Sam Hunt Channels Johnny Cash In New Video

Sam Hunt’s latest single is giving off major Johnny Cash vibes. The video for the country star’s song “Locked Up” contains nods and winks to The Man in Black’s famous Folsom Prison show back in 1968. This has not gone unnoticed by fans, who have clocked the similarities Sam is hinting at between him and Johnny. 

The song expresses Sam’s regret over his actions leading up to his scandalous arrest in 2019 for a DUI. Among the lyrics, Sam sings about everything going wrong that night and states that he should have just stayed at home. 

The video shows Sam performing for prisoners in the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary, Tennessee, in an homage to Johnny’s own prison gig. Throughout his performance for the inmates, Sam’s wife, Hannah Lee Fowler, looks on. 

RELATED: What Happened to Johnny Cash’s First Wife?

As well as an admission of regret, the song is a tribute to his wife for sticking by his side through his arrest. He sings about picking up the phone to tell Hannah what he has done. 

He even admits to thinking that she would “walk away” after he told her. However, Hannah continued to support Sam during his darkest time. In the song, Sam referred to his wife as Tammy Wynette, the singer of the classic hit Stand By Your Man. 

Sam was arrested in November 2019. He was taken to the Metro jail, where he was confirmed to be well over the driving limit. 

After pleading guilty to misdemeanor charges, he served 48 hours in another facility and lost his license for a year. He also had to complete an alcohol safety course as part of his sentencing.

Hannah Accused Sam of Cheating on Her

Although Hannah stuck by him through that difficult time, things were not all smooth sailing for the couple. According to People, Hannah actually filed for divorce in early 2022. 

It was also reported that Hannah alleged that Sam had cheated on her. In court documents obtained by TMZ, she claimed that Sam was guilty of “inappropriate marital conduct” and “adultery.”

At the time, she was pregnant with the couple’s first child, which was only revealed as part of the early divorce proceedings. But by April of that year, Hannah had a change of heart and requested that the court dismiss her case. 

The following month, she gave birth to the couple’s daughter Lucy Louise. Their second child and first son, Lowry Lee, was born last October. 

During an appearance on Audacy’s Katie & Company podcast, Sam stated that fatherhood had given him a renewed “sense of purpose.” He added that his “new appreciation for life in general” had spurred him on to evolve “10 or 20 years overnight”. 

Sam’s growing maturity and declaration of gratitude to his wife is another detail that brings Johnny Cash to mind. As well as a great songwriter, Johnny was famously crazy in love with his second wife, June Carter. In 1994, he wrote a love letter for her on her 65th birthday. Buzzfeed once reported that it had been voted the greatest love letter of all time.

There are traits of Johnny that Sam should probably avoid. However, passionate love for his partner is something that he can definitely look at as a life goal.