Alan jackson and his daughter singing together

The Jackson family is proving that the aptitude for songwriting can, in fact, run in the family. On Tuesday, November 16, celebrated country music singer Alan Jackson and his daughter, Mattie Jackson Selecman, released their collaborative song titled “Racing the Dark.”

This single release coincides with Selecman’s Lemons on Friday book release, also out today. Selecman, a certified wine sommelier and philanthropic business owner, recently lost her husband Ben after only 11 months of marriage. Both song and book detail Selecman’s painful heartbreak while also honoring the life that Ben and Mattie shared.

“I’m really surprised how well she was able to handle all that. I know I couldn’t have done what she’s done,” Jackson said in a statement. “One day she came to me with this piece of paper and said, ‘I wrote this song… the lyrics,’ and asked me to put it to music. So, I wrote the melody for it, and it turned out to be a very sweet song.

“It’s a beautiful song. And it’s well-written, lyrically,” Jackson continued. “She told a little more of her story in it… so I’m anxious for my fans to get to hear this.”

In addition to her father’s support, Selecman’s mother Denise Jackson wrote the forward for Lemons on Friday. Denise is a New York Times best-selling author herself and offers a hopeful perspective in her forward.

Lemons on Friday not only walks readers through the pain of a loss but also highlights how Selecman found renewed purpose. Selecman co-founded NaSHEville—a company that benefits orphans, human trafficking victims, and widows—after her husband’s passing.

You can purchase the Lemons on Friday book here, and listen to “Racing the Dark” below.

Photo of Alan Jackson by Kristy Belcher; Photo of Mattie Jackson Selecman by Caitlyn Floyd.

Alan Jackson and his daughter admitted they were both nervous prior to singing the song he wrote for her wedding for a live Nashville crowd on Friday night (Oct. 8). The audience's response to "You'll Always Be My Baby" showed they had nothing to worry about.

Ali Jackson Bradshaw is the singer's middle daughter. She married Sam Bradshaw in 2020 and danced with her father to this new song — one he wrote for all three of his girls for their wedding days. Oldest daughter Maddie used it for the father-daughter dance in 2018. Youngest daughter Dani is not married.

The moment was a highlight of Jackson's Nashville tour stop. He sat on a stool and played guitar while trading lines with his 28-year-old daughter. At the chorus, they both sang from their perspective; Jackson sang "You'll always be my baby" while Ali sang "I'll always be your baby."

"You'll Always Be My Baby" is from Jackson's Where Have You Gone album, released last May. On the album he sings solo, but in releasing this ballad he shared how it was a special song he wrote for his three daughters' wedding days. On Friday night, he recalled telling them that he was only going to write one song, so they'd all have to use it. The audience got a chuckle out of this directive, before being hushed by the two Jacksons singing.

The rest of the concert relied on his hits, with just a couple deviations from his normal setlist. A cover of the Eagles "Seven Bridges Road" was a surprise, as was his final song, the title track from his new album. Typically, Jackson closes with "Mercury Blues," but for his Nashville audience, he had one last thing to say about the country music that's coming off of Music Row.

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Alan Jackson released an emotion-filled tune that he co-penned with his 31-year-old daughter, Mattie Jackson Selecman. 

The country icon and Country Music Hall of Famer released a new song called “Racing The Dark,” which was co-written alongside his daughter, Mattie, on Tuesday (Nov. 16) in conjunction with the release of Mattie’s first book, Lemons On Friday (via Thomas Nelson/W Publishing Group).

“I’m really surprised how well she was able to handle all that. I know I couldn’t have done what she’s done,” Jackson said in a press release. “One day she came to me with this piece of paper and said, ‘I wrote this song…the lyrics,’ and asked me to put it to music. So, I wrote the melody for it, and it turned out to be a very sweet song.”

Earlier this morning, during an interview with TODAY’s Hoda & Jenna, Mattie opened up about how the song came about. 

“That was such an accident on my part, I’m certainly not a musician, but the lyrics just came to me one day coming up on the two-year anniversary of Ben’s death and Dad, obviously with the talent he has. I said ‘you know, could you put a melody with this?'” Mattie told the TODAY show hosts. “Thinking all the while if this is awful, is he going to tell me? But he did, and he invited me into the whole production process, and it was just such a beautiful surprise. It’s such a gift for me.”

The singer’s daughter continued to share that recording the song felt like a healing gift for their “family as a whole.”

Watch Mattie’s full interview with Hoda & Jenna below.

Listen to the emotion-filled tune below.

“It’s a beautiful song. And it’s well-written, lyrically,” Jackson added. “She told a little more of her story in it…so I’m anxious for my fans to get to hear this.” “Racing the Dark” is streaming now; a special lyric video can be viewed HERE or above.

In addition to the song, Lemons on Friday also features a foreword by Alan and his wife Denise Jackson, a New York Times best-selling author herself. The inspiring book will share Mattie’s journey of facing the most heartbreaking loss of her life – the sudden and tragic passing of her husband Ben from a traumatic brain injury just 11 months into their marriage.

“My greatest hope in sharing my grief and story with the world is that anyone who is struggling, regardless the circumstances, will be reminded that no heartbreak or loss is unredeemable; that by confidently clinging to hope, we can truly heal,” Selecman said.

Jackson and his wife Denise detail their perspective of Mattie’s love story, the pain she faced, and the renewed hope they see in her.

“Racing the Dark” marks the first songwriting collaboration by Jackson and his oldest daughter, but she – and her sisters – have been the inspiration behind several of his songs. His most recent album, Where Have You Gone (released in May) featured two songs written for his daughters’ weddings, including “You’ll Always Be My Baby” and “I Do.” Mattie and her siblings also came to life in such classics as “Drive (for Daddy Gene),” “Remember When” and the fan-favorite hit, “Job Description.”

Lemons On Friday is out now and is available for purchase now HERE.

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