Meaning of “In Your Love” by Tyler Childers

Tyler Childers’ sixth studio album goes by the title “Rustin’ in the Rain”. The project which preceded it, “Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven?”, marked the highest he’s ever scored on the Billboard 200, where the LP peaked at number 8.

The sixth album’s lead single, “In Your Love”, was released via RCA Records on 27 July 2023. Tyler wrote this song alongside Geno Seale, and he produced it in conjunction with The Food Stamps, i.e. Childers’ regular instrumentalists.

The music video to this track, as assembled by director Bryan Schlam, has generated headlines due to the fact that it revolves around a gay relationship set in the 1950s’ United States.

Childers and co. even went as far as to employ a couple of gay actors, James Scully and Colton Haynes, to star in the clip. And the reason it has generated headlines is because whereas the pop music world may have already accepted homosexuality as a norm, country music fans tend to be more conservative. 

For instance, USA Today has heralded the visual as being “a much-needed portrait of inclusivity”. But to note, as for Childers himself, he has been in a heterosexual marriage since 2015.

The Lyrics of “In Your Love”

With the above being said, the lyrics themselves do not feature any gender pronouns. What they center on is the singer addressing his “honey”. And what’s being inferred is that as things currently stand they cannot be together, or in the very least they cannot do so at peace. 

The lyrics do not specify why that is so. But in the chorus, Childers does point out they “were never made to run forever”, thus implying that perhaps they’re dealing with some type of persecution.

“We were never made to run forever
We were just meant to go long enough
To find what we were chasin’ after
I believe I found it here
In your love”

So as for the thesis sentiment, it has the vocalist pledging to love the addressee nonetheless. That is to say that he is willing to ‘stand his ground’ and “work” as hard as he must in the name of securing this person’s love. 

Or as Tyler the singer puts it, whereas they may be going through hardship in the present, in his mind these challenges are not meant to last into perpetuity. To the contrary, from his perspective, such setbacks are strengthening their love in a manner of speaking, i.e. getting the pair to where they need to go in this relationship. 

And in closing, it should be reiterated that the lyrics of this song are quite ambiguous. But what they ultimately boil down to is Childers portraying a character who’s willing to do what he has to do in order to secure the love of the apple of his eye.