Via Press Release: NASHVILLE, TENN. (February 1, 2021) – With 40 MILLION career streams, a nationwide headline tour and 30+ Grand Ole Opry performances to date, SmithField is unveiling their next chapter with the brand-new track “Sunday Best” due out February 17. Pre-save “Sunday Best” here.
Penned by the duo’s Jennifer Fielder and Trey Smith with Trannie Anderson and Ian Christian, and produced by ACM Award-winner Derek Wells and Adam Wood, “Sunday Best,” is a cathartic anthem about accepting a lover’s true self while nodding to the societal expectations that SmithField experienced while growing up in rural Texas.
“We’re beyond excited to start this next chapter of our story. The experiences that we’ve had so far, have made us the best versions of ourselves, and given us some unique stories to tell. We feel this new music is the perfect translation of who we are. This is what SmithField was always meant to be.” – Jennifer & Trey (SmithField)
“Sunday Best” follows a whirlwind journey since the emerging independent duo turned heads with their infectious single “Hey Whiskey,” featured as a SiriusXM Highway Find and selling more than 100K downloads. The best-of-friends pair have performed at several high-profile festivals including Stagecoach, CMA Fest, Faster Horses, Lake Shake, Watershed and more, while also sharing the bill with some of Country’s biggest stars including Brothers Osborne, Morgan Wallen and Old Dominion. Their 2019 WE MAKE OUR OWN EP continued to strike a chord with their loyal fan base, launching in the Top 10 of the iTunes Country Albums chart.
Putting a modern spin on one of the genre’s greatest traditions – the male-female duet – SmithField effortlessly blends the classic with the contemporary, while showcasing their unique brand of two-sided storytelling. Taste of Country praises they “play off one another with the natural ease” while Rolling Stone highlights the two “find their strength in what multiple voices can bring to the table.”
“Sunday Best” previews SmithField’s anticipated EP, due out in 2021.
Kalie Shorr is giving fans a glimpse of her personal reflections with the release of “My Voice,” her honest and unabashed tale of her journey as a Nashville singer-songwriter. Still celebrating the success of her debut album Open Book, No. 7 on New York Times’ all-genre Best Albums of 2019 list, Shorr is turning the page to a new chapter with Open Book: Unabridged coming later this year. “My Voice” is just the first page of this new chapter, continuing her truth-filled and authentically irreverent point of view. With sonic influences from her diverse country roots and mid-2000s pop-punk, Kalie Shorr doubles down on her self-assured, rebelliously-unique sound. Listen to “My Voice” here.
Variety recently called her “the most attention-getting DIY artist in country [music],” a trait that recently landed Shorr her first recording contract with New York based major player TMWRK Records.
“I never thought I’d get to release ‘My Voice.’ I wrote it in March of 2019, the week before we started recording Open Book. I was going into the studio with this sense of confidence that I hadn’t had before, like I knew that album was going to change my life. I still had plenty of episodes of self-doubt, but writing that song was so cathartic and empowering for me. When it came time to pick songs for the extended version of the album (Open Book: Unabridged), I threw that in the Dropbox not expecting anything. The head of my new label championed it from day one. I’m so happy I get to let people hear my truly unfiltered thoughts on the music business and my career. When I wrote it, it was more of a stream of consciousness musing on the industry and now it’s turned into a personal mantra,” says Shorr.
Some of music’s most esteemed critics praised Open Book. Rolling Stone compares the record to a mix of “Shania Twain, Red-era Taylor Swift, Dashboard Confessional and Alanis Morissette,” while Taste of Country calls it “bold,” “raw,” and “real.” As for Shorr, NPR touts the singer/songwriter as “one of Nashville’s most promising” and in the U.K., The Guardian dubbed Shorr “the new queen of country”.
Last month, Shorr launched a podcast in partnership with iHeartMedia called “Too Much To Say with Kalie Shorr,” executive produced by nationally syndicated radio host Bobby Bones. “My Voice” is her first release on TMWRK Records.
Nashville country artist, Sarah Harralson, recently released her new single, “Put a Rock on This Rolling Stone” under Busy at Play Publishing, which is her newest release since her collaborative album ‘West of Me’ in May 2019. This is her first released track since signing with producer Johnny Garcia (Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood), and it brings her music to a whole new level.
“Put a Rock on This Rolling Stone” means pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Harralson states, “The song is about someone who is a free spirit and an independent person, but at some point they want to settle down once they find the right person. I relate to this a lot, and I think a lot of others do too.” This East Tennessean native has influences of The Dixie Chicks, Jewel, and Alanis Morissette, which you can hear in her music.
Although the song was finished in mid-March, Harralson was unsure of when to put the song out into the world in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. “At the time, a lot of artists were postponing their tours and music releases, so I decided the beginning of summer would be the best time to release the single. After all, people want happy, feel-good songs in the summer. I had no idea it ended up being the perfect time to release it. Things were opening up again, and with all of the shotgun courthouse & zoom weddings due to canceled wedding ceremonies, it ended up being the perfect song for people to add to their wedding playlists. Because at the end of the day, people are just ready to put a rock on it instead of waiting!”
A couple days after the song was released, Harralson gave us another surprise with the music video for “Put a Rock on This Rolling Stone”. She says, “Another challenge was figuring out the music video concept. I originally wanted to have a party scene in the video with some people, but I knew it would be safer at the time to only have myself in the video. I like that we went with this concept instead because it promotes social distancing, but it also made sense to have just myself in the video since a rolling stone usually is alone when they’re moving from one place to the next.”
We asked her if she still considers herself to be a rolling stone: “I think I will always have a free spirit in me, but at the end of the day, I do want to settle down and have that true love, which I really feel like I have found. I think all gypsy souls feel like they will never find the one until it just comes to them one day. I will always advocate love because there is truly nothing better, and if you are unsure if you will ever find it, don’t look so hard for it, just be patient.”
This Knoxville native began writing songs when she was ten years old, her grandfather, a bluegrass musician, being her biggest musical influence. After her grandfather passed in 2011, Sarah decided she would move to Nashville two years later to pursue music at Belmont University. A year after releasing her debut EP in 2014, she was discovered by Scotty Schultz, drummer of Shooter Jennings (Waylon Jennings’s son). Scotty opened up his publishing company, Raindrop Music LLC, in 2015 and after hearing Sarah’s original song “Watered Down Whiskey”, he knew he wanted to sign her right away. This would be Sarah’s first publishing deal. Scotty decided he would produce her first country EP, Watered Down Whiskey, of all original songs that Sarah has either written or co-written.
One of the tracks on the EP includes the song, “Radio Static” that was co-written with Johnny Garcia (lead guitar for Garth Brooks). Over time, Sarah began writing and working with Johnny, which evolved to the point where Sarah would sign her next publishing and artist development deal with Busy at Play Publishing (Johnny Garcia’s company). She is currently recording her next record with Johnny and you can expect to hear her new singles soon. Besides performing, Sarah also produces music herself and decided to release a collaborative album with co-writer Christine Bauer in early 2019 that she self-produced. She also plays at hospitals once a month for Musicians On Call. Sarah hopes that her music will help people in some way across the world. She is a big believer that music heals.
It might be hard to remember a time when Lindsay Ell was not a well-known artist. Now, she has billboards up across the country and rose to the top of the itunes charts with the release of her sophomore album Heart Theory. If you are still unfamiliar with Ell’s work, it’s only a matter of time before she is a household name. Heart Theory is more than an album, it’s more than just a work of art, it’s a labor of love. Ell has never sounded so in tune with her craft, so powerful, and so moving.
She recently celebrated her first number one song in the US along with Brantley Gilbert for their single “What Happens in a Small Town.” She has previously earned a #1 in Canada with her single “Criminal.” She has made waves over the last few years as she has earned the respect of every artist around. Her hard work ethic, insane talent (girl can shred a guitar), and overall lovable personality has set her a part.
Ell frequently posts instagram stories. Prior to shut down, she was always on a plane or bus, making it to the next gig. She recently completed a 24 hour live stream to celebrate the release of Heart Theory. How does she do it?
Heart Theory lets us see a vulnerable side to Ell, as she opens up about past hurts and struggles. She recently told her story about being a survivor of rape and started the “Make You Movement,” after her song “Make You” in which she deals with the trauma of being raped at age 13 and again at 21.
The first single off the record, “Want Me Back” was also co-written by fellow Country Artist, Kane Brown. It marks Brown’s first cut as a song writer by an outside artist! it was also written with Matt McGinn and Lindsay Rimes.
heart theory track listing(with writers) (If you look closely, the bold letters spell out Heart Theory)!
Canadian Country Artist, Shae Dupuy recently released her latest single “Black and White” and has an EP coming out soon! Hailing from Canada, where she saw success an a young age, Dupuy has since moved to Nashville, immersing herself in the country music world and writing with the town’s talented songwriters.
“Black and White” was co-written with Kyle Rife and Jeremy Bussey (who has written countless hits and one of our favorite songs, “You Make it Look So Good” – Thompson Square). The song was inspired by a break-up that did not have the closure needed to move on from the relationship. Sometimes people just grow apart and there is no big fight or disagreement, so it can be hard to move on. Dupuy explains more on that in our interview! Take a listen to the song and read on to find out more about this talented singer/songwriter.
Hi Shae! Thank you so much for taking the time to discuss your music and let our readers learn more about you. You started singing and playing guitar at a young age, what drew you to music? Were there particular artists you listened to that inspired you at that age?
Around 8 years old, I started learning guitar, but I’ve been singing since I could talk! My grandpa used to watch me as a little girl when my parents would work and he was the musician in my life that really started my love of music and country music.
You gathered attention in Canada, where you’re from and earned nominations for multiple award shows there. It seems like Canada really loved Country Music, how was it starting your career there?
I wouldn’t trade my start in Canada or the people I met and helped my career and growth for anything! The community is so talented and special and really feels like a family, starting a career in that environment makes all the difference.
You’ve since moved to Nashville, what inspired your decision to move there and how have you enjoyed your time there thus far?
I love Nashville and I love my friends and community I’m a part of. I’m always looking for new ways to grow and push myself. Having been down to Nashville multiple times for writing trips, I knew moving here would mean I was surrounding myself with the best of the best and that would push me to be better.
Have you been inspired to write during this time of lockdown? It seems like the perfect time to just sit, be still and hopefully be inspired.
As a writer who thrives off of the connection with co-writers, writing through zoom has been really tough! It feels impersonal doing it through a computer screen. I’m a writer and artist who likes to write about all the messy parts of life and I’ve actually found it a little harder to write during this time because this pandemic doesn’t feel like real life.
You just released your song “Black and White” can you tell us more about what inspired the song and how a lack of closure can be difficult?
“Black and White” for me, was trying to work through a breakup where nothing went wrong. I find having something to blame makes things easier to get over after a breakup. When you miss them and you have a reason you can hold in your hands, you can remind yourself why it didn’t work. Without that, it’s just that much harder.
What else can you tell us about the music you have been working on and when we might be seeing more of it soon?
I can tell you there’s an EP on its way with one of my favorite songs I’ve ever written and another single coming out in the next couple of months!
Now that everyone seems to have a little more free time, how do you enjoy filling your days?
I love hiking with my dog and reading! Most of my free time these days has been spent between those.
What are you looking forward to doing most once the world starts getting back to normal
Playing and going to a festival! I miss live music so much.
Can you leave our readers and your fans with any encouraging words?
Trust in timing, everything happens on its own clock.
More About Shae:
On the day of Shae’s high school graduation, she launched her career with the release of her first single, “Grandpa’s Truck.” The single attracted the attention of CMT Canada, naming her ‘Fresh Face Artist’. Later that fall in 2016, she released her second studio EP, “Brave”, and garnered multiple nominations from the CMAO Awards for her songs, “Tin Man” and “Drink About It”. Soon after, Dupuy went on to earn in 2017, the CCMA nomination for ‘Interactive Artist of the Year’.
Following the success of her first two studio RPs, she moved south to Nashville, immersing herself in the city’s songwriting scene. It is here that Dupuy has written a catalog of songs for her next recording project, as well as songs for other artists. Her music displays cultured vocal expression, storytelling, and a strong sense of identity and conviction, both as an artist and as a person.
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