Neal McCoy

Spirit of Texas

Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr., known to fans everywhere as Neal McCoy, was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, where music shaped the rhythm of daily life. With a Filipino mother, an Irish-American father, and a household full of country, R and B, rock, and gospel, Neal grew up with an ear for everything. He began singing in church and later performed with an R and B band long before country music claimed him.

After college, Neal met his wife Melinda while working at a mall shoe store. Around that same time, he entered a talent contest judged by Janie Fricke and won it, earning an opening slot for Charley Pride. Those years with Pride were life-changing and gave Neal the stage presence and humor he is known for today.

When Neal signed to his first label in the late 1980s, he recorded under the name Neal McGoy, a phonetic spelling of his last name. But by the time he signed with Atlantic Records in 1990, fans were already calling him “McCoy,” and the name stuck. It became the brand behind one of the most recognizable entertainers in country music.

His breakthrough came in 1994 with the platinum album No Doubt About It, which produced two number one hits, No Doubt About It and Wink. Through the rest of the decade, Neal released two more platinum albums, a gold album, and many hits that remain fan favorites, including The City Put the Country Back in Me, For a Change, They’re Playin’ Our Song, The Shake, and Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye. Over his career, he has sold more than six million records, released fifteen studio albums, and charted twenty-five singles.

Neal’s patriotism has become a defining part of his public life. Since 2001, he has traveled on seventeen USO Tours, entertaining American troops across the globe. He calls those tours some of the greatest honors of his life. In 2016, he began reciting the Pledge of Allegiance live on Facebook every morning. That simple daily act has reached millions of viewers and recently passed 3,000 consecutive days.

His humanitarian work has earned him major honors from the Academy of Country Music, the Country Radio Broadcasters, and the Masonic Grand Lodge. Neal and Melinda also founded the East Texas Angel Network, which has raised more than fifteen million dollars for families with children facing life-threatening and or life challenging illnesses. Neal hosts an annual golf tournament, dinner, auction, and concert to support the cause.

When he is not touring, Neal enjoys life at home, spending time with his three grandchildren, playing golf, working the Old Glory Horse and Cattle Ranch, and cheering from the stands at football and baseball games.

With forty years of touring behind him, Neal still brings unmatched energy to every show. As he likes to say, “No two shows are the same.”