Indiana-born, Nashville-based rising star Stephen Wilson Jr. releases the official music video for “Cuckoo” from his critically-acclaimed debut double album søn of dad (Big Loud Records). Directed by Tim Cofield, the clip paints a psychedelic picture of life in an Indiana holler featuring a frenetic dive bar performance from Joey Breaux, a Midwestern Gothic family scene and HARDY + Wilson Jr. playing catch with a ball of fire.
Wilson Jr. is currently in the midst of the entirely sold-out 2025 U.S. run of his søn of dad tour with stops in Detroit, Toronto and more. Earlier this month, it was announced that he will join HARDY on his Jim Bob World Tour on select dates from May through September, including the final show at Madison Square Garden. Find a full list of tour dates below and at stephenwilsonjr.com.
“‘If one don’t drive ya then the other one will…’ running on cognitive American fumes at times,” shares Wilson Jr. “we’re all afraid of something. this video is a fiery glance at the ones whom haven’t given up but have given up on the game. these are not actors. a kaleidoscope of humans living and being. unashamed of their shame. ‘cuckoo…’”
“‘Cuckoo’ is the eighth video SWJ and I have made together,” shares Director Tim Cofield. “While ‘Holler from the Holler’ was the most ambitious concept we’ve co-directed, ‘Cuckoo’ is a planet in its own solar system. All these ideas come from Stephen’s brain. For example, the character driving backwards in the truck. Stephen actually knows a guy who has to drive to work backwards ‘cause his truck only drives in reverse. My favorite thing about the ‘Cuckoo’ video is that all these characters you see are real people, not actors. There’s also some easter eggs hidden in there for diehard fans (look for wolf heads and aliens).”
Already this year, Wilson Jr. has released a deluxe edition of søn of dad featuring two new tracks taken from his viral Live at the Print Shop performance: the moving dedication to his late father “I’m A Song” and a gripping reinterpretation of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me,” as well as 10 acoustic versions of fan favorites from the LP. The Tennessean also named Wilson Jr. as one of the Top Nashville artists to watch in 2025, following his late year appearances on Bert Kreischer’s Bertcast and The Dan Patrick Show. He also previously released his interpretation of “Stand By Me”, which was called “the cover you need to hear” by Rolling Stone and has garnered over 20 million views across social media.
In 2024, Wilson Jr.’s career skyrocketed with his late night television debut on NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers, followed by performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’s #LateShowMeMusic series and Later… with Jools Holland. Last fall, CBS News’ Jeff Glor traveled to Nashville for Wilson Jr.’s first major television interview, which was followed by a performance of three songs on CBS Saturday Morning. Last year, Wilson Jr. also shared the stage with Brothers Osborne, The Cadillac Three, Midland and HARDY, the latter of which appeared on the duet version of “Father’s Søn” released last year.
