Why Tyler Farr Wrote Song 'Cover Girl' for People 'Stuck in a Bad Place' and Facing Domestic Violence

Long before Tyler Farr was known as a country music star, he was a recreational therapist at a rehabilitation facility for youth dealing with abuse and trauma. And while Farr himself was never able to erase the pain of hearing people's trauma, he was able to make music.

"I could see how it helped them heal," he tells PEOPLE. "It took them to a different place where they didn't have to think about the bad things that they had gone through. They didn't have to think at all. They could escape."

It was this chance that Farr, 37, had on his mind when he began writing his current single "Cover Girl," a heart-shattering song about the pain that comes with domestic violence.

"This song is for the people that are stuck in a bad place and the people that don't think there's any way out," says Farr about "Cover Girl," which he co-wrote alongside Blake Bollinger and Ben Stennis. "Maybe this gives them some courage, some hope, some peace, some escape. That's what I hope people get from this. And that's why I thought I needed to put it out there."

Jeff Johnson Tyler Farr

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Granted, Farr has long built a career on honkytonk-worthy songs such as the driving "Redneck Crazy" and the addictive "A Guy Walks into a Bar." But with "Cover Girl," the Missouri native might be showing his heart for the first time, and it's that heart that just might pave the way to a whole new chapter of his career.

And while Farr admits to writing down the title "Cover Girl" many years ago at the time of a passing inspiration, the song became that much more timely following the pandemic at a time when, in fact, domestic violence was on the rise.

"We knew we had to pull the trigger on this one because this is all too real for a lot of people right now," Farr says. "People have no clue what other people are going through. We'd be surprised the people that put on a fake smile every day, because they're either too embarrassed to talk about it, or they don't think anyone else that they know is going through it too, which in fact they are."

In fact, Farr is hearing from many of these silent victims over social media as they express some of their pain to the singer.

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"I've been getting so many messages from these girls saying, you know, you don't know how much this song means to me," Farr says. "That's why I love doing what I do. It's the reason I love country music. The song is sort of sad starting off, but it leaves you with hope. This guy is telling this girl, you need to get away from this guy. This is not how love is and you deserve better. It's one of my favorite songs I've ever been a part of."

It's also a song that took on a whole new meaning as Farr and wife Hannah welcomed their first child, daughter Hollis Caroline, earlier this year, and instantly, Farr began to fall in love with not only his baby girl, but his new title of Daddy.

"When you have a daughter, it just changes your perspective on life on everything, from how you eat to how you look at a female now you're responsible for one," says Farr. "It forces you to mature and realize I have this other job now, and that is to protect this girl."

This natural yearning to protect recently came into play just a few weeks back, when Hollis was rushed to the hospital after contracting RSV, a respiratory virus that can be especially serious if contracted as an infant.

"I was on the road on my first long run of the year, and I was walking on stage and my wife calls and says they are on their way to the ER," Farr remembers. "I was having trouble concentrating out there onstage after getting that sort of news."

Thankfully, all is now well with Hollis and Farr finds himself increasingly turning into more and more of a 'mush ball' over his little girl.

"When I'm on the road, I just stare at her picture and smile," he says. "There are many more layers to me than just the redneck crazy guy, that's for sure."