She Returns from War - Make Your Own Magic, Live Your Own Truth
She Returns From War
Singer-songwriter Hunter Park, known for her moniker She Returns From War, embodies the spirit of the modern South.
With a voice that carries both tenderness and raw power, she's captivating audiences and challenging the status quo. 🎤 But what does it mean to return from war as a musician? 🤔
Hunter's journey is one of resilience, self-discovery, and embracing her true identity in a conservative environment.
Her music explores themes of overcoming adversity, finding strength within, and creating a community of acceptance.
But what was it like for her to finally take the stage at one one biggest stages in the Southeast after years of waiting?
🎤 And how has her experience in the South shaped her music and message? 🎵
You'll Also Discover:
- The Meaning Behind She Returns From War
- Hunter's Experience at High Water Festival
- How to Create a Better South
- The Power of Embracing Your Identity
- A Blueprint for Building a Supportive Community
What does the name "She Returns From War" mean to you? 🤔 Share your thoughts in the comments below! 👇
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Check out the music from She Returns from War: https://www.instagram.com/shereturnsfromwar/
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Transcript
Hey, everybody.
Speaker A:Welcome back to Americana Curious.
Speaker A:For the past decade, Hunter park has carved out a truly unique space in the indie folk in Americana scene under the moniker she Returns from War.
Speaker A:Born and bred in the swamps of low country surrounding Charleston, South Carolina, she channels her experiences through her music and songwriting.
Speaker A:Hunters gained traction in the Southeast in recent years, opening up for bands you know and love like Band of Horses, Shovels and Rope, the Revivalist Susto, and more.
Speaker A:With a voice that carries both tenderness and raw power, she Returns From War explores themes of identity, resilience, and ever shifting on the ever shifting American landscape.
Speaker A:A true songbird poet, swamp witch, she Returns From War is sharing with the world what the modern south should look like.
Speaker A:Inclusive, compassionate, unfiltered and loving.
Speaker A:Hunter, welcome to Americana Curious.
Speaker B:Thank you for having me.
Speaker C:Yeah, Hunter, this has been great because we, me and you have been emailing back and forth for quite some time.
Speaker C:I want to say it might be six months, and we're just glad that you decided to come on or we finally worked this out.
Speaker C:But we were chatting before kind of about the term Americana.
Speaker C:What would you think that that means to you?
Speaker B:Well, I guess as our previous discussions, I think it's just like a melding together of efforts and like the American music canon that is kind of like undeniably like American made music.
Speaker B:I mean, there's influences, of course, like, from.
Speaker B:From everywhere, but it's like, like, you know, the one true form of music that we've put out as a nation.
Speaker B:And I think it's like, just like the.
Speaker B:The value of how much effort that's been made throughout the years to make it like what.
Speaker B:What it's become.
Speaker B:That is not just like a radio country direction or a traditional country direction.
Speaker B:It incorporates just like a lot of.
Speaker B:There's so many facets to it.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:And I think it's like you get a multitude of stories in that way, and I think it deserves its own platform and deserves, like, you know, just as much a part of the, like, attention and history that we're.
Speaker B:We're giving music.
Speaker B:So I think that's kind of where I think of Americana.
Speaker C:I love that.
Speaker C:I love that.
Speaker C:I agree with that so much.
Speaker C:So let's go back a little ways.
Speaker C:This moniker of she Returns from War, where did this come from?
Speaker C:How did this idea explode?
Speaker C:What was the thoughts behind that?
Speaker B:Well, so I was kind of like rifling through band names with my friend Jesse Ledford, who started the band with me, and I did not know a direction, so I was looking up so Many different places and inspirations.
Speaker B:And I settled on this because it does have a native translation.
Speaker B:And I, I have just resonated with the fact that it's like overcoming, sticking with it and, and, and being like the bold person that you can be and, and when, especially when the world feels pitted against you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And I, I've just, I.
Speaker B:The more that I've, I've continued to be a musician, the more I've resonated with my own band name because it, it is.
Speaker B:Sticking with art throughout your life and not finding a different direction to support yourself or sustain yourself is difficult in its entirety.
Speaker B:It's really, really hard to be a full time musician.
Speaker B:I'm not a full time musician.
Speaker B:I'm a preschool lunch lady by day.
Speaker B:But I, I think that just perseverance is the name of the game and that's what I've been just trying to, to commit to.
Speaker B:I've thought several times about, you know, if I want to go by my own name just because there's been shifting band members and there's never been, you know, like a moment where I didn't resonate with this.
Speaker B:So I think it's, it stuck with me.
Speaker A: on the poster for high water: Speaker A:A couple things came up for me.
Speaker A:If you ever read Steven Pressfield's book the War of Art, it's a, it's a very powerful book and he talks about his personal experiences in the movie making business.
Speaker A:He, he did the Legend of Bagger Vance and a lot of these things.
Speaker A:But art is, is like a war to some degree, making that which to go through.
Speaker A:But your name of your band is like, it conjures up to me someone who has been to war and that you're coming back triumphantly and like taking the stage.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:How does that resonate with your vision of the band?
Speaker A:And is that how you walk on the stage like you've come back from war, so to speak?
Speaker B:Well, I feel like in music you are, you are kind of battling where you fit in, where, how your creative art is balanced into your normal life.
Speaker B:And that is a struggle that needs to be honored.
Speaker B:And I think that when I, I want it to serve as an inspirational term, kind of like a, you know, you, you can be triumphant and you can feel confident in yourself and no matter what, like life itself throws at you, you can, you know, find this kind of like, like Raising Wind Horse moment where you kind of like are just fueled by your own, you know, intention and.
Speaker B:And power, as long as it's used for, like, the good and right in the world.
Speaker A: if you can remember, back in: Speaker A:I mean, that's for the listeners.
Speaker A:High Water is the busy.
Speaker A:The biggest music festival in Charleston and.
Speaker A:And maybe the whole state.
Speaker A:And you came out there triumphantly in front of the crowd.
Speaker B:So I do have a backstory about this.
Speaker B:Carrie Ann and I are friends and, you know, Shovels and Rope was the curator of that festival for a long time.
Speaker B:And Mike and Carrie Ann have been such a huge inspiration to our music community simply because they have worked so incredibly hard to make South Carolina and Charleston a music on the music map.
Speaker B:And a lot of our local friends and family have so much.
Speaker B:You know, they've gleaned so much from that hard work.
Speaker B: upposed to play high water in: Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:And it was a part of my career where I just gotten off of a tour with Band of Horses, and I had a projectile, and I was going to, you know, start writing and releasing music, and I felt good about it, and then everything shut down, and I had to reevaluate.
Speaker B:This is another thing where it comes, like, you know, things start getting thrown at you, and it's how you handle it.
Speaker B:And so when it came time to be on that stage, finally, after a couple years of waiting and rescheduling and thinking about when they wanted me back, I did feel.
Speaker B:It felt like I was falling into a place there.
Speaker B:And it felt really, really good to be a part of it.
Speaker B:And I had the most magical time.
Speaker B:It was.
Speaker B:It was, you know, waiting for the right moment and seeing Carrie Ann on the side stage.
Speaker B:And, yeah, I saw her having my band be up there with us, it just meant.
Speaker B:It meant the world to me.
Speaker B:So that was a wonderful experience.
Speaker B:And we were able to end that show with Ruthless, which eventually became third.
Speaker C:I was gonna bring up that song.
Speaker C:I love that song.
Speaker B:Thank you so.
Speaker C:But go ahead.
Speaker C:I'm sorry to interrupt it.
Speaker A:So you play Ruthless, then what happens?
Speaker B:Well, I mean, then I enjoyed the festival, obviously.
Speaker B:I do.
Speaker B:Funny story.
Speaker B:I was excited to hang.
Speaker B:I have met Carrie Anne's mom in passing a few times, but it was really nice to sit down with her mom because her mom is just like her.
Speaker B:They're very, very, you know, you know, full of life, very fun to talk to.
Speaker B:And we were celebrating.
Speaker B:My friend Brad had given me this Absolutely beautiful dress to wear for that event.
Speaker B:And I was talking to Carrie Anne's mom, and I spilled an entire bottle of wine over or all over us backstage.
Speaker B:And it was so embarrassing, but we both tried to handle it.
Speaker B:But that was a very OPA moment where, you know, we were, we were having fun.
Speaker B:And I did enjoy that festival so much because afterwards it did feel like a milestone to me.
Speaker B:But I know that the magic about, you know, our music community in Charleston is if you want to keep pushing for something and, and mine is sustainability in this art form that, you know, everyone was in full support of me moving and making it like making the move to Nashville an intentional thing for me just to keep.
Speaker B:Keep it going and keep the project going and seeing where it would land here.
Speaker B:So I'm very grateful that, that Charleston is always going to be home to me because of the fact that, you know, everybody there is.
Speaker B:Is supportive and knows that this is an art form that is just going to be a part of my life.
Speaker A:What's it like to bounce into a city like Nashville after having such a storied career in the low country, being so known here?
Speaker A:And I, I, I know, you know, a lot of artists up there, but there's, there's a lot of, there's a.
Speaker C:Lot of competitive, I wouldn't call it.
Speaker B:So the thing about the word competitive, it's friendly competition.
Speaker B:And it's, it's not, it's not necessarily.
Speaker B:I mean, it's like you want to see everyone succeed.
Speaker B:When you're, when you're thinking about it in the right way and everybody is, and, you know, you're trying to bring everybody up, and that's where Americana comes in as an art form that I think is so important right now is because everybody is going to have a working part and everybody else's success.
Speaker B:So I think that when you're asking your friends to back you at a honky tonk show and you're having to lean on people last minute to learn stuff, there's a willingness within Americana music that makes things approachable and it kind of, it levels the field, if you will, because it's not, it's not about the, I guess, like, big fireworks of the situation.
Speaker B:It's the work that you're doing within the band and the communication that you're having within the band.
Speaker B:So when got to Nashville, I did have to lean on people a lot, and I did have to depend on so much of my friend group that I'd established by working here for so long.
Speaker B:But I Did already have that in place, and people were willing to.
Speaker B:I mean, it's amazing because I have played with some of these players who have been playing in the same bands forever.
Speaker B:And I was just recently asked to make my little Santa's debut with my friend Emily Nenny.
Speaker B:She was recording a live record.
Speaker C:I was just gonna bring up the Santa thing because this is the place to be.
Speaker C:Ben, we gotta get to Santa week.
Speaker A:Did you do it or did you already.
Speaker A:You already had it.
Speaker B:I don't know how much I can talk about what she's planning on doing.
Speaker B:I guess there's.
Speaker B:There was a.
Speaker B:A public announcement, but I believe there's some recordings that will be done.
Speaker B:And I'd played with some of the band, Santa's Ice Cold Pickers before, but it was just a really amazing experience to get to actually finally do it after years of watching it and wanting to get in there.
Speaker B:And that's awesome.
Speaker A:Is it as cool as everybody says that?
Speaker A:Everybody says it's fantastic.
Speaker B:So that's also.
Speaker B:I mean, it's like, you know, milestone.
Speaker B:Milestones come in different shapes and sizes.
Speaker B:It could be a festival.
Speaker B:It could be a, you know, dive bar that's built into a double wide.
Speaker B:We.
Speaker B:We find.
Speaker B:We find joy in different ways.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker A:Zach, we have to make our debut over there too.
Speaker C:I'm blown away by this Santa's Pub.
Speaker C:I mean, Zach Schmidt mentioned it.
Speaker C:The Boys from Teddy.
Speaker B:Very legendary.
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker C:It's very legend.
Speaker C:How do, like, when you perform in a festival like High Water, how did the people that maybe don't know your music, what did they take away from it?
Speaker C:Do you feel.
Speaker C:Did you have any memorable experience of somebody saying they move.
Speaker C:It was moved, or they were moved by it or touched or.
Speaker B:I have a.
Speaker B:Well, so I have a.
Speaker B:An interesting take on performing live because I feel like my production in my studio albums might not be seen as people want it to be.
Speaker B:You know, people want.
Speaker B:I think I get lost a little bit.
Speaker B:It's my guilty pleasure to get lost in how intricate something can be.
Speaker B:And I think it occasionally is messy, and it doesn't come across and translates in the way that, like, a traditional Americana music listener would get.
Speaker B:But then I think when I'm performing on a live stage, I think people really understand that that's just my intention with the.
Speaker B:The recording.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:And I do want people to be able to come see me live because I do have a personality outside of my recording.
Speaker B:So I, I.
Speaker B:I attach to people that way.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:And so when I'm able to Sing the lyrics that I've written to somebody in the present moment.
Speaker B:I think that that that is where it kind of clicks, and they kind of have that, like, understanding afterwards that, yes, this is a.
Speaker B:An Americana country outfit, even though it's a little bit more complicated sometimes and doesn't follow any particular pattern or design.
Speaker C:Well, we love that.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:In no way that I'm thinking that it's like it should, but I think that it does get a little lost in translation sometimes.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:I love that, though, with the recordings, because there.
Speaker C:There's so many sounds, and I feel like that is Americana music where it all fits under this umbrella.
Speaker C:You know, when I was watching one of your videos last night, it was at that ACME feed and Seed, I want to.
Speaker C:Yeah, it was a recording.
Speaker C:And, I mean, that just blew me away.
Speaker C:I think it was Edgefield.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker C:And that song.
Speaker C:Could you walk me through that song?
Speaker C:Because I kind of feel like that's a triumphant song for you that you sing live.
Speaker B:That is an ode to a bar here, actually, in Nashville, there was a bar called Edgefield.
Speaker B:It's where I would hang out when I was not living here.
Speaker B:It's since been change management and change names, but there's.
Speaker B:There's, like, a magic memory of just, like, me being here, not living here, trying to make things, you know, trying to make connections, trying to make things work.
Speaker B:And when I was able to put that song out and recorded it, Acme, who are very, very supportive, amazing people, definitely a stop if people are ever in Nashville.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's one of the.
Speaker B:One of the good ones, and they have been really great with artist development.
Speaker B:They're really great with, you know, seeking out acts that would not necessarily be.
Speaker B:They're just great at highlighting people and highlighting people that are part of this music scene that need to be.
Speaker B:And their voices need to be heard.
Speaker B:So it's a.
Speaker B:It's wonderful that they work to amplify that, and I am very grateful for being able to do that song.
Speaker B:So when I was.
Speaker B:When I was playing it live at Acme, it kind of clicked during that recording process that, like, oh, you know, I'm.
Speaker B:I'm in rotation at acme, and.
Speaker B:And they were kind enough to put it on the loop at the airport.
Speaker B:And now people will text me sometimes and be like, I'm at the bar and you're just on tv.
Speaker B:Hey.
Speaker B:That's like, well, thank God it's not cool.
Speaker C:That's a good point.
Speaker A:Oh, so good.
Speaker A:Hunter.
Speaker A:What.
Speaker A:What is a swamp witch?
Speaker B:I wrote that Song about, you know, fitting the.
Speaker B:There's.
Speaker B:There's an idea of who you should be in the south, and there's an idea that it.
Speaker B:You might have this kind of.
Speaker B:I don't know if it would be more comfortable or what the idea is behind it, but the south is a really structured place still, and there's a lot of walls that people put up, and I think it's, like, defensive mainly from, like, feeling how they really, truly feel because they don't want to be seen in any kind of way, but just the, you know, follow the fold.
Speaker B:And that song was just kind of a message to people that's like, you know, you can be close to the ground and.
Speaker B:And still maintain your individuality, and there are people out there who do understand you, and there's a magic behind that, and, you know, there's a magic in.
Speaker B:In leaning into your identity that is your true self.
Speaker B:Because at the end of the day, you know, learning to be honest with yourself is a struggle that a lot of people are going to have to overcome.
Speaker B:And, like, in my transness and.
Speaker B:And my openness with being transgender and in a very conservative environment, I wanted to, you know, send that message out to people that it is.
Speaker B:There are other people who are out here, and there are other people that are not going to make you feel like you're alone.
Speaker B:So there is, like, something, you know, you.
Speaker B:You float and you make it.
Speaker B:You're.
Speaker B:You make your own magic when you decide that you're going to live your truth.
Speaker C:I love that because, I mean, your music has themes of identity and self abstinence.
Speaker C:So your journey is shaped by your.
Speaker C:Your songwriting.
Speaker C:I imagine.
Speaker B:It.
Speaker B:It is, and it's shaped by a lot of the.
Speaker B:I guess, like, just the.
Speaker B:The ways that people interpret it are not always positive.
Speaker B:And I know what people say, and I'm not.
Speaker B:I'm not daft to those things.
Speaker B:But there's a grace that you can give people, and there's.
Speaker B:There's.
Speaker B:There's a patience that you do develop, which is.
Speaker B:Is.
Speaker B:Is hard.
Speaker B:But everybody's learning on the same.
Speaker B:Same timeline.
Speaker B:And there's going to be people who make mistakes, and there's going to be people who let their refusal to understand things, like, keep them.
Speaker B:Keep their inner voice silent.
Speaker B:And I just want to meet people where they can feel okay about admitting that.
Speaker B:There's, like, a humility to learning about new things that you haven't understood before.
Speaker B:And there is something very Americana.
Speaker B:There's something very cowboy about that.
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Because, you know, Nobody.
Speaker B:Nobody is.
Speaker B:Is perfect.
Speaker B:But I think that we can try to.
Speaker B:All we can do is try to understand each other.
Speaker A:Is there a moment that comes to mind?
Speaker A:We, we were.
Speaker A:I was thinking about our interview with Chris Matthews, who she.
Speaker A:She felt bullied on the stage and she's like, hey, I just learned to start singing out the bully.
Speaker A:So just singing out and that.
Speaker A:And that was, and that was her approach in that moment.
Speaker A:Have you had a moment on the stage where you felt adversity in that way and, and how did you handle it?
Speaker B:Well, I feel like when I've gotten into, like, more conservative environments and people don't see the humanity behind the art form, I think that people love to criticize.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:And to be fair, if you want to be a music critic in, in, you know, your living room and, and talk about, you know, what your opinions are about an artist, no one's going to stop you from doing that.
Speaker B:But it's when, you know, you take that into a public space, if you can't have the intellectual humility to, to learn that there's a thousand and one opinions in one one bar room and, and how to make that flow, then that's personal problem.
Speaker B:I don't think that anybody should ever meet people with adversity.
Speaker B:I think that people should go into public spaces, especially with a very.
Speaker B:And we're, we're definitely learning and cultivating that culture.
Speaker B:And that does start with, with educational opportunities like this.
Speaker B:And it starts with, you know, venue owners putting a foot down on, on how they view treating artists when they walk in the door and how, you know, artists have a responsibility to carry that torch and hold people accountable too.
Speaker B:It's just all a big whirlwind of, of stuff that we need to constantly work on.
Speaker B:But I think that when you look.
Speaker B:When you look at what we're doing and working together on something that's, it's achievable.
Speaker C:Yeah, I love that.
Speaker C:Well, let's.
Speaker C:I want to talk about more milestones because you said they come in all shapes and sizes, but you got a one that's coming up that's fairly big.
Speaker C:I mean, so that one's a big, big shape.
Speaker C:Could you tell us about Luck reunion?
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:I am very excited about Luck.
Speaker B:I, I could cry.
Speaker B:I went when it was Heartbreakers Banquet and Carrion and Michael actually circle back 10 years ago to.
Speaker B:I was on tour with my friend Rachel Kate and she was doing showcases at south by.
Speaker B:And Bandidos was there and a lot of our, our friends and Paul shuffles And groups manager had invited us to go to Heartbreakers Banquet because our friend and now one of the producers on Ruthless, Joel Hamilton from Mechanical river, he uh, was playing in the chapel and Carrion and Michael were on the main stage and uh, we had our friends, uh, you know, Jack and Andy there and Megan Jean.
Speaker B:And it was just this really, really magical experience.
Speaker B:And meanwhile, I'm 21.
Speaker B:Thank you my friend Casey for giving me her ID.
Speaker B:I'm 21 at the time and I had just, you know, it was like going to this perfect dream festival and I didn't even realize the kind of depth and amazingness.
Speaker B:And then I was able to see Willie Nelson on stage and it was really surreal and I felt like I was kind of like floating into a dream.
Speaker B:And I didn't think about luck being an achievable thing to me.
Speaker B:I didn't think that it would be something that I was able to do.
Speaker B:And I don't know if it was a block from.
Speaker B:I don't know if it was a self doubt thing.
Speaker B:I just didn't know like who or what or how to get into these spaces.
Speaker B:And there's, you know, there's opportunities that you get when you, when you do shift places.
Speaker B:And I was asked to do luck this year and it is, I'm so excited about it because I'm doing a round with these incredible writers.
Speaker B:Christina Murray and Jamie Wyatt and Ry Arman and John R.
Speaker B:Miller are going to be in writers round with me.
Speaker B:And it's, it's been great because we've been able to actually start writing songs together and I know I've shared a couple of songs that I've am going to turn into an album and then I had the pleasure of writing a couple more.
Speaker B:When I was in Santa Fe, Mike from Western AF helped yes.
Speaker B:Cultivate this absolutely amazing week and I really want to thank him for being such a strong leader.
Speaker B:I think that Mike has a vision and all of the Western AF team has a vision of preserving this kind of like songwriter in Americana platform by doing these field recordings.
Speaker B:And it's made artist development so rich and so purely what it should be.
Speaker B:And they support artists with this extreme attention and the attention is like the energy is palpable when you're working with them.
Speaker B:And we've, you know, dealt with some blows and we've recovered from some things and we've made like real magic happen.
Speaker B:And it takes people who give so much of a.
Speaker B:About the musician.
Speaker B:It's, it's an unreal thing and it Care comes in many forms.
Speaker B:And I think Mike's amazing leadership has led us to this Luck Texas showcase, which will happen in the chapel.
Speaker B:And I'm very thankful for him.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:So for the people that so.
Speaker A:And I don't know Western AF as many as a lot of people.
Speaker A:I know that they pop up on my Instagram and they have the most amazing people I often don't know yet.
Speaker A:And they're like in a.
Speaker A:In a really cool background performing a special song.
Speaker A:And I instantly want to find out more about the artist.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:Is that what they do mainly or what.
Speaker A:What all are well.
Speaker C:And I'd like to add that they just put out a fantastic kind of thing, 30 minute, maybe a little bit longer documentary on Luke Bell with some amazing artists singing his songs, kind of his friends.
Speaker C:And it was moving to the.
Speaker C:I mean and we.
Speaker C:I.
Speaker C:I don't know.
Speaker C:They just.
Speaker C:They're doing incredible work over there and the.
Speaker B:The team is.
Speaker B:Is.
Speaker B:I've had the.
Speaker B:The privilege of meeting all of them at once and then I've worked with all of them separately and talked to.
Speaker B:Had individual conversations with everybody in the.
Speaker B:The passion is so.
Speaker B:So there to just keep the songwriter, American songwriter alive and develop development.
Speaker B:And there's.
Speaker B:There's a lot.
Speaker B:It is a family and it is a working art form.
Speaker B:And I think being.
Speaker B:I was.
Speaker B:I was very thankful that they had taken kind of a.
Speaker B:A liking to me.
Speaker B:My.
Speaker B:It was.
Speaker B:I was recommended by my friend Darby Wilcox, who's an am Americana musician in Greenville, South Carolina.
Speaker B:We went on tour with my friend Jordan.
Speaker B:I go.
Speaker B:I'm wearing her T shirt right now.
Speaker B:There's so much.
Speaker B:There's so much music.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And they do a great job of.
Speaker B:Of taking a songwriter and.
Speaker B:And helping them get con.
Speaker B:I mean, content is something that everybody craves.
Speaker B:I'm horrible at it, but I try.
Speaker A:That's what we're.
Speaker C:I mean, that's what Ben and I are trying to do is we are not radio listeners and we just know that there's so much good music out there that people need to know about.
Speaker C:So that's why we started doing this.
Speaker A:But it's like Western af, they go deeper than.
Speaker A:They're working with you in collaboration on songwriting, producing.
Speaker A:I mean, every step of the way there's.
Speaker B:There's preservation involved, as you.
Speaker B:You were recently or just said.
Speaker B:And then there's, you know, we've got, you know, some fundraising opportunities.
Speaker B:Nat Myers is dealing with some health issues and.
Speaker B:And just the fact that they're on the ground doing Doing some work to help spread awareness for him and get some funding behind him is, Is really meaningful because I think it's important because at the end of the day the songwriter's still a soft, you know, human body that, you know, is imperfect and, and has your, you know.
Speaker B:I'm glad that there's.
Speaker B:They're able to offer some support and definitely like, obviously like, you know, spreading the.
Speaker B:Just the word by.
Speaker B:By socials and, and things like this.
Speaker B:And I think that's so important to just keeping.
Speaker B:Keeping it going and keeping the machine going.
Speaker B:And you know, I want everybody to thrive and, and feel like there's.
Speaker B:There's help and, and places that they can.
Speaker B:Spaces that they can ask for easily because everyone deserves it.
Speaker B:Especially when you're a part of this, this family or our umbrella of.
Speaker B:Of music.
Speaker A:When we come to a she returns from worship and the listeners do.
Speaker A:What is the best way for us all to support you in the band?
Speaker B:I think looking at my music as just the.
Speaker B:The honest thing that it is and knowing that my goals are to, you know, continue making art for, for people and learning or not learning, but kind of like cultivating this, this air of like we're all in this, you know, together.
Speaker B:It doesn't matter who you are, it doesn't matter your creed, your race, your gender, your religion, the color of your skin.
Speaker B:I mean, you know, you, you're coming into a show to experience honest art.
Speaker B:I want to keep my art form as honest as I can and I, I want people to make friends with people that they might not, you know, have talked to and, and put their, you know, ideas on hold for a second to experience a show and that's supporting everybody in the room.
Speaker B:So that builds me up to continue what I'm doing because that's, that's the viewpoint that I've taken and especially when thing tensions have been so high recently.
Speaker B:And I think that's.
Speaker B:I probably.
Speaker B:I'm pro.
Speaker B:Rambling a bit, but I think that's what's on my heart these days is I.
Speaker B:I want everyone to find some common ground.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker A:That's what music.
Speaker A:That's what music can do.
Speaker A:It gets us out from behind the computer, the phones and newspapers and into an environment together with people that we may not normally connect with.
Speaker A:And if we, if we can bring that open to mindset Hunter that you're talking about a really.
Speaker A:I've seen it and you probably have too, where people come together in an.
Speaker B:Environment like that and there's so many opportunities for congregation.
Speaker B:I Did.
Speaker B:I mean, thankfully, I'm using my friend Mayor, this computer.
Speaker B:I did want to mention she does run the Nashville School of Traditional Country Music, and she's hosting classes in Nashville where people can congregate and experience a class that, you know, you're getting in front of songwriters, learning an instrument, you're learning how to write a song, and you're also.
Speaker B:Because I've taken a class, and I learned that I need to work on my guitar skills, and I was able to be in that.
Speaker B:That room with people who were on multiple different levels, and I.
Speaker B:I learned so much about where I'm at and the honesty of where I'm at and being able to be vulnerable in rooms like that is a very Americana concept.
Speaker B:And so I think that I just wanted to give a little shout out and thank her for facilitating this.
Speaker B:This podcast meeting as well.
Speaker C:I love that that's bringing people together, and I'm excited to look into that.
Speaker B:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:Water.
Speaker A:This has been such a terrific interview.
Speaker A:I feel your honesty, your just realness, and I love how you jump on this interview.
Speaker A:And y'all, Hunter has not changed from before the interview versus now.
Speaker A:It's like Hunter, like, you were talking us before we started recording.
Speaker A:It's just like you're Hunter.
Speaker B:Thanks.
Speaker A:It's really.
Speaker A:It's really nice.
Speaker A:And I don't know if I've.
Speaker A:That's ever mentally sort of trigger for me, but I'm just noticing that you're just.
Speaker A:You're just you.
Speaker A:And I know.
Speaker B:Well, and then I may.
Speaker B:Until I have to be a lunch lady at 5:30 in the morning.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:All right, so wild card question.
Speaker A:What have you learned working the lunchroom that's helped you in your music career?
Speaker B:You know what's really funny is we cook food on such a massive, massive scale every day.
Speaker B:And I.
Speaker B:I thought to myself that there was never going to be.
Speaker B:I was.
Speaker B:I was going to try to compartmentalize this, and it wouldn't have an effect into my art.
Speaker B:And then all of a sudden, I'm writing lyrics, like, about tin can lids or problem children.
Speaker C:No.
Speaker B:And I thought.
Speaker B:No, I thought.
Speaker B:I thought that I was like, where'd I get that?
Speaker B:I was like, I don't eat canned food.
Speaker B:And then I said, well, I just opened up 60.
Speaker B:60 Cisco cans of carrots.
Speaker B:Another thing that I learned is absolutely no peanuts.
Speaker C:There you go.
Speaker A:Peanuts.
Speaker A:Bad peanut allergies.
Speaker A:Terrible.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So good.
Speaker A:It does.
Speaker A:Let us know.
Speaker A:We're hoping that we're playing, like, this interview is going to inspire artists like opening 60 cans of carrots.
Speaker B:And you can do it.
Speaker A:You can do it.
Speaker B:It gets done every day.
Speaker A:Your hand might be a little sore, but it's.
Speaker A:But it's.
Speaker A:But.
Speaker A:But you're absorbing the size, the sounds, and it's kind of filtered through your music.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And carrots are good for your eyes.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:What's your parting thought you can talk about your.
Speaker A:Your festivals coming up, your.
Speaker A:Your music.
Speaker A:What do people need to be on the lookout for?
Speaker B:Well, I guess.
Speaker B:I guess I could use it to announce that I am working on a new record, which does not.
Speaker B:I.
Speaker B:I didn't know it was.
Speaker B:I think with how open people are and how willing people are to work within this scene, I was able to realize the dream of a fourth record faster because there's so many people.
Speaker B:Cam Neal and Jesse Wilson came up to me and they said, hey, you know, come on by the studio and let's see what works.
Speaker B:And that's where we've gotten some of this new stuff.
Speaker B:I was on a writer's retreat, and I was able to knock on John Miller's door and say, hey, I need some guitar parts for these songs that I have in my head that I can't get out, and I can't seem to get the melody down.
Speaker B:And we nailed some stuff that I'm so, so excited about.
Speaker C:Not a bad guy to go to.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker B:And I'm very humbled by the.
Speaker B:The ability to work with artists like Christina, Jamie Ritty, and.
Speaker B:And John and I.
Speaker B:There's so many musicians here that I'm able to work with who are just very, very.
Speaker B:About keeping the mission moving forward.
Speaker B:And I am excited to.
Speaker B:Yes, I'm gonna say that album four is in development, and it will have.
Speaker B:It will have some songs that mean a lot to me just because of this time and this big transitional time in my life where I've actually gotten up here.
Speaker B:I think it's heavily affected.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:Just because of all of the change from moving from the coast to here and.
Speaker B:And watching how that's influenced the music.
Speaker B:I'm excited for people to see this kind of new part of me that's coming out and developing, and it's.
Speaker B:It's developing in this kind of Americana space where everyone's working together on it.
Speaker B:And I am excited to say that.
Speaker B:Gonna be playing some.
Speaker B:Some festivals, too, in the summer, and I'm gonna be trying to piece.
Speaker B:Meal a tour together while keeping my head on str.
Speaker B:I'm excited to maybe in the next few months, maybe talk about releasing a Single.
Speaker B:Which I think y'all heard a couple of them.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Were you able to mention them, or.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah.
Speaker B:You can.
Speaker C:I.
Speaker C:I haven't had a chance to listen to them yet.
Speaker B:Well, then what the hell have you been doing, Zach?
Speaker A:What have you done?
Speaker A:Boxes.
Speaker A:Tune.
Speaker A:Did you ever do that?
Speaker A:Because that is cr.
Speaker A:That.
Speaker B:No, I haven't been.
Speaker B:I haven't been a coffin maker yet.
Speaker C:Yet.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:It's a metaphor.
Speaker B:I, I, it is.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Thank God.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:I was like, it is.
Speaker B:No, I could.
Speaker B:I've not tried my hand at carpentry, nor do I think I would do a very good job, but I, that is quite.
Speaker B:I wrote that song.
Speaker B:It is a little angsty, but I think it's also, it's not necessarily about death being negative, and it's about how we're on the same.
Speaker B:We're all on the same playing field.
Speaker B:We're all humans.
Speaker C:That's a teaser there.
Speaker A:Just like, we come in, we go out the same, right?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And so it's, you know, if you, if you choose to live your life in, in an air of kindness, I think that if is going to affect you in a positive way, and I think that that's what people need to hear right now is.
Speaker B:Or they need a little bit of a harsh reminder that kindness is, is essential to you living a full life and refusing that and, and being a judgmental person or thinking, you know it all or thinking, you know, exactly how things should go is, is going to negatively impact you at some point, because, you know, we're.
Speaker B:We're human.
Speaker B:We're not.
Speaker B:We're not.
Speaker B:We're not anything else.
Speaker A:So that one's going to be a fun one to perform.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I'm already having.
Speaker B:I, I sang it at Bobby's Idol hour with the.
Speaker B:The High school pickers.
Speaker A:What a response did you get?
Speaker B:I think everyone was having a good time.
Speaker B:I went on last, so I think people were a little, you know, they were having fun.
Speaker B:But I'm excited to keep playing it and I'm excited to keep sharing new stuff that I'm writing.
Speaker C:That's Ariel.
Speaker A:Go check out.
Speaker A:She returns from war, if you haven't already.
Speaker A:Buckle up.
Speaker A:It's gonna be a fun ride ahead.
Speaker A:Thanks for coming on Americana Curious.
Speaker B:Thank you.
