"He's Mine" is a song written by

Casey Beathard Casey Michael Beathard ( ; born December 2, 1965) is an American country music songwriter. The son of former NFL general manager Bobby Beathard, and father to current Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback C. J. Beathard, and country music artist Tuc ...

, Tim James, and Phil O'Donnell. It was originally recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Billy Ray Cyrus Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...

on his 2009 album ''

Back to Tennessee ''Back to Tennessee'' is the eleventh studio album released from country music singer Billy Ray Cyrus. The album was released on April 7, 2009, on Lyric Street Records. It is also the follow-up album to 2007s '' Home at Last''. Originally planned ...

''. The song was later recorded by

Rodney Atkins Rodney Allan Atkins (born March 28, 1969) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Curb Records in 1996, he charted his first single on the ''Billboard'' country chart in 1997, but did not release an album until 2003's '' ...

and released in November 2011 as the second single from his 2011 album ''

Take a Back Road ''Take a Back Road'' is the fourth studio album by American country music artist Rodney Atkins. It was released on October 4, 2011, by Curb Records. The album's first single, its title track", is the fastest-rising and sixth number one hit of Atk ...

''.

Background and Content

This song finds Atkins singing about the love between a father and a son. Atkins has a son named Elijah, who he previously wrote about in his 2006 single " Watching You." He told ''Billboard'' magazine, "That little boy I'm singing about in 'Watching You' — my 'four-year-old hosaid a four-letter word' — turned 10 this week. The song is one of the edgiest things I've ever cut. I think we blew up an amp. It's really about unconditional love." The song was originally going to be titled "She's Mine", with lyrics about a rebellious little girl. After Beathard, James, and O'Donnell all stumbled around for a bit with that concept, Beathard came up with idea of calling it "He's Mine" instead, as well as mixing together parts of their kids with memories of when they were young. " n this song, there'slittle parts of our place out here in

Hickman County, Tennessee Hickman County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 24,925. Its county seat is Centerville. Hickman County was part of the Nashville–Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolita ...

," O'Donnell told ''Taste of Country''. "We have a holler where the kids go to play pinball and shoot .22 rifles. Casey has a house by a big ol' holler in the Thompson Station area, and let's just say Tim is the kid smoking in the song when he was young aughs" Atkins told ''Taste Of Country'' that he first heard the tune in the mid-2000s while working on his ''

If You're Going Through Hell ''If You're Going Through Hell'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Rodney Atkins. It was released on July 18, 2006 by Curb Records. The album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) ...

'' album. "I loved the song," he said. "It seems like it's dark from the front of it, but it's not. I love the language. The way I grew up, I could see that happen ... the old man knocking on my front door, having him by the collar ... just kind of accusatory. I've been there, and I can see that picture in my head. I think it's very real, and it says it in a different way. If it can connect, that will be great, because I've seen that reaction live and I really believe in the song and what it says. It has got a different edge. I love the song."

Critical reception

Billy Dukes of ''Taste of Country'' gave the song three and a half stars out of five, calling it "the safe choice for the follow-up to '

' because it goes back to the formula that made Atkins a star three years ago." Matt Bjorke of ''Roughstock'' gave the song three stars out of five, writing that it has "an easy to digest melody" and "Rodney sings the melody well" but "it's not as immediately likable or memorable as 'Take a Back Road.'"

Music video

The music video was directed by Ry Cox and premiered in May 2012.

Chart performance

"He's Mine" debuted at number 57 on the U.S. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart for the week of November 19, 2011.

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2009 songs 2011 singles Billy Ray Cyrus songs Rodney Atkins songs Songs written by Casey Beathard Songs written by Tim James (country music songwriter) Song recordings produced by Mark Bright (record producer) Curb Records singles Songs written by Phil O'Donnell (songwriter)