Tenille Townes: Jersey On The Wall
The new single from the fast-rising country star features an understated vocal performance that enhances the philosophical lyrics.
By Kerry Doole
Tenille Townes: Jersey On The Wall (Columbia Nashville): This Albertan-raised, Nashville-based singer/songwriter has rapidly emerged as one of country music's brightest young stars. That is shown by her upcoming performance at the 2019 ACM Honors ceremony on Aug. 21 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, while she has earned four nominations for this year's CCMA Awards in Calgary, AB on Sept. 8.
New song Jersey On The Wall comes from Townes’ forthcoming full-length debut album, produced by Jay Joyce and set for release via Columbia Nashville. The previously released album tracks include lead single Somebody’s Daughter, which reached No. 1 on both Mediabase and Nielsen BDS Country Airplay in Canada.
Somebody’s Daughter painted a moving portrait of a homeless woman, and this track has a similarly weighty subject matter. Townes explains that "this song, and its permission to ask God the hard questions, is so important to me. I think it's in conversation, and in stepping into that vulnerable place where we find the healing we might be looking for.
"This was inspired by an incredible group of people in Grand Manan that I had the pleasure of getting to know. They had just been through a horrible tragedy where five students from their high school had gotten into an accident, and one of those students, Danielle, passed away.
"I kept in touch with that community and went back for the high school graduation the following year. I sat in the gym, watched Danielle's parents award her honorarium scholarship and on the wall of the gym was Danielle's jersey. I stared at the jersey will all kinds of questions for God. I walked into the writing session with Gordie Sampson and Tina Parole a few months later with all of my emotions, and the song found us that day. I'm so grateful it did."
Her understated vocal performance places full emphasis on the powerful lyrics.
Townes recently participated in Cracker Barrel’s Five Decades, One Voice campaign—a project created to highlight the importance of women in country music by celebrating legendary female artists and those following in their footsteps. For the project, Townes was personally selected by Brandi Carlile to collaborate on new versions of two songs—Townes’ Somebody’s Daughter and Carlile’s Fulton County Jane Doe.
Townes is currently supporting Dierks Bentley on US dates. She heads north for three shows during CCMA Week in Calgary (Sept. 6-8), followed by more US touring with Miranda Lambert and Maren Morris, plus UK shows with Striking Matches. Itinerary here
Links
Publicity: Jamelia Campbell, Sony Music
