John and TJ Osborne of Brothers Osborne have become more of their true selves over the past few years, and much of that awareness and confidence of self is transparent in their new self-titled album. TJ, of course, came out and John has been pretty honest about his struggle with his mental health. One way John has showcased his personal work is through a massive chest tattoo, even though that started off as something to do during a rare day off.

“Kids were on the way and I’m like, I’ve got to cling on to my youth (TJ LAUGHS), so I’m just gonna do something really crazy and get a massive chest tattoo. I had a day off, like an actual day off, not a normal day off for us, which is running errands, going and picking up things where you actually work all day. It was like I had nothing to do, and I was like, ‘You know what? I’m just gonna go get a big tattoo on my chest,’” John said backstage in the CMA Awards press room after winning their sixth CMA Vocal Duo of the Year award. “And in a way, symbolically—not to get to philosophical about it, I guess, but it is a sailor ship and I’ve been very vocal about my mental health and a lot of struggles I’ve had over the years. And he (TJ) actually told me this quote after I’d gotten the sailor ship tattoo was ‘Smooth waters don’t make good sailors,’ and it’s an amazing philosophy, and it’s something I’ll carry with me forever. I feel like I’ve become my best self in the most trying times of my life.”

The guys don’t have anymore dates on the books until March of 2024 when they head over to the UK for the massive C2C Festival. Brothers Osborne are currently making their way up the country charts with their latest single, “Nobody’s Nobody.”