"I bawled the first time I listened to it" - Country star Nate Smith hopes his new song 'heals' people

Budding country music icon Nate Smith is mindful when building his projects because of how his work may affect his audience and fans. Fresh off the heels of dropping "Dads Don't Die" on May 23, Smith caught up with PEOPLE to discuss his complex feelings about the song.

"I bawled the first time I listened to it. I just wanted to make sure that I would be the right person to deliver the message."

The track was initially pitched to fellow country star Cole Swindell and written by Emily Weisband, Marc Beeson, and Allen Shamblin.

Nate Smith’s feelings regarding “Dad’s don’t die”

While Nate Smith did not write the lyrics for his latest song, he ultimately came to terms with the fact that he would have to be the one to sing it. The emotional and layered track is marked by redemption and the ability to forgive through love. It also drives home the message that even though people may depart, no one truly ever leaves us.

His initial weariness about taking ownership of the song stemmed from the complex and potentially heavy subject matter, but ultimately it did not deter Smith. Further complicating matters is the fact that Smith’s father is still around and the two shared an extremely complicated relationship in the past, despite now being on better footing.

"I mean, I still have my dad. We're best friends, but look, we had a rocky relationship growing up. And my dad would admit that too. It wasn't good. So, I had some forgiveness to work out."

In terms of the lyric that hits him the hardest, Smith isolated a specific section,

“ There’s gonna come a day you understand / that he was just a man / and you turned out all right."

Smith explained the reason he resonated with it to such an extent was that it showed him his father was not so different from himself as an adult.

"That's the line that gets me. Every time I hear it, it is so emotional. And I realize [my dad] was just a guy trying to figure it out … just like me."

Nate continued,

"Whether you've lost your dad or whether you need to heal from your dad, the overarching theme of the song is legacy. It's the idea that our fathers lived through us and the things that they taught us live through us."

When asked by PEOPLE about his thoughts on becoming a father someday, Smith was direct about his intentions,

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"I really want to be a father. I don't want to overdo it with my kids someday, but I know I want to encourage them and build them up."

It will be interesting to see how people will respond to the song and what it inspires creatively out of Nate in the future.

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