Tag

Singing

Apr 19
Love6

Conner Smith

By Music No Comments

In this week’s episode of Here’s What We Know, Conner Smith dives into how he communicates through song, getting started in Nashville, College football, collaboration, and the examples of the industry stars that have gone before him and paved the way.

He also talks about what he has in common with Michael Jackson.

This episode is also sponsored by:

In This Episode:

  • Living out childhood dreams
  • Telling stories through song
  • Meeting your heroes
  • Being a new artist on the radio
  • College Football
  • “Take it slow” song with Ryan Hurd
  • The example of older stars
  • The impact of social media

Quotations:

“I’ve been a product of being in the right environment, and that’s something that I don’t take for granted.” – Conner Smith

“Growing up … song was just how I expressed things.” – Conner Smith

“As a new artist with your single on country radio, it’s like all of your dreams hang inside of that one song.” – Conner Smith

“How much of Tennessee’s success right now is dependent on Hendon Hooker? Is it this the sort of thing where, you know, we’re gonna continue this and really kind of build a program that can sustain itself and last for years to come? Or is this kind of the perfect mix of ingredients? Either way, we finally have a coach that I can trust in, and that means something.” – Conner Smith

“Well, at the end of the day, it’s been a long time since we have been worried about another team taking our coach.” – Conner Smith

“I’ve kind of just become the Tennessee guy a little bit, with the songs, and it’s become so much a part of the brand.” – Conner Smith

“Are there some student athletes? Yes, there are. And the majority of those kids are student athletes who are truly trying to get the education and stuff. But also, I’ve talked to so many division one athletes who go, ‘It is all-encompassing. All you have time to do is workout, practice, train, workout, practice, train.’” – Conner Smith

“That’s a special song, and it’s one of those songs. I think you put out songs in the world and, you know, some of them catch fire and some of them don’t. That was the one that did, and fans just really gravitated towards it.” – Conner Smith

“Thomas Rhett … more than anything he’s ever done for me, he’s taught me how to do this thing the right way.” – Conner Smith

“It [social media] definitely changes the way you kind of view life and for better or worse, and it’s something you grow to live with. I think, especially my generation, you kind of grow up understanding that you’re accountable at every second.” – Conner Smith

“Keep the people around you that truly know your heart and truly know who you’re trying to be” – Conner Smith

Watch the Video:

Guest’s Bio:

Just 22 years old and already a seasoned veteran of Nashville’s elite songwriting community, Conner Smith has become one of Country’s most hotly-anticipated new artists – an uncommon talent mixing prime-of-life passion with old-soul perspective. After penning his first song at 6 and scoring a publishing deal at 16, the Country prodigy wrote five of the six songs on his Zach Crowell-produced 2022 debut collection DIDN’T GO TOO FAR (The Valory Music Co.). The charismatic effort laid an artistic foundation that earned Smith 2022 Artist to Watch status from Spotify, Amazon Music, and Opry NextStage, while also making him the only Country artist on Pandora’s Ten List 2022 and securing 2023 recognition from MusicRow Next Big Thing, CMT Listen Up, and more. Often hiding deep-thinking themes in plain sight, Smith scored his first Top 40 hit with the young-at-heart “Learn From It” and followed up with love-savoring “Take It Slow,” which quickly racked up nearly 100 million global streams to date. Tracks like “I Hate Alabama,” “Orange and White,” and “Summer On Your Lips” are my unexpected insight from vivid everyday stories. As Smith grows up in full view of his fans – both on the page and the stage – CMT calls him “an unstoppable force to be reckoned with.” That momentum will keep building in 2023. Smith follows a year of touring alongside Thomas Rhett, Parker McCollum, and Ryan Hurd with upcoming select dates opening for Chase Rice and promises a new batch of “next level” music, further mixing in-the-moment energy with timeless meaning. Smith is currently on the road for his first-ever headline IF I WENT TO COLLEGE TOUR with special guests Mackenzie Carpenter and Jonathan Hutcherson, presented by the Monster Energy Outbreak tour, and joins Luke Bryan’s COUNTRY ON TOUR this summer.

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Guest’s Contact Info:

Feb 22
Love2

Meghan Patrick

By Music, Personal Growth, Uncategorized No Comments

As a self-described musical theater nerd to a now award-winning country music artist, Meghan Patrick joins Gary to discuss her journey both as an artist and an individual. Patrick shares how different genres and life experiences have influenced her path, and a desire always to make time for the important things. 

In this episode:

  • How Meghan got her start
  • The dynamics of being in a band 
  • Being authentic in the music industry
  • Finding balance as a boss 
  • Facing the economic realities of pursuing a career in music

This episode sponsored by:

Quotations:

“It’s not just the job itself. It’s not just writing songs and performing on and being on the road. For me, it’s also like making sure I get to work out and get outside and that just makes me a better person.” ~Meghan Patrick 

“That was my first exposure to like the country fans. And it all just came together where I was just like, these are my people. I love these people.” ~Meghan Patrick 

“I’m the person. I intend to live a lot of lives within my time that I’m given here on earth” ~Meghan Patrick

“And so it’s like always trying to kind of walk that line of, of being able to fully be myself while trying to make that fit within the country genre when it comes to songwriting. ” ~Meghan Patrick 

Bio:

Gifted, award-winning, chart-topping… cool. There are plenty of apt adjectives that apply to Meghan Patrick. But perhaps the most meaningful descriptor for the acclaimed country singer/songwriter is authentic.

Patrick is a musician who always tells it like it is in a voice as gorgeously persuasive as they come.  So, when she describes her electrifying third full-length studio album, Heart on My Glass, as “the most ‘me’ record I’ve ever made,” it’s a profound statement given the sincerity that has come before.

It’s also a handy metaphor for summing up the new album’s many sonic textures and flavors, some familiar to long-time listeners and others new— blues and gospel, anyone? — but all yanked straight from Patrick’s rich reservoir of influences.

Funny what a pandemic year spent hunkering down in a town like Nashville will do for your music.

“This is a special record for me for a lot of reasons,” Patrick confirms. “I had so much more time over the past year to focus on writing and really being able to dig into what my sound and message should be. This feels like the most all-encompassing representation of me as a writer, an artist, and a human. All the pieces fell into place.”

Feb 01
Love21

Tiera Kennedy

By Music, Personal Growth No Comments

This episode is sponsored by:

Tiera Kennedy tells us about her beginnings. The beginning of her career, life, and relationship with her husband. She tells us the story of writing 2 of her best songs and how she made connections early on in her country music journey. Most importantly, we hear about how love and support got her where she is and keeps her going daily.

In this episode:

  • How she found her producer
  • The Writing of Alabama Nights
  • About Tiera, her parents, and living in Alabama
  • Discussing stage presence
  • The humble beginnings of Tiera’s music career
  • Why Tiera chose country music (or rather, how it chose her)
  • The great artists who influenced her music
  • Meeting Scott Borschetta
  • Tiera’s husband and creative director and how they started

Watch the video version here:

Quotations:

“I wrote it (Alabama Nights) at a writer’s retreat, and writer’s retreats are my favorite way to write because you just kind of get to, you know, chill with your friends, drink some alcohol and just like, have fun and write songs.” – Tiera Kennedy

“So I used to play at our local Buffalo Wild Wings, and I did three-hour shows, and I would sit out on the patio and just play cover songs, and sometimes I would mix in my original songs, but I was just playing to whoever listened. And sometimes it was just my family sitting on that patio listening to me.” – Tiera Kennedy

“He [Garth Brooks] made the point that playing in the room of four people who had no interest in him or what he was doing prepared him to play stadiums. Because if you can win over four people, stadiums are easy.” – Gary Scott Thomas

“His level of passion after that first meeting was really impressive for me because I wanted to be somewhere where they were really as excited about the music as I was. And that’s exactly what I felt from that team, and I wanted it to feel like a family, and it does, and I don’t know that I could have gotten that anywhere else.” – Tiera Kennedy

“I don’t know that I would be where I am without him [husband Cameron]. And every accomplishment that comes my way, his way, like we get to celebrate that together cause we did it together.” – Tiera Kennedy

“I love, love, I, I do. I love seeing kids in love. I still love seeing people in love. I love seeing people who just build each other up and hold each other up.” – Gary Scott Thomas

“There are more disappointments than there are achievements in this industry. I mean, that’s just the way it is, and having people around me who love me and support me, whether I’m doing great or not doing so great, means the world.” – Tiera Kennedy

Guest’s Bio:

Rising artist Tiera Kennedy is emerging as one of the most exciting voices in the format – injecting Country music with a breath of vitality. The flagship artist on Nicolle Galyon’s groundbreaking Songs & Daughters Publishing finds herself as a voice for young women everywhere. Lighting a fire last year with her independently released self-titled EP, Nashville Scene cited the Alabama native as “the total package” and “a writer who has learned how to write for their own voice at a young age,” while American Songwriter concurs, hailing her as “one of Nashville’s most promising young singer/songwriters” and TEEN VOGUE raved about her “pure, catchy upbeat country story-telling.” Giving fans a taste of where her music was headed with an initial demo of “Found It In You” – inspired by her relationship with her husband and creative director Kamren Kennedy – Tiera Kennedy and her co-writer/producer Cameron Bedell had Dann Huff join them for the final take of the song, available now. With the initial 16 million+ on-demand streams laying the foundation for “Found It In You,” the updated take on this beautiful love story is set to deliver an even bigger connection on Country radio. For the latest information and more, visit TieraMusic.com and follow along on Instagram.

Website:

https://solo.to/tiera

Jan 25
Love23

Elle King

By Booze, Music, Personal Growth No Comments

This week’s guest is the music superstar Elle King! She has a new album coming out called Come Get Your Wife.  While it’s a shorter conversation, it’s packed with several topics I know her fans are going to love hearing, such as how the name of the album even came about and how much her tongue gets her in trouble. 

In this episode:

  • Her new album, Come Get Your Wife
  • The attitude in the album
  • Being yourself
  • Working with Charlie Worsham
  • Ironically incredible things that came from her concussion
  • What made her forget to play some of her songs
  • Slowing down and taking care of herself
  • Touring with Chris Stapleton

Quotations:

“I’m a maximalist, so I’m either like 110 or asleep.” ~ Elle King

“I love working with people that lift you up, and you can learn something from.” ~ Elle King

“I just try to find the beauty and everything.” ~ Elle King

“I can be very insulting when I drink.” ~ Elle King

“This tongue of mine has gotten me more trouble in the last four or five months. That’s my New Year’s resolution – quit sticking my tongue out.” ~ Elle King

About Elle:

Her site: https://www.elleking.com

(From Wikipedia)
Tanner Elle Schneider (born July 3, 1989), known professionally as Elle King, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Her musical style is influenced by country, rock and blues.[1]

In 2012, King released her debut EP, The Elle King EP, on RCA; one track from that EP, “Playing for Keeps”, is the theme song for VH1’s Mob Wives Chicago series.[2]

She released her debut album, Love Stuff, in 2015. It produced the US top ten single “Ex’s & Oh’s“, which earned her two Grammy Award nominations. King has also toured with acts such as Of Monsters and Men, Train, James Bay, The Chicks, Heart, Joan Jett, Michael Kiwanuka, and Miranda Lambert. She is the daughter of actor and comedian Rob Schneider and former model London King. King uses her mother’s surname to distinguish her career and identity from her father’s. “People know who my dad is,” she told ABC News, “but I think that my voice and my music speaks for itself: that I am my own person.”[3]

King is a four-time Grammy Award nominee, two each in the rock and country categories, and received honors from the Country Music Association Awards and the Academy of Country Music Awards.