Miranda Lambert might be a stepparent to her husband Brendan McLoughlin‘s young son Landon, but she doesn’t have any biological children of her own. Still, she finds ways to foster and mentor young minds.

For the singer, that means making an effort to work with up-and-coming artists in the country genre. In an appearance on Bunnie Xo‘s Dumb Blonde podcast, Lambert explains why it’s so important to her to pass along the lessons she’s learned.

“Since I don’t have children of my own, I want to use that part of what I’ve learned for younger generations,” Lambert explains. “Especially of artists, because nobody tells you how this goes.

“Nobody sits there and gives you a handbook of, like, ‘Well, when you make it to this level, this is what’s gonna happen,'” she continues.

Lambert goes on to say that she hopes to be a “sounding board” for anybody that needs it, because “I’ve been there.”

Lambert’s track record of mentoring young artists — especially young female artists — is well-documented. She typically includes up-and-coming women on her tour lineups, and her 2019 Roadside Bars & Pink Guitars Tour boasted an all-female bill featuring Caylee Hammack, Tenille Townes, Elle King, Maren Morris and Ashley McBryde.

Together with her frequent collaborator Jon Randall, she also launched Big Loud Texas — a label imprint dedicated to rising Texas artists — in 2023.

But the singer says the young artists aren’t the only ones who benefit from their mentor relationship — it helps Lambert keep her spark, too.

“Being around that new fire and young people that are so hungry and so inspired is like, ‘I want some of that,’ you know?” she continues. “And I wanna give them some of the wisdom and some of the reminders [to] enjoy the ride.”

Carena Liptak is an Associate Editor and staff writer at Taste of Country. She specializes in breaking country music news, interviews and lists. In particular, she’s got a soft spot for sad songs — check out her roundup of the 50 Saddest Country Songs of All Time!