What We Know About Tate McRae's Hockey Star Brother Tucker

Before Tate McRae stepped her heart out on "So You Think You Can Dance," wrote her breakout hit "You Broke Me First," and made the "Forbes 30 under 30" Music list, she was just a sister. While recording her second EP, "Too Young to be Sad," from her father's home office, McRae took the time to write a song for her brother. Entitled "Dear Brother," she croons of her fears about the two growing apart as they grow older. She sings, "So one day when we're living our lives / I hope that we're just fine / Hope that I know what you're going through / One day I hope that you'll call me / And tell me your problems." It seems as if Tate and her brother, Tucker McRae, are pretty tight. 

In fact, Tate and Tucker's circles overlapped when she went looking for love. She spoke about Blue Jackets ice hockey player Cole Sillinger to Entertainment Tonight, saying, "He's one of my brother's friend's friends, so it all worked out." Sidebar — it didn't work out, and apparently, Tate may be talking about her ex in her single "Greedy" while wearing a blue jacket on an ice rink. Of course, this begs the question of how Tucker happened to know a collegiate hockey player and if he and Tate are still close enough that she would trust his friend of a friend.

Both Tucker McRae and Cole Silinger are ice hockey players. Yes, Tate McRae isn't the only child in her family making a name for themselves. Tucker, who is two years older than his sister, is a seasoned athlete who began his hockey career as a defenceman with the Okotoks Oilers in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. In 2020, Tucker also made the AJHL All-Academic team in recognition of his academic and athletic excellence. His leadership skills were put to the test when he was named captain for the 2021-2022 season, with Tucker telling the AJHL, "I'm a guy that everyone can look to in the room and trust."

Tucker's hard work paid off when the Ivy League Dartmouth College tapped him for their 2022-2023 season. Tucker spoke to Western Wheel about how methodically he worked with his parents to attain his goals. He shared, "I've always been patient with school and hockey. I took another year ... so I could focus on my marks and make sure I was the most well-developed I could be to go to the next level." He continued, "I couldn't have asked for a better spot, I think it's the perfect fit for me academically and on the hockey side of things too. [Ivy League] has actually been a goal of mine ... I told my parents that's what I wanted to do and I've just stuck with that and was thankful enough that it paid off."

Sometimes, siblings share the musical gene — like Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell and Noah and Miley Cyrus. Is it possible that the McRae siblings could release their own single in the near future? When asked if she comes from a musical family, the star told The Stingray Blog, "Not really! We all are music heads, so we love finding new artists and really diving deep into songs, however, my parents and brother don't sing." Heartbroken! But, even though Tucker McRae cannot belt out tunes the way his sister does, he still sings her praises. The hockey player, who rarely posts on Instagram, showed off his sister in one of his posts. "T8 #proudbrother," he wrote. In the photo, Tate had her arm over her big bro's shoulder as they beamed at the camera. 

Tucker's family is proud of him, too. Their mother, Tanja Rosner, took to Facebook to sing his praises on his birthday. She wrote that he has many of his grandfather's mannerisms and that she loved watching how similar they are. Rosner also wrote, "We are so proud of the young man he has become. His work ethic and determination is admirable!" It seems his hard work academically and on the ice — has his family rooting for him. And both Tucker and Tate have tasted the fruits of their labor.