The singer has put on several shows at military bases around the world. Has he ever served in the military himself?
Aaron Lewis has not been in the military. In an interview, Lewis talked about wanting to go into the military when he was younger but being discouraged by his father.
Keep reading to learn more about Aaron Lewis and his respect for military men and women.
Time in Hell
Aaron Lewis released the track “I Lost It All,” in 2016. The song opens with the lyrics, “When I die I’ll go to heaven / Because I’ve spent my time in hell.”
This quote originated from an inscription on a lighter found in Vietnam. Apparently, during the Vietnam war, a US soldier had carved the metal lighter with the words using a knife, and the item eventually found its way to a collector.
While also being a reflection of his own struggles, Aaron’s mention of the inscription is a tribute to the sacrifices made by those in the military.
Appreciation for Those Who Serve
Talking about his career in the music industry, Aaron told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “This career that has given me more than I’ve ever imagined has also cost me anything and everything that’s ever meant anything to me. Everything.”
In summary, although Aaron has never served in the military, he draws some comparison between the life of a soldier and his life as a traveling artist.
He further explained, “I wanted to go military when I graduated high school. That was the strongest option I had.”
Six of the singer’s great uncles served in World War II and his father served in the Army Corps of Engineers during the Vietnam war. It was his father who discouraged Lewis from signing up for the military.
When Aaron was considering the military as a career option it was the time of Operation Desert Storm, he explained. Ever since his decision not to put his life on the line, he’s felt guilty, he revealed.
Bolster the Soldiers
One of the singer’s favorite places to put on a concert is overseas military bases. Talking to Fox News, Aaron revealed, “I’ve been lucky enough to go to an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean called Diego Garcia.”
“The whole thing is a military base—that’s the only thing that’s on there, there’s no tourism,” he continued.
“There’s no way in or out unless it’s on a military plane. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was the truest representation of paradise that I’ve ever seen. It was unbelievable—the fishing, it was 500 square miles of protected waters,” Aaron recalled.
The singer told US military newspaper Stars and Stripes that he’d been asked a few times to perform at various military bases. “We’re doing what little we can do to let them know that we support them,” he explained.
Traveling Soldier
Although the singer hasn’t written a song explicitly about military life, he and his then 13-year-old daughter recorded “Traveling Soldier” by the Dixie Chicks.
The singer said that his daughter had been singing it around the house with confidence before he suggested the duet.
“She had never heard her voice in headphones, but she went into that studio and sang it three times and she was done. She just nailed it like a seasoned professional,” the proud dad said.
Listen to the father-daughter duet below.