Tag: Song Premiere

LISTEN: Helena Rose, “What’s Killing You Is Killing Me”

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Artist: Helena Rose
Hometown: Waynesville, North Carolina
Song: “What’s Killing You Is Killing Me”
Album: Girls Like Me EP
Release Date: March 26, 2021

In Their Words: “Several years ago, I desperately wanted to tell someone in my family how I felt about their addiction, but couldn’t find the right words to say to get my message across. So I wrote a song about it with Deanna Walker and Rick Beresford in Nashville. Not only did I hope it would help my own situation, but I was also hoping it would help others who have friends or family members struggling with addiction. It is a very truthful song about the self-destruction that can happen on both sides, but also has a hopeful tone to signify that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel. I want people to know that they aren’t alone in this struggle and give them the right words to say.” — Helena Rose

Photo credit: Nico Humby

LISTEN: The 502s, “Leading Lady”

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Artist: The 502s
Hometown: Orlando, Florida
Song: “Leading Lady”
Album: Could It Get Better Than This
Release Date: October 15, 2021

In Their Words: “One day I showed up to rehearsal with a new voice memo called ‘I.D.N.F.S’ which stood for ‘Incredibly Dope New Fast Song.’ The idea behind the song was to make something everyone at our live shows would be able to sing along to while dancing with us. The lyrics are about the feelings that love gives you. The nerves-in-the-belly, heart-skipping-a-beat kind of stuff. It’s also about how years of worry can melt away in a minute when you meet the right person. Being in love makes you the stars of your own movie. We’re big believers in following your heart as that’s how you get the best things out of life.” — Ed Isola, The 502s

Photo credit: Gabriel Lugo

LISTEN: Sweetlove, “Things I Didn’t Say”

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Artist: Sweetlove
Hometown: Currently based in Los Angeles. Originally from Simi Valley, California
Song: “Things I Didn’t Say”
Album: Goodnight, Lover
Release Date: March 26, 2021

In Their Words: “‘Things I Didn’t Say’ is a very personal song for me, full of ache, and when I wrote it I was reeling after the suicide of a longtime love of mine, and the only thing that brought me some comfort was writing songs. I wrote it on a rainy day in Silver Lake with the wonderful Stolar and Evangelia. Evangelia came in with the opening line, ‘I took off my makeup, and took on the madness,’ and it really resonated with me, so we wrote this mournful, stripped-down song about all of the things you can’t say anymore to the person you’ve lost, and how you struggle for a place to put those things for a long time. The end of the song has this beautiful outro piece, almost like a wave of love to send David off, into a place where he would always be at peace, and I will be forever comforted by the fact that his spirit is free, and that I was fortunate enough to know him and love him my whole life. If you are reading this piece and are struggling and in despair, I beg of you to hold on, to reach out, to get help — I promise you there is more love around you than you know, more hope than your pain lets you see.” — Sweetlove

Photo credit: Anna Azarov

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LISTEN: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass, “Date With an Angel”

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Artist: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass
Hometown: Landenberg, Pennsylvania
Song: “Date With an Angel”
Album: Bluegrass Troubadour
Release Date: April 23, 2021
Label: Pinecastle Records

In Their Words: “When I heard ‘Date With an Angel’ for the first time, I knew I wanted to record it. Great story songs like this have become synonymous with bluegrass music, because folks can associate the struggles and yearnings in the lyrics to their own lives. I hope you will enjoy this song as much as we do.” — Danny Paisley

Photo courtesy of Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass

LISTEN: Aaron Burdett, “Arlo”

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Artist: Aaron Burdett
Hometown: Saluda, North Carolina
Song: “Arlo”
Release Date: March 19, 2021
Label: Organic Records

In Their Words: “Years ago I used to drive down to play the open mic night at a place called Eddie’s Attic in Georgia. It was a weekly event and I’d go down every six weeks or so. I’d work on my chops and mingle with other writers in one of the premier songwriter venues in the Southeast. Among the semi-regular performers those evenings was a songwriter named Arlo, and although we haven’t seen each other in person for probably 15 years we’ve kept in touch and still talk every week or so. We wax poetic about music and songs and audio gear and guitars or any number of oddball subjects.

“He’s not exactly the character in this song, but he is a character in his own right. Almost every line in the song ‘Arlo’ is something he said to me directly, verbatim. I’ve twisted the meaning and implications of the phrases to suit my vision for the narrator in the song, but the words more or less came from real life, from a real live Arlo, over the past 10 years. We’d talk and afterwards some sentence he said would stick with me so I’d write it down on the ‘Arlo’ sheet. Eventually this song fell out of that collection of phrases and snippets of conversations. Goes to show that you should be careful when you’re being clever around a songwriter, you may hear something you recognize in the next draft.” — Aaron Burdett

Photo credit: Sandlin Gaither

LISTEN: Will Orchard, “Rita”

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Artist: Will Orchard
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Song: “Rita”
Album: I Reached My Hand Out
Release Date: March 18, 2021
Label: Better Company

In Their Words: “‘Rita’ is a song about the blurred lines between attraction that’s real and long-lasting, and attraction that’s intense and fleeting. To me, it’s about lacking trust in my own impulses, and constantly questioning if those feelings are valid. I wrote this song while on tour on two separate occasions about a year apart, and the distance between those two moments really helped me put what I was feeling in perspective. The contributions of Allen, Jess, James, and Miles really helped bring this song to life and create the dark and the anxious landscape of those emotions.” — Will Orchard

Photo credit: Tim Ryan

LISTEN: Andy Leftwich, “Through the East Gate”

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Artist: Andy Leftwich
Hometown: Carthage, Tennessee
Song: “Through the East Gate”
Release Date: March 19, 2021
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “‘Through the East Gate’ is a tune I wrote with the thought in mind of combining old-style fiddling with the new style of fiddlers that we hear today. I’ve always loved old traditional fiddling, and I wanted to somehow capture both the feel of the old style and combine it with the exciting licks and melodies that the newer style brings. This song reminds me of friends and family coming together to play music and to have a great time! I was so honored to have the legendary Mark Schatz join me on bass and clawhammer banjo. After we cut the track, we couldn’t resist recording a track of him dancing to this one!” — Andy Leftwich

Photo credit: Erick Anderson

LISTEN: Claire Kelly, “Sitting Still”

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Artist: Claire Kelly
Hometown: Cary, Illinois; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Sitting Still”
Album: The Scenic Route
Release Date: March 19, 2021

In Their Words: “‘Sitting Still’ was the first song I wrote when the world came to a screeching halt in March of 2020. When the pandemic hit, I hid out with a few Nashville friends on a farmhouse in Tullahoma, Tennessee, to wait out the storm so to speak. We took the days easy out there on the farm: fishing, reading, writing, driving the old Ford truck around the property. Even though our tours had been cancelled and jobs had been lost, we tried to embrace the gift of time we’d be given and find some peace in slowing down.” — Claire Kelly

Photo credit: Jorie Struck

LISTEN: The Golden Roses, “When I’m Gone”

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Artist: The Golden Roses
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “When I’m Gone”
Album: Devil’s in the Details
Release Date: March 19, 2021

In Their Words: “Before I moved to Texas, I went to visit the grave of my grandfather. It was apparent no one had been there in years (myself included). I got to thinking about being forgotten after we die. My grandfather was a well-respected bluegrass man (a banjo picker). Unfortunately, he did his drinking Saturday mornings and not Saturday nights. I think he sent that song to me as a parting gift before my move.” — John Mutchler, The Golden Roses

Photo credit: Trista Alley

LISTEN: Jackson Scribner, “County Rd 497”

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Artist: Jackson Scribner
Hometown: Melissa, Texas
Song: “County Rd 497”
Album: Jackson Scribner
Release Date: March 26, 2021
Label: State Fair Records / We Know Better Records

In Their Words: “I wrote the first verse of this song in the front yard of my grandparents’ house on County Rd 497. That’s the place ya go when ya feel unstable. The song is about the things you have when you’re younger that you don’t expect will ever go away, the ‘it’ll be like this forever’ mentality. Then you grow up and life changes, people and places come and go, and you can really only guess what might stay in your life, you’re never really sure.” — Jackson Scribner

Photo credit: Elaine Dela Pena