Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. was born on July 30, 1958, in Jacksonville, Texas, to a Filipina American mother and Irish-American father. Inspired by the variety of music that his parents listened to, which included country, rock, disco and R&B, McGaughey first sang in his church choir before founding an R&B band. He later switched his focus to country music, performing in various bars and clubs in Texas. McGaughey, after attending junior college near his hometown, found work selling shoes at a shopping mall. In the early 1980s, he met his wife, Melinda, at the store.\n', '

After winning a 1981 talent contest hosted by Janie Fricke, he secured a spot as an opening act for Charley Pride.\n', '

Crediting himself as Neal McCoy, a phonetic spelling of his surname, he signed to the independent 16th Avenue Records label in 1988. He released the singles "That\'s How Much I Love You" and "That\'s American", and although the former reached No. 85 on the country charts, he did not release an album for the label. He continued to tour as an opening act for Pride until 1990, the same year that the 16th Avenue label closed.\n', '

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