Happy Sunday!! I hope everyone had a fun, exciting and safe weekend!! Mine was definitely the first two but if you live in Alabama you know the craziness associated with the weather we had last night. I was so excited to be able to attend Toadlick Music Festival this year. It was a three day line up with amazing performers. I went down yesterday morning and was able to spend a few minutes talking with Craig Campbell about some background influences and what the rest of his year looks like. I'm sure you know exactly who Craig Campbell is but if not, songs like "Outta My Head" and "Keep Them Kisses Comin" should ring a bell. Craig is an extremely nice guy and I was able to have my very first lawn chair interview. I had a blast getting to know a little more about him and I know y'all will, too.
 |
| PHOTO: CRAIG CAMPBELL FACEBOOK |
___________________________________________
Has music as a career always been your first choice? If so, when did you decide that was the path you wanted to pursue?
" Music has always been the number one thing that I thought I was good at. When I graduated high school, I had a serious girlfriend and the idea was to get a job, get married, have kids and build a house. But that didn't happen. So, I decided to put a band together around 2000 and I've been paying my bills with music ever since then."
Who were your musical influences growing up?
"Early on, I listened to a lot of Southern Gospel music. And, my momma was a great singer. I enjoyed listening to her sing and singing with her. My brother was also a big influence. He use to sing in all the talent shows at school. My momma would come get me out of school and take me with her to watch him at the talent shows. As far as country music influences, though, I am a huge Travis Tritt fan. I was a fan of pretty much everybody singing country music from the year 1989-1995. They call it the Class of 89."
You were recently signed with Red Bow Records. When is your new single/album expected to be released?
"I don't know when the new album will come out but I do know that my next single comes out on June 8. It's a song called 'Tomorrow Tonight.' Then, releasing an album is always based on the success of the first single so if the song goes number one there's a chance that we will be able to release the album. If all that works out, I would say spring of 2016 for a new album."
Did you write 'Tomorrow Tonight?'
"I did. I co wrote it."
Do you write all of your songs you sing?
"I don't write all of them. I feel like there are so many good songs in Nashville that it would be very selfish to cut those 'songwriter only' guys out. I think it's a good balance. I like to write (or co-write) about half of the songs on the album. That is how is was with my last album. I wrote six of the songs and there were six other songs on there that I didn't write. The way I look at it is like this-- the best song should win, no matter who writes it."
What are some songs in your music library today that some people may be surprised by?
"Uptown Funk. I'm a big Bruno Mars fan. Adele. I'm just a fan of good singing."
Have you had any crazy experiences with fans? If so, what was the craziest one?
"I have pretty tame fans at this point in my career. I don't have any big stories that I could talk about. I get asked to sign weird things, though-- babies feet, grown men's foreheads, stuff like that."
What's been the coolest moment you've experienced so far?
"I would say a couple of things. Playing the Ryman and the Grand Ole Opry the first time was pretty cool. Anytime I hear one of my songs on the radio, though, no matter what song it is, that's as good as it gets."
Do you have any rituals that you do before every show?
"No, we like to plug in some Merle Haggard a few minutes before we go out. My guitar player is French-Canadian so we have a word we say right before we go on stage. We throw all of our fists in and we say 'domination!' (which-side note-is spelled exactly the same in English, if you ever meet Craig, you can ask him to pronounce it properly because I will never be able to do that). We say that because that's what we want to do. We want to dominate."
If you could have dinner with one person, alive or not, who would you choose and why?
"My dad. He died when I was 11. There's a lot of things I want to know about him that I don't know."
What does the rest of this year look like?
"It looks great. I've got the new song coming out on June 8. Garth Brooks just sang a song I co-wrote on the ACM's last Sunday. It is potentially going to be his next single. 2015 looks really, really good for us."
____________________________________
I would like to say a big thank you to Craig for taking some time out of his day yesterday to talk to me for a few minutes. It was definitely a busy, crazy day with all the weather uncertainty but he was extremely kind for giving me a few minutes of his time. I also would like to give you all the opportunity right now to pause from reading this and go to your phones and put a reminder in your phone on JUNE 8 to call your local radio stations and request his new song. He played it for us at Toadlick yesterday and it was a great song! Also, if you live in the Birmingham area, Craig will be at the Tin Roof in Birmingham tomorrow night (April 27) at 7:30. This is a FREE show and one you definitely don't want to miss. Also, thank you to Joe for all his help yesterday, too. You are a kind soul, sir!
Make sure you are following Craig on all social media sites.
No comments