It’s been 32 years since Wade Hayes‘ debut “Old Enough to Know Better” single was released in 1994. The song, the title track of his freshman album, kicked off a career that is still going strong, more than three decades later.

“The time has just flown by,” Hayes tells Everything Nash. “I can’t believe it. And I can’t believe I’m still out here getting to play music for a living. What a blessing that is.”

Indeed, Hayes admits his career has already far exceeded even his biggest dreams for himself.

“I thought when I was a kid, if I could just play guitar for a living, that would be awesome,” Hayes admits. “I never dreamed I’d get to make records and have hit records and gold records, and still get to be doing this all these years later.”

@everythingnash Wade Hayes honored @Toby Keith with this performance for @Grand Ole Opry at Sea on the Country Music Cruise. #countrymusic #countrymusiccruise #grandoleopry ♬ original sound – EverythingNash

The Story Behind Wade Hayes’ “Old Enough to Know Better”

Hayes wrote “Old Enough to Know Better” with Chick Rains. The song is, perhaps surprisingly, based on Hayes’ own life.

“I grew up building houses with my dad,” the Oklahoma native shares. “He was a contractor, so naturally, I got a job building houses when I moved to Nashville. But literally a couple weeks after that, I got a job playing lead guitar for Johnny Lee, and Johnny Lee, he was a rascal. We all loved Johnny, of course, but he’d get wound up and wanna play all night long. And he did not give a crap that I had to be at work swinging a hammer at 7:00 AM. So that’s kind of how that came about.”

Hayes knew right away the song was special. Decades later, it remains among a favorite of his fans.

“The instant that song started taking shape, I heard the fiddle player rehearsing,” Hayes remembers. “I didn’t even have a demo on that song. We had just written it, and I took it in the studio, played it on the guitar for him. And I heard this fiddle player named Rob Hajacos, and he started messing around with that lick. I took off, literally running down the hall, and said, ‘That’s the intro right there. You gotta do that.’ And all of a sudden we’ve got ‘Old Enough to Know Better.'”

Wade Hayes Returns For the 2027 Country Music Cruise

Hayes performed on the 2026 Country Music Cruise, and is eager to return for 2027.

“I always love the opportunity to get out of Nashville when it’s freezing cold,” Hayes says with a laugh.

Hayes will be joined on the 2027 Country Music Cruise by Wynonna Judd, Clint Black, Joe Nichols, The Bellamy Brothers, Darryl Worley, Billy Dean, The Malpass Brothers, and more.

The 2027 Country Music Cruise takes place on February 7 to 14. Cabins will be available beginning on Thursday, February 12. Use code EVERYTHINGNASH for an exclusive discount. Find more information at CountryMusicCruise.com.