, revisiting a track he co-wrote in 2007 with Keith Follese and Jon Stone. Produced by The Kent Hardly…
A new version of Jamey Johnson's song "More Of What Matters" has been released, revisiting a track he co-wrote in 2007 with Keith Follese and Jon Stone. Produced by The Kent Hardly Playboys, the recording presents the song with a renewed perspective shaped by time, experience, and maturity.
Johnson wrote the song nearly two decades ago but chose not to release it at the time. He recently re-recorded the track, explaining that it did not fit earlier albums and only now aligns with where he is personally and creatively.
"Back then, I wrote that from the perspective of somebody who needed to find more things that matter," Johnson said. "Looking back on a perspective of 20 years down the road, that guy was naive and didn't know the gravity of what he was writing. At this age, it hits home. It's time."
"(The Mavericks') Raul Malo was a dear friend and passed away at 60," he said. "There's a clock ticking on my life too, and I don't know when it will be over. I've got to reset my priorities and do what is important to me, or I will be a life unlived. I don't want to be too busy and distracted on the road to forget the things that really matter."
"I'm not really sure why I didn't, but I'm glad now that I didn't, so that I still have it to release today," said Johnson, who re-recorded a new version of the song for this release. "But I guess at the time I was focusing on something else."
Lyrically, "More Of What Matters" emphasizes that the most meaningful things in life are free, prioritizing people and moments over material wealth, with imagery centered on going "to heaven empty-handed."
Johnson has created and recorded over 50 new tracks at Cash Cabin Studios since releasing Midnight Gasoline in early 2024, and he anticipates releasing several of these songs to fans as anticipation builds, across multiple albums, over the coming months. He has extensive plans to collaborate with both Warner Records Nashville and Big Gassed Records, as well as to release additional albums through 2026.
Johnson married attorney Brittney Eakins in 2025, a milestone that coincides with a shift in priorities after decades of heavy touring. "Now there's a big part of me that wants to come home and focus on that for a while. I'm still going to tour, but I'm not going to do it so much, and not let it take me as much from home."
