Williams' first television appearance was in a December 1963 episode of The Ed Sullivan Show, in which at age fourteen he sang several songs associated with his father.

[1] As Williams struggled to define his own voice and place within the country music genre, his style began slowly to evolve.

His father nicknamed him Bocephus (after Grand Ole Opry comedian Rod Brasfield's ventriloquist dummy).

While he was a child, Williams was influenced by a number of contemporary musicians who visited his family and taught him various musical instruments and styles.

[citation needed] Among these figures of influence were Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Fats Domino, Earl Scruggs, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis.

He attended John Overton High School in Nashville, Tennessee, where he would bring his guitar to music class and play for pep rallies and performances with the choir.

While recording a series of moderately successful songs, Williams began a pattern of heavy drug and alcohol abuse.

Upon moving to Alabama, in an attempt to refocus both his creative energy and his troubled personal life, Williams began playing music with Southern rock and Outlaw country musicians including Waylon Jennings, Toy Caldwell, and Charlie Daniels.

While climbing Ajax Peak on the continental divide (Idaho border) west of Jackson, the snow beneath Williams collapsed and he fell almost 500 feet (150 m) onto rock, causing multiple severe skull and facial fractures.

[11][12] Williams spent two years recovering, re-learning how to talk and sing, and undergoing 17 surgeries to repair his skull and reconstruct his face.

To hide his scars and disfigurement from the accident, Williams grew a beard and began wearing sunglasses and a cowboy hat.

[citation needed] In 1977, Williams recorded and released One Night Stands and The New South, and worked closely with his old friend Waylon Jennings on the song "Once and For All".

[citation needed] In 1980, he appeared on the PBS show Austin City Limits during Season 5, along with the Shake Russell-Dana Cooper Band.

Family Tradition, Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound, Habits Old and New, Rowdy, The Pressure Is On, High Notes, Strong Stuff, Man of Steel, Major Moves, Five-O, Montana Cafe, and many others resulted in a long string of hits.

The song was written by his father, and had been previously recorded with Hank Williams playing the guitar as the sole instrument.

He has also made a cameo appearance along with Larry the Cable Guy, Kid Rock, and Charlie Daniels in Gretchen Wilson's music video for the song "All Jacked Up".

In April 2009, Williams released a new single, "Red, White & Pink-Slip Blues", which peaked at number 43 on the country charts.

[18] Artists who have cited Hank Williams Jr. as an influence include Delta Generators,[21] Walker Hayes,[22] Sam Hunt,[23] Davin James,[24] Shooter Jennings,[25] Wayne Mills,[26] The Sickstring Outlaws[27] and Gretchen Wilson.

The artists and songwriters named BMI Icons have had "a unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers".

[6] His daughter Katherine Williams-Dunning, the only one of his five children to not pursue a music career, died in a car crash on June 13, 2020, at age 27.

Senator from Tennessee for the seat held by GOP incumbent Bob Corker, although his publicist said regarding Williams "no announcement has been made".

In an October 3, 2011, interview with Fox News Channel's Fox & Friends, Williams discussed a June golf game where President Barack Obama and Republican House Speaker John Boehner had teamed against Vice President Joe Biden and Ohio Governor John Kasich, saying the match was "one of the biggest political mistakes ever".

As a result of his statements, ESPN dropped Williams' opening song from its Monday Night Football broadcast of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers versus the Indianapolis Colts and replaced it with Ken Block and Andrew Copeland of Sister Hazel singing the national anthem.

"By pulling my opening Oct 3rd, You (ESPN) stepped on the Toes of The First Amendment Freedom of Speech, so therefore Me, My Song, and All My Rowdy Friends are OUT OF HERE.