Certainly, it's hard to follow in the footsteps of your parents. It's even harder to blaze your own trail as a person. For Hank Williams Jr., there weren't any bigger shoes to fill than his dad's. It's something he admits in the past, especially at a time where he almost exclusively sings his father's greatest hits. When he was a kid, it's all fun and games. However, at some point, a man has to become a man and stand on his own. It's easier said than done for Hank.
Moreover, this extends to the demons they both fought. Hank Williams himself has a storied history with substance abuse, alcohol and drugs alike. The Grand Ole Opry kicks him out at the time because of the amount of times he performs drunk or not at all. Eventually, it gets the best of him and it leaves his son picking up the pieces and grappling with all that weight. It's hard to shake when everyone tells you it's the only way to be truly great.
People Don't Believe Hank Williams Jr. Can Escape His Dad's Shadow Without Battling Addiction
Hank Williams Jr. speaks in a 1987 interview for ABC's 20/20. There, the country legend explains some of the pressures he faced from those telling him to follow in his father's footsteps. Moreover, they tell him that his real life pain and struggles is what defines the songs more than anything. "It was always, 'Your daddy went through this stuff. You'll have to go through it. We have to go through these things.'Depression, you know that's a big sport to a lot of people I think. It was just drilled into me a lot," he recalls.
Hank Jr. comes to the brink of death more than a few times over the years, drowning in whiskey, indulging in pills. Essentially, he's doing what everyone in the industry always told him to do. Be great like the old man, follow in his footsteps. Eventually, he attempts to kill himself in a quiet cabin in Alabama with a bunch of pills.
However, the attempt fails and the doctor shoots it to Hank straight. The trajectory he's on, he'll die before his dad did. Hank recounts, "[The Doctor] said, 'Let me just lay it out there for you. You've been taught from the time you can possibly remember to look like, act like, be like, everything exactly like your legendary father.' He said, 'They've done a damn good job.' He said, 'And you're going to beat him because he died at 29. You're going to die at 26.'"
Thankfully, Hank Jr. finds peace that he can't be his old man. Only then, he could say he truly stepped out of his dad's shadow.
