Thomas Rhett kicks off The Center Point Road tour this weekend with back-to-back shows at The Wharf Amphitheater in Orange Beach Alabama on Friday and Saturday.

Thomas is super excited to be heading back to the stage, and can’t wait to play the music off of his Country Again: Side A album for the fans – like his number-one hit “What’s Your Country Song?”

But there’s actually one song that the crowds at Thomas’ shows might not get to hear.

On an album filled with deeply personal songs for him, “Heaven Right Now” is even more so.

Thomas co-wrote the track about a very close friend of his and his wife Lauren, named Hunter, that sadly passed away nearly a decade ago.

But even to this day Thomas thinks about his friend all the time, “Yeah, I wear this bracelet…I’ve had this bracelet on for about 8 years now it’s got his initials on it so…and I’m reminded of him every single day and he was like a brother to my wife and one of the most amazing humans in the world and one of those people that every time you walked into a room…it didn’t matter if you were having the worst day in the world he made you smile and I think that is such an amazing quality to somebody can have it just to bring light into a room that maybe a little bit dark. So as we started writing this song I was like I can’t ride this not about him you know he’s the closest person to me that I’ve ever had passed away.”

With the emotional punch that the lyrics have on Thomas – and anyone else who listens to the song and relates it to their own life – he can’t imagine where he’d sing it in his show, “Yeah, I’m even debating whether I’m actually going to play it. It’s just one of those songs that’s like, do you play it first? No. Do you play in the middle? Probably not. Do you end the show with it? Absolutely not.”

Thomas Rhett’s Country Again: Side A includes the title track which is a Top-10 – and climbing – hit song…

Photo Courtesy of Valory Music Co