Interview: Jacob Tolliver on His New Single “Rad Daddy”

Country Music Hall of Famer Bobby Bare penned the new song.

Written by Amanda Tempel

Published: October 23, 2026

The Ohio River runs through a region with a remarkable musical history, one that includes Roy Rogers, Earl Thomas Conley, Cowboy Copas, and Bobby Bare. Pianist Jacob Tolliver also grew up in southern Ohio, where he became an advocate for recognizing the area's musical heritage. 

In Jacob's hometown of Portsmouth, a historic floodwall features an extensive collection of murals depicting the city's history. Wanting to see the region's musicians represented, Jacob helped spearhead an effort to establish a music-themed panel. A fundraising concert brought together Jacob, songwriter Rick Ferrell, Ricky Skaggs, and Bobby Bare. It was there that Jacob first met Bobby, and the two stayed in touch over the years. 

Years later, their friendship would bring them together on a recording. 

During a phone call, Bobby told Jacob, “I wrote you a song.” 

Jacob recalled Bobby's words: 

“I'm 91 years old and I haven't done anything in 10 years. I miss being on that stage and I miss being in that studio and I miss writing those songs.” 

Although Bobby felt too old to return to performing or recording, songwriting was another matter. 

“But I'm not too old to write a song and help my young friends out.” 

That song was “Rad Daddy,” released October 23 and recorded with acclaimed producer Buddy Cannon. 

When Jacob heard the title, Bobby encouraged him to hear him out. 

“He's like, 'You know the kids say rad again,'” Jacob recalled. 

The lyrics also included the acronym GOAT, meaning greatest of all time. 

“He goes, 'I got it all in there.'” 

Bobby initially sang portions of the song to Jacob over the phone and asked him to come work on it with Buddy Cannon. 

Jacob visited Bobby's house on a Tuesday to learn the song, but initially struggled to figure out how he wanted to perform it. 

After spending roughly an hour to an hour and a half working on the song with Bobby, Jacob had a better idea of how he wanted to approach it. He took the song home to work on overnight. 

The following day, they went into the studio and recorded it in just a couple of takes. 

Backstory: Jacob Tolliver

Jacob Tolliver's earliest musical memories go back to when he was just two or three years old. He remembers having a tiny Casio keyboard and the baby grand piano in his great-grandmother's living room. 

“I don't even know what initially drew me to it,” Jacob admitted. 

“It was just like something that was just always there.” 

His interest in music developed in a rather unusual way. Instead of listening to the popular music of his childhood, Jacob was fascinated by recordings from decades before he was born. 

“I was so weird. I still am. I started music chronologically,” Jacob recalled. “I hated modern music. I didn't even like 50s and 60s. I mean, I thought that was junk.” 

Jacob's musical interests began with recordings from the 1920s and earlier. From there, he discovered Bing Crosby, the big bands of the 1940s, and eventually Elvis Presley, describing “this huge Elvis phase” he went through as a child. 

“Now I like everything,” he said. 

By high school, Jacob's piano playing had caught the attention of a friend who had an interest in videography and was determined to get him on YouTube. Jacob wasn't particularly interested in the idea. 

“I thought, what a dumb thing. Who sees it? And finally he kind of pestered me enough. Thankfully he did.” 

After school one day, they recorded a video in the school music room. It became something they continued doing whenever they found the time. 

“We would ditch the school dance and go knock out five songs real quick, or we'd find time to sneak away and record stuff,” Jacob recalled. “I had this whole catalog just kind of sitting on YouTube, but nobody was viewing it.” 

Then, while preparing to attend Ohio State University, Jacob received an unexpected notification. 

“I get home from work one day. I was working at a little local pizza shop, and I get a notification on my e-mail from YouTube saying that somebody had commented on my video. I'm like, what in the world? Who's watching, who's commenting?” 

The comment came from a casting agency in Las Vegas interested in having him audition for Million Dollar Quartet, a Broadway musical Jacob was already familiar with. 

“I call them the next day and they pretty much say, 'Hey, kid, we want to fly you out tomorrow for an audition.'” 

Jacob was 17, and his parents spoke with the casting agency to make sure the opportunity was legitimate before he traveled to Las Vegas. The audition went well enough that he was asked to extend his stay. 

“That was a fun phone call, calling your parents saying, hey, I need to stay in Vegas an extra day.” 

He returned home and turned 18 the following Thursday. On Friday, the casting agency called with an offer. He had landed the job. 

Instead of dorm rooms and college classes at Ohio State, Jacob was headed for the bright lights of Las Vegas. 

Jacob portrayed Jerry Lee Lewis in Million Dollar Quartet and later spent ten years opening shows for the rock and roll pioneer on tour. 

“When I first started going on the road with him, he would kind of critique my show,” Jacob recalled. “He would have the backstage monitor turned up and he would kick people out so he could listen to my show.” 

Lewis would often have a suggestion waiting for Jacob when he returned backstage. 

“He'd say, 'Now killer, I kind of like the way you went to that second part there, but maybe next time you should try it like this.'” 

“He'd always have some little tip on something to change,” Jacob explained. 

He continued, “For 10 years the guy was like my grandfather.” 

Jacob had also developed a friendship with Randy Travis and his wife, Mary. They had known each other for several years when Jacob received an invitation to perform at a special show honoring the Country Music Hall of Famer. 

To choose his song, Jacob went through Randy's entire catalog, from his first album to his most recent. He kept returning to “Honky Tonk Side of Town,” an album cut from the 1990s that gave him room to put his own spin on Randy's music. 

The song went over well at the first show. 

“One invite turned into a lot,” Jacob recalled. 

As he continued performing the song, Jacob and his team began talking about recording it. 

“We were like, man, we need to go into the studio and record this thing.” 

They reached out to Randy's longtime producer, Kyle Lehning, who agreed to work on the song. The recording session ultimately produced five tracks, with Randy himself joining them in the studio. 

“Randy came into the studio and was a part of it,” Jacob shared. “It was a great day. It was really incredible.” 

Jacob released his version of “Honky Tonk Side of Town” as a single on July 18, 2025, accompanied by an official music video featuring footage from the recording session. 

What's Next for Jacob Tolliver 

With “Rad Daddy” now released, more music from Jacob is on the horizon. He has around 15 recorded songs for an album in the works. 

Following recent songwriting sessions in Nashville, he's also looking at returning to the studio with producer Kyle Lehning early next year to record another batch of songs. 

“More writing, more recording,” Jacob said, adding that he also has several shows planned around Christmas. 

Fans can listen to Jacob's music on Spotify and other streaming platforms, follow him on social media under Jacob Tolliver, and visit his website for updates on upcoming performances. 

Listen to Jacob Tolliver's new single, “Rad Daddy” on Apple Music.

All photos courtesy of 117 Entertainment.