Tag: Clint Roberts

LISTEN: Clint Roberts, “Jeremiah”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Clint Roberts
Hometown: Brevard, North Carolina
Song: “Jeremiah”
Album: Holler Choir
Release Date: May 13, 2022
Label: Carry On Music

In Their Words: “‘Jeremiah’ approaches sentiments that I’ve held for many years, but I haven’t known quite how to approach them in a song until recently. Growing up in a rural mountain town, few people stuck out. Those who did, did so courageously, often because they had no other choice. Hearing others use slurs was commonplace, unfortunately. The nails that stuck out got hammered down. Though I’ve never been subject to any discrimination, I have friends who have been many times. ‘Jeremiah’ is a memory of my feelings about it. It is a critique of the Bible Belt, but also American culture at large. I’m proud of where I’m from, but we have some things to work on. I try to stay optimistic.

“This song is a commentary on growing up in the South and witnessing discrimination against young gay [LGBTQ+] individuals. I myself do not have a gay brother, but have dear friends who identify as so. As a heterosexual male, I can’t and won’t pretend to know what many people go through that are discriminated against. I can only speak to the pain I feel watching it happen in front of me. ‘Jeremiah’ was my way of expressing solidarity through the lens of my Appalachian upbringing.” — Clint Roberts

Photo Credit: Kendall Bailey Photography

The BGS Radio Hour – Episode 200

Posted on by Amy Reitnouer

Welcome to the 200th episode of the BGS Radio Hour! Since 2017, the show has been a weekly recap of all the great music, new and old, featured on BGS. This week we’ve got new releases from legends including Willie Nelson, and up-and-comers like Clint Roberts – and we can’t forget our March Artist of the Month, Valerie June! Remember to check back every Monday for a new episode of the BGS Radio Hour.

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Willie Nelson – “That’s Life”

Through a career spanning more than a half decade and 95 albums, Willie Nelson continues to provide answers during our troubled times. His most recent record, That’s Life, celebrates the music of his friend and colleague Frank Sinatra.

Lydia Luce – “Maybe in Time”

In celebration of her newest album, Dark River, Lydia Luce joins BGS for a 5+5 this week, where we talked inspirations, favorite art forms (other than music), and performance rituals. We’d like to RSVP for that Pad Thai with Nick Drake, please.

Jesse Brewster – “Amber Kinney”

San Francisco-based Jesse Brewster brings us a fictional tale from 19th-century Ireland this week. His new album, The Lonely Pines, is out now on Crooked Prairie Records.

Crys Matthews – “Call Them In”

From the upcoming album Changemakers, Crys Matthews extends a social justice invitation to us all in “Call Them In.” As a Black southerner, Matthews wrote the lyrics with freedom songs on her mind, supported by the inspiration of the late Representative John Lewis and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Langhorne Slim – “Mighty Soul”

Recent guest of our Show On The Road podcast Langhorne Slim sat down with BGS to talk his new album, Strawberry Mansion. Though it was never planned, the album presented itself through self-discovery, through the many personal and shared hardships of the last year.

Nate Fredrick – “Paducah”

Many of those who have driven westward from Tennessee have jetted past Paducah, Kentucky. For Nashville-based singer and songwriter Nate Fredrick, it’s more than just a stop on the highway: it’s a stage in the journey where it becomes obvious that if he made it this far, he can make it to his home in Springfield, Missouri.

Ross Cooper – “Named After A River (Brazos)”

Being tough isn’t easy, but it’s something we can all do with the right inspiration. Cooper wrote this song for his nephew, Brazos, inspired by the river for which he was named. “I want him to remember that, like a river, he could shape mountains, instead of mountains shaping him,” Cooper tells BGS. 

Valerie June (feat. Carla Thomas) – “Call Me a Fool”

This West-Tennessee born and Brooklyn-based artist is our March Artist of the Month here at BGS! Stay tuned all month long for exclusive interviews and content featuring Valerie June. Here’s a track featuring soul legend Carla Thomas, from June’s new album The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers. 

Jesse Terry – “When We Wander”

From Connecticut, Jesse Terry brings us a travel-inspired song, ironically completed right before the pandemic hit. Terry captures the feeling of taking a risk, despite fear of the unknown, and the shared experience of emerging out of it a more fulfilled human being.

Lauren Spring – “I Remember You”

For Lauren Spring, “I Remember You” is about choosing to remember someone in a kinder light than what the relationship may have been in reality. We should note the song’s inspiration: the viral TikTok video featuring a skateboarder, cranberry juice, and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ may or may not have subconsciously influenced the song’s sound.

Curtis Salgado – “The Longer That I Live”

Portland-based blues musician Curtis Salgado brings us a 5+5 this week in celebration of his new album, Damage Control. From an unexpected performance with B.B. King to a dream musician and meal pairing, Salgado seems to be nailing those three mission statements that he gave BGS. 

Clint Roberts – “Nothing Left to Say”

For this Western North Carolina-based singer and songwriter, the mountains are his inspiration. As a trail runner, Roberts uses his time running through the mountains to hash out lyrics and music – perhaps this song, from his new Rose Songs, was one of them.

Ryanhood – “Appy Returns”

Inspired by pickers as varied as the plugged-in sounds of Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson to acoustic masters like Chris Thile and Béla Fleck, this Tucson-based duo brings us a rare (for them) instrumental on their new album, Under the Leaves. 

Chris Pierce – “American Silence”

Many of us have heard this phrase in the past, but almost definitely this past year: Silence is violence. But we can’t give up on reaching out to those who are silent for help; we have to uproot the complacency that plagues our society. As Chris Pierce tells BGS, “If you smile and applaud for those different than you, be willing to fight for those folks too.”

Photos: (L to R) Willie Nelson; Valerie June by Renata Raksha; Lydia Luce by Alysse Gafjken

BGS 5+5: Clint Roberts

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Clint Roberts
Hometown: Brevard, North Carolina
Latest album: ROSE SONGS (February 26, 2021)

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

I always have been, and probably will always be, a mountain boy. I’ve lived in Western North Carolina for 90% of my life, all of that time between Brevard, Asheville, and Boone. Mountains are deeply inspiring and meditative for me, perfect for stewing lyrical ideas or song narratives in my mind. I trail run a fair amount, and that’s always a good time for me to listen to my demos and do lyrical gymnastics with them, or simply listen to other people’s music and try to get lost in it. I’ll never know to what extent my environment informs my process, but I imagine these mountains give me a lot.

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

Prior to finding songwriting in early high school, I wasn’t sure what I really wanted to do with my life. I felt like a fish being asked to climb a tree in the areas of school sports, Boy Scouts, and the various other middle school activities that kids are often herded into. The moment I learned four chords on a ukulele in 9th grade, I started writing songs. And soon after I would decide that performing my songs is what I wanted to do with my life. The process was and still is addicting, and at the time it was one of the first times I can remember hearing validation from other people that I was good at something. So between my own love for it and hearing friends and even strangers tell me that I had a shot, I decided to go that route.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

There’s a song on my upcoming record (ROSE SONGS) that took roughly five years to finish. That’s not to say that I spent each day of that time slaving away at it, but rather, that I didn’t know what I wanted to do with it until that much time had passed. The first verse and chorus were written in a day, the rest of the song was finished about five years later. It was a song that always hung out in my demos, always reminding me that one day it had to be finished. I’m really glad I did, because it’s one of the songs and recordings on the album that I’m most proud of.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc — inform your music?

Film informs my process a lot. I’ve occasionally written songs from the perspective of different characters in movies that I like. The aesthetic or setting of a given film can very potently reside in my mind, often subconsciously informing my creativity. I particularly like epics that have a lot of different fantastical settings, like The Dark Crystal and The NeverEnding Story. When curating the songs for a record, I try to keep my song choices diverse like the settings of such movies, so that no one given song feels quite like the other.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

This isn’t quite a stage memory but it’s a backstage memory. I’m friends with members of Steep Canyon Rangers, a band that many of your readers are probably aware of. They perform with Steve Martin frequently. My college band had given the guys several copies of our first EP, and it’s now my understanding that they had given Steve one of the copies (maybe they just played it in front of him, I’m not sure). Some months later, our band would be on a festival bill with Steve and the Rangers, and Steve was waiting to shake my hand off stage when we were done performing. “Sounds just like the record,” he said. That was a very confusing and exciting moment for a 19-year-old songwriter.

Photo credit: Daniel Barlow