Dwayne Johnson Received His First Guitar from Willie Nelson as a Birthday Gift: ‘I Play Like Dog S--- Compared to Him’
Dwayne Johnson Received His First Guitar from Willie Nelson as a Birthday Gift: ‘I Play Like Dog S--- Compared to Him’
Jack IrvinTue, August 11, 2026 at 5:28 PM UTC
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Dwayne Johnson in July 2026; Willie Nelson in September 2024Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic; Gary Miller/Getty -
Dwayne Johnson explores his passion for music with a new song on the Moana: Voices Across the Ocean album
Johnson told Rolling Stone his major musical influences are Sam Cooke, Elvis and Willie Nelson, who gifted him a rare guitar
He also spoke about considering the idea of making an album
Dwayne Johnson has a passion for music.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Johnson spoke about his journey in music after releasing a song, “Your Dad,” on the new Moana: Voices Across the Ocean album to accompany the live-action Disney film, which stars the 54-year-old actor as Maui.
“I always like to say I sing from the heart — and I sing in keys that don’t exist. So it’s a good combo,” said Johnson, who was raised around “a lot of singing” and “ceremonial dancing” by his Polynesian parents.
Dwayne Johnson in July 2026Credit: John Nacion/Getty
Johnson opened up about the musicians who’ve inspired him. “At a very early age, my deep influences were Sam Cooke, Elvis, George Jones, Merle Haggard, even Johnny Paycheck. Guys like that who just were on top of their genres, and also Willie Nelson, who, as a matter of fact, gave me my first guitar,” he said.
“You know the Trigger guitar he has? The historic one? I guess Martin only made 100 of those, and as a birthday gift, ’cause I was such a huge fan, he gave me one of those,” recalled Johnson. “I mean, I play like dog s--- compared to him, but it’s still a cool gift. Anyway, that’s my musical start.”
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After showing off his singing chops with “Your Dad,” Johnson told Rolling Stone he’s looking to explore music further. “Maybe something in just the old-school soul genre, with some country flavor. I love old-school soul,” he said.
Johnson was then presented with the idea for a duets album, which he’s intrigued by. “Oh, that would be a cool idea,” he said. “I have such reverence and respect for all music, but especially in Nashville. Because of how I came up there, and you see all these artists coming up. So I wanna approach this project, whatever it’s gonna be, with that level of respect.”
He continued, “Like you said, if it’s an all duets, but just where, hey, here’s my heart and my love, and here’s how deep my country roots go. It’s like, oh, I’d be honored to sing with you guys, you know?”
Earlier this month, Johnson’s wife Lauren Hashian described the Jumanji actor as “very musical” in an interview with PEOPLE. “I think growing up in a Polynesian household, you’re always singing. And his mother’s always playing ukulele. She carries a ukulele with her everywhere she goes,” she said.
“He grew up with music all around and he’s a really great singer,” Hashian, 41, continued. “When we were first dating, we had a karaoke machine in our house. We’d have a date — I’d even make a drink and we’d sing karaoke for fun!”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
