Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer, songwriter, and actor. McGraw began singing in a neotraditional country style, but starting with 1997's Everywhere, he developed a more crossover-friendly, country pop sound, making him one of the first male Country singers of his generation to crossover to Pop.
McGraw has released fourteen studio albums (eleven for Curb Records and three for Big Machine Records). 10 of those albums have reached number 1 on the Top Country Albums charts, with his 1994 breakthrough album Not a Moment Too Soon being the top country album of 1994. All of these albums have produced 65 singles, 25 of which have reached number 1 on the Hot Country Songs or Country Airplay charts. Three of these singles — "It's Your Love", "Just to See You Smile", and "Live Like You Were Dying" — were the top country songs of 1997, 1998, and 2004 according to Billboard Year-End. He has also won three Grammy Awards, 14 Academy of Country Music awards, 11 Country Music Association (CMA) awards, 10 American Music Awards, and three People's Choice Awards. His Soul2Soul II Tour with Faith Hill is one of the highest grossing tours in country music history, and one of the top 5 among all genres of music. He has sold more than 75 million records worldwide.
McGraw has ventured into acting, with supporting roles in The Blind Side (with Sandra Bullock), Friday Night Lights, The Kingdom, Tomorrowland, and Four Christmases (with Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon), and The Shack, and lead roles in Flicka (2006) and Country Strong (2010). He was a minority owner of the Arena Football League's Nashville Kats.
In acknowledgement of his grandfather's Italian heritage, McGraw was honored by the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) in 2004, receiving the NIAF Special Achievement Award in Music during the Foundation's 29th Anniversary Gala.
He has been married to singer Faith Hill since 1996, and is a son of baseball player Tug McGraw.
