club cafe

There is a contagious and combustible energy every time the eight-piece wonder-band The Suffers steps on the scene. NPR's Bob Boilen attributes the band's allure to their "Soul, straight from horn to heart." He adds, "This band is on fire when it's in front of an audience...but the intensity of their shows are also captured in the studio." Following The Suffers' electrifying late night TV debut on Letterman in 2015, David Letterman exclaimed, "If you can't do this, get out of the business!" There is something undeniable about The Suffers (whose name is a reference to the 1978 Jamaican film Rockers starring Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace, Jacob Miller and Burning Spear, among others), that instantly hits home with their audiences. "We make music for all people," says lead vocalist Kam Franklin. "At this point, we've played all over the world and one thing is certain - if the music is good, the people will enjoy it." Since 2011, the H-Town heroes have been on a steady grind and have no plans of stopping. It seems the secret to their success is simple. Keyboardist Patrick Kelly confides, "There is a universal groove in the music that we play," while bass guitarist Adam Castaneda adds, "I don't think any of us are trying to impress anyone with our technical abilities, we just want to make them dance."

Shanachie Entertainment will release The Suffers' highly anticipated label debut Everything Here on July 13, 2018. Guitarist Kevin Bernier says, "Everything Here, as a whole, explores the many aspects of who we are as people through songs. We've had crushes on people, we've had our hearts broken, and we've moved through all the difficult times so that we can experience the joyful moments." The Suffers have got everything you need and there's no need to look further - a heaping dose of soul, a dash of reggae, a splash of jazz, a pinch of salsa, a hint of rock 'n' roll and a dollop of hip hop and funk - and that is just a few ingredients simmering inside their magical Gulf Coast soul. Percussionist Jose Luna says, "The glue that holds us together is our experience. We have all played with so many bands and musicians through the years that we have learned how not to step on each others toes."

Everything Here, a riveting collection of 15 originals that gives props to Houston (there are even cameos from Houston rappers Paul Wall and Bun B), explores the many sides of love, celebrates the virtues of individuality, reminds us of the destruction of Harvey and resilience of the human spirit and declares love for their mothers. All of these themes coalesce into one soulful soundtrack. The band co-produced the album with John Allen Stephens and Zeke Listenbee co-produced on several tracks. Trombonist Michael Razo explains, "One of our goals was to have the songs on the album flow or tie into each other. Like creating an album where you just press play and let it go without having to skip to the next song."

"The Suffers are a contemporary version of the great R&B/funk bands of 70s and 80s...Rufus, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kool & The Gang, with a powerful lead vocalist in Kam Franklin and spot-on musicianship that is all too rare these days," says Shanachie Entertainment General Manager, Randall Grass. "They've done a great job of building a base on their own and we at Shanachie are looking forward to taking them to the next level." The Suffers’ drive coupled with their can't lose attitude and serious chops have taken them from their beloved Houston to the world stage (they are the first band to break nationally out of Houston in a long time). Lead singer Kam Franklin has the distinction of being a spokesperson for Houston as she has been tapped by the city to appear in a national tourism advertisement. “It means a lot to me that the city would trust me in such a grand way to represent them,” shares the dynamic singer/songwriter. “Houston has played a huge part in making me who I am and introducing our music to the masses, and for that, we are forever grateful.” The Suffers have played sold out shows in Japan and Latin America, turned out audiences at the Newport Folk Festival and Afropunk Festival and made believers of just about anyone who has experienced their live shows. "We're a testament to teamwork and camaraderie resulting in things working out even when the odds are against a positive outcome," says drummer Nick Zamora. "The wonderful thing about music is that it is ultimate universal communication," reflects trumpeter Jon Durbin.

The Suffers exploded onto the scene in 2015 with their dazzling EP Make Some Room, which was followed by their critically heralded self-titled debut in 2016. The highly anticipated Everything Here is the band’s most bold statement yet. Nick Zamora shares, “We were nervous because we didn’t know how to write an album while devoting so much time to touring and keeping our personal lives together at the same time. We started doing it when we could; on the road, at home, finding inspiration here and there. We wrote about our post-9 to 5 epiphanies, relationships and music that just felt good.” As the album began to morph into creation the band trusted their vision. “I think that the idea has always been to be as honest as we can,” says Patrick Kelly. Kam

Everything Here opens ceremoniously with a smooth and fun-loving head-nod to Houston. Paul Wall jumps on the intro as the background vocals sing, “It might not be that pretty but it looks real good to me. It might not be your favorite city but it’s really got a hold on me.” Kam Franklin says, “Not only does Paul Wall serve as an unofficial ambassador for the city, he is a hard working artist that brought this song the life we thought it was missing!” The effervescently playful “I Think I Love You” follows with blustery horns and bluesy vocals. The song chronicles the moment when the universe throws you a curveball in the way of a new and unexpected love interest. Franklin shares, “This song is about embracing that confidence that comes with not needing to depend on a lover, while still being open to the possibilities of new romance.” “Do Whatever,” the album’s second single, is a song the band nurtured for two years before they finally recorded it. During this evolution, it has come to stand as a sort of anthem for them on living your life on your own terms. It opens with soul-stirring horns, thumping bass lines and Kam laying down the law singing, "Full on disclosure, I'm not here for exposure. I came to have a good time so let me shine...Do whatever feels right, all night, alright, alright!" The driving rhythms and hip-hop tinged “The One About Sace” has some fun chronicling the journey of getting to know someone. With references to Nas and the film “The Five Heartbeats,” Kam asks questions to get to know her love interest better. The hopping Rhodes, skipping melody and fabulous orchestration on “All I Want To Do” reminds us of the virtues of following your heart. The song, which Nick Zamora penned while still in high school, showcases lyrics to live by: “If it don’t taste good, I don’t have to eat it. If it don’t fit well, I don’t have to wear it. And if it ain’t broke I don’t have to fix it.” Everything Here also highlights the tender ballad featuring lush strings and shimmering percussion, “Sure To Remain,” while “Charlotte” breaks down the walls of negativity and features Paul Wall once again. Franklin shares, “The demo for this one was written in Charlotte, NC after a really rough day on the road. A few outsiders tried to break us down with their negativity, but we were not having it. The end result was us holding our heads up high and proceeding to do what we love most: creating smooth music that makes us and the masses happy!”

Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in August of 2017. Its devastation in many ways are comparable to the effects of Katrina. Despite the media’s dissipating coverage, Houston is still recovering. “After the Storm” is a song that Kam wrote with her friend Lisa E. Harris during Hurricane Harvey. The song features Lyle Divinsky, lead singer for Denver-based funk band, The Motet. The arresting track opens with a percussive heartbeat that stops you in your tracks. Kam explains, “In the days after the storm, the city enforced a mandatory curfew that meant everyone needed to be in their houses by 10pm every night. While visiting Lisa, we lost track of time, and ended up having a mandatory slumber party due to the curfew and ended up writing this song.” The Suffers serve up some sharp-edged funk on the dance-inducing “What You Said,” which is all about communication as the lyrics exclaim “It’s not what you said, its how you said it. It’s not what you did, it’s how you did it!”

The Suffers are family. Spend ten minutes with the band and you know that the ties that bind them go well beyond the music. They are truly a democracy in which every voice is heard and respected and they also love their mamas! On the heart-warming interlude “A Word From Our Mammas,” the band turn the mics on their mothers who are heard confessing their love for their children. The song “Mammas” very well could rival The Intruders seminal tribute to mama’s everywhere. “Bernard’s Interlude” features the baritone of pisces, poet and rapper Bun B. Kam’s idea to feature a few MC’s on the recording was inspired by Kanye West. “I had a vision of getting a bunch of different rappers to do our interludes, similar to what Kanye did on his first few albums with the comedians. Instead of rapping, the vision was to show a different side of their personalities the world hasn’t seen before. For Bun, I knew I wanted him to sing. Bun came in, and killed it on the first take.”

The dub and reggae fueled title track takes us through the travails of a devastating breakup and was penned by Nick Zamora’s brother and former band member Alex, who shared additional guitar duties. The sultry jazz vibes and delightfully unexpected key changes of “You Only Call” serves as a notice to all those who take but don’t give back, while “Won’t Be Here Tomorrow” is a real soul/blues showstopper. Kam Franklin’s raspy and ‘take no prisoners’ vocals tell the story of a woman who has chosen to confront her cheating partner. “It’s a little eerie, but at the same time, it’s empowering,” says Kam. “She knows that he wants to be with her, so the power is in her hands. So, instead of automatically writing him off, she gives him the opportunity to explain why she should stay. This was one of my favorite songs to record on the album due to the fact that we brought in a choir of amazing singers to fill out the song.”

With the release of Everything Here, The Suffers are bound to further endear die-hard fans and make believers of new ones. Jon Durbin says, “I hope our music helps people and that our songs can be healing and inspirational.” Kam Franklin concludes, “We make music for ourselves, but the performances are 100 percent for the people. They are the reason we are on the road. They are the reason we get to eat. They are the reason for what we do. We’d be nothing without them, and it’s something we remind ourselves of every night.”

Just Some Regulars Tour features some of the top rising comedians in the country.

This stop of the tour features Kevin Budkey (Who is also celebrating his 26th birthday this night), Terry Jones, Zako Ryan & Paige Blair. The show will also be opened by local comedians Joey Purse, Andreas O'Rourke & a Special Guest!

Kevin Budkey is a comedian currently living in Chicago, IL originally from Pittsburgh, PA. He recently finished the Improv Program at The Second City, and toured with Pauly Shore across the country. Performing at clubs like the Ontario Improv in Ontario, CA, Ice House in Pasadena, CA, Harrisburg Comedy Zone in Harrisburg, PA and the Chicago Improv, in Chicago, IL. He has also performed at the Pittsburgh Improv a few times in 2017, 2016 and for his 3rd performance in 2014.

Terry Jones is a comedian from Pittsburgh, PA who now performs at top clubs and for corporate and college audiences throughout the tri-state area. He has opened for the likes of Eddie Griffin, Hal Sparks, Jo 'Koy, Bert Kreischer, John Witherspoon, Gary Owens and many more. Terry made his television debut on NUVOtv's Stand Up & Deliver after performing at the first annual Cabo Comedy Festival. He is also formerly part of Jim Krenn and The Q Morning Show on Q92.9FM.

Zako Ryan is a "nothing is off limits" comedian rising through the ranks in the Chicago comedy scene. A former military vet, college graduate, and engineer, Zako is now a full-time actor/comedian/producer who can be seen putting on shows all over Chicago and performing all over the country. Most notably Zako is a producer at the Laugh Factory in Chicago and his comedy credits include Zanies, Laugh Factory, The Comedy Bar, Improv, the Memphis Urban Comedy Festival, The World Series of Comedy and the House of Blues.

Paige Blair is a cheerful and upbeat comedian also rising through the ranks in the Chicago comedy scene. Originally from the Chicago area, you can see her passion, derived from the famous city, shine through her comedy. Most notably Paige is a producer at the Laugh Factory in Chicago and her comedy credits include Zanies, Laugh Factory and The Comedy Bar.

Bad Bad Hats is an indie rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The band consists of Kerry Alexander, Chris Hoge, and Connor Davison. Named for a trouble-making character from the Madeline children's books, Bad Bad Hats is defined by a balance of sweet and sour. Their music honors classic pop songwriting, with nods to nineties rock simplicity and pop-punk frivolity. Through it all, Alexander's unflinchingly sincere lyrics cut to the emotional heart of things.

Alexander and Hoge met while attending Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota. In 2012, they formed Bad Bad Hats with friend and bassist Noah Boswell, and began performing around the Twin Cities. That same year, they were signed by Minneapolis label Afternoon Records. Their 2015 debut album Psychic Reader caught the attention of outlets including The New Yorker, NPR, Pitchfork, and Paste. Since the release of Psychic Reader, Bad Bad Hats has toured the U.S. extensively, supporting artists including Margaret Glaspy, Hippo Campus, and Third Eye Blind.

Lightning Round, the band's second full-length album, finds Bad Bad Hats more confident and mature than ever. Producer and collaborator Brett Bullion (who also produced Psychic Reader) encouraged the group to record live in the studio, an approach which pushed the band outside of their comfort zone and lends many songs on the record a loose, organic feel. There is a vulnerability in this (fluttering tape loops, a few wrong notes) and it makes the music on the new album feel as honest and unpredictable as Alexander's lyrics. In this spontaneous environment, Hoge, who is known to play every instrument in the band, delivers some of his most inspired musical performances yet.

As for Alexander, she's still writing love songs, ones that recount with cinematic swell the subtle joy and pain of the everyday. Her vocals are supported by open, breathing arrangements that feature lush keyboard sounds and woody guitar tones. Davison was recruited to play drums on the album and became a full-time member in the process. His drumming and melodic contributions give the new songs a level of nuance not heard in previous releases.

Lightning Round marks the final release with contributions from original member Noah Boswell, who will be leaving the group this fall to pursue a master's degree. Bad Bad Hats continues with Alexander, Hoge, and Davison. They have plans to tour the country this year.

Pete Correale is a professional stand up comedian originally from New York. His comedy is reflective of his life and the experiences he’s been through. Being married for almost twenty years and having a young daughter, Pete’s never at a loss for material. With a conversational delivery and disarming regular New York guy attitude, Pete makes you feel like your listening to the funniest guy at a party as opposed to just another comedian on a stage. Combined with top notch writing skills, this has led Pete to the top of the stand up profession.

Pete has performed numerous times on The Tonight Show, Letterman and The Conan O’brien show. As well as filming two of his own one hour television comedy specials. The first special-The Things We Do For Love aired on Comedy Central and was voted by Time Out Magazine as the #2 Comedy special of 2008. His second one hour special debuted on Showtime in 2016 this one titled Let Me Tell Ya. It was filmed at the famous Vic theatre in Chicago and Pete once again delivered a stellar performance. Pete has also released two comedy albums, Give It A Rest in 2010, and his second album Made For Radio which was released in June 2018 and quickly rose to number one on the iTunes comedy charts.

Aside from stand up Pete has used his comedic skills in various other platforms throughout his career. As a writer he’s been hired for several projects, most recently as part of the staff on the CBS sitcom Kevin Can Wait which he did for both seasons. He also made a few guest appearances the show playing Larry the fish guy.

Pete was also the co-host on a daily two hour live comedy radio show on SiriusXm titled Unleashed. He did this show with comedian Jim Breuer for four years from 2008 to 2011. And In 2012 Pete began a podcast with comedian Sebastian Maniscalco titled simply enough The Pete and Sebastian show. Starting off with a couple of microphones and an internet connection Pete and Sebastian kept at it and today the show airs every Friday afternoon on Siriusxm the Raw Dog channel before being released as a free podcast episode. Currently up to episode 310 and still going strong, the Pete and Sebastian show is one of the most popular comedy podcasts on air today and the fans have been showing their support in full force most everywhere Pete headlines.

At a recent performance, the host made the mistake of introducing Adia Victoria as an Americana artist. Victoria leaned into the microphone with a correction, “Adia Victoria does not sing Americana, Adia Victoria sings the blues.” From there, the artist let her guitar and powerful lyrics speak for her. After a self-released single that drew the attention of Rolling Stone and others, Victoria continued to dazzle and confound with her first studio album, Beyond the Bloodhounds. The album takes its title from a line in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs. Just as Jacobs sought to get beyond the reach of her master’s bloodhounds, Victoria is always reaching beyond the facile notions of what a Black woman artist should look like and sound like.

Instead of following the model of the folks that she saw around her who had been worn down by white supremacy, poverty, and oppression in the rural South Carolina town she grew up in, Victoria set off to shape a life of her own making. She dropped out of school and worked a series of odd jobs. At 18 she went to Paris and then spent time in Brooklyn, Atlanta, and now is based in Nashville. Victoria is a polymath who studied ballet, acting, wrote poetry, before finding a home in the blues. It was when a friend gave Victoria an acoustic guitar that things began to click. “I fell in love with the practice, the discipline of learning. It was the first time in my life that I felt capable of learning and progressing at something.” According to Victoria, this practice was a lifesaver. “I don’t know if I would be alive if I had not found that. Had I not found this outlet of expression. Probably in prison or dead.”

In the wake of Beyond the Bloodhounds, touring, press and enormous expectations a lesser artist would have just rested on her laurels. Instead, Victoria released two short albums that show the immense wingspan of her talent and curiosity. How It Feels is a French-language short album that reimagines French pop classics with a blueswoman’s edge. Victoria returned to her roots with the EP Baby Blues, a trio of classic blues covers that first inspired her.

A mere two years after Beyond the Bloodhounds, Adia Victoria returns with her
second full-length studio album, Silences. After a season of dealing with others trying to define, claim, and name her art and artistry, Victoria went inward. “I found when I went back home that the thing that disturbed me the most was the lack of activity. Having to deal with myself once again on an intimate level.”

Reading and literature helped her find her way back in. The title of the album comes from Tillie Olsen’s Silences, which deals with the myriad ways that the stories of oppressed people’s stories have been silenced over the years, even though they continued to create despite being ignored. “I struggled to write this album in a way that I never had to before. I took for granted I guess my freedom and my alone time and I felt that something had been taken away from me. And I felt like I didn’t have a voice anymore. This album was the therapy that I needed to find that voice that had been silenced.”

We find a voice in full holler on Silences. The listener is thrust into a completely formed world that opens with a twisted creation tale. “Clean,” is reminiscent of the story of the Garden of Eden, but instead of withering under God’s judgement for her shame, our protagonist announces that “First of all / There is no God / Because I killed my God.” This bold act instills in her “The kind of calm I hope to keep.” Any student of stories or life knows that this is can only be the beginning. A calm so deep must be earned along the way.

Silences is at its heart the mythic journey of a woman coming back to herself. “It’s just very much this character is acting out from various oppressions. You’ve been held down, you’ve been smothered, and she reaches her breaking point.” From this departure, the album moves her protagonist out into the world where she meets up with the devil and her own desires for her life in the uptempo rockers “Pacolet Road” and “Different Kind Of Love.” In the next movement, we find a woman daunted and damaged but still resolved. Once we get to “The Needle’s Eye” and “Cry Wolf” she’s gained some well-earned maturity down in the dark of the world. In Silences, Victoria brings the topics of mental illness, drug addiction, sexism, and all the things that try to consume the very lives of women attempting to make a world of their own making to the forefront. The album closes with “Get Lonely,” a plaintive, urgent ballad that our hero could be imploring to “get lonely” with a lover. Or she just as easily could be pleading with this new woman in the mirror that she has found along her journey to be still and marvel at all that she has created and survived.

Just as Victoria has been intentional about creating the kind of life that she wanted to live, she’s done the same thing with her collaborators. The band has changed a lot like Destiny’s Child since the first album, to get the perfect presentation and I think I finally found it. Victoria’s guys are Mason Hickman- Lead Guitar, Jason Harris- Bass, Peter Eddins- Keys, Timothy Beaty aka Knapps- Drums, Chazen Singleton- Horns, and Austin Wilhote aka Willé- Horns. “No. This is the greatest possession that I have. I have a bunch of guys now that I’ve been with and they allow me the ability and the space to command them, to direct them. They have faith in me.”

When it was time to record Silences with Aaron Dessner of The National who has also produced albums for Sharon Van Etten, Frightened Rabbit, Mumford & Sons, Local Natives, and more, Victoria remained hesitant. “I want to let you into my art, but I was so very, very cautious. And I just found that as a human being and as a fellow artist he had the warmth and the understanding and the respect that you don’t come across too often in this industry. He opened his home and his studio to me and my guys and it was like there was no ego. We were just free to experiment and together and we got work done.” With Adia Victoria’s steady hand and fearless vision at the helm, Silences does indeed get work done. Of the recording process, Dessner notes, ““From the very beginning of our collaboration, it was clear to me that Adia’s vision for this album had a cohesive and very particular narrative thread. It was incredibly rewarding to help realize it. The substantive nature of her writing and strength of Adia’s lyrics really guided us through the entire recording process. Every sound and direction, whether subversive, experimental or leaning into a groove, it was all in service of her broader vision and the text. Ultimately, the album is both an incredibly personal narrative of Adia’s journey and a powerful, broader statement of resistance.”

(Late Show) Smokin' Betties Burlesque Presents: From the Betties, with Love. Featuring Amoxie Villain, Macabre Noir, Eden Ivy, Morigana Regina and Hosted by Lillith Deville

LEEDS
LEEDS is Royston Langdon, former lead singer of Spacehog, with a name that's a nod to his hometown and an album, Everything's Dandy, that is a culmination of his 24 years in New York, both in its content and its production.

"I've lived here longer than I've lived anywhere on the planet," says Langdon of New York. "I feel like I'm part of the city in a way."

Originally from Leeds, Langdon got his start playing music in the U.K. In 1994, however, he followed his brother Antony to New York and fell for the city immediately. Not long after the move, Spacehog formed. In the fall of 1995, they released the debut album Resident Alien, which spawned the hit single "In the Meantime." Three more albums followed over the next 18 years.

More recently, Langdon has worked on the industry side of music, using his own experiences to help up-and-coming artists. Yet, he remained a musician at heart. Langdon kept his new work fairly private, telling only a few people as he built a new collection of songs

The evolution of Everything's Dandy began two years ago, after Langdon's son moved to London. The changes in Langdon's own life, as well as the changes in the city that has been his home for so long, sparked new ideas.

"They put up these new shops," says Langdon of the urban landscape of New York. "Still, the memory of the kind of experience of that thing remains." He sees a connection between waves of gentrification diminishing the city's creative spirit and his "experience of loss and also growth." In his songs, Langdon writes of this not necessarily with nostalgia in mind, but with a sense of "awe" at how life moves forward.

By fall of 2017, Langdon was ready to solidify those ideas in the studio. He enlisted Bryce Goggin to produce and engineer Everything's Dandy. The two have known each other since Langdon's early days in New York, when he interned at the recording studio where Goggin was head engineer. While Langdon played many of the instruments himself on the album, he enlisted a few longtime friends to play on select cuts, including drummer Parker Kindred (Jeff Buckley) and multi-instrumentalist Timo Ellis (Yoko Ono, Joan as Police Woman). The song "Your Day Will Come" was co-written by Langdon and Rich Robinson of Black Crowes. "What Became of the People" is a songwriting collaboration between Langdon and his brother Antony, who also shot two videos for the album.

Everything's Dandy is set for release on May 4 on vinyl and digital formats.

Every generation or so a young bluesman bursts onto the scene. Someone who sends a jolt through blues lovers. Someone who has mastered the craft for sure, but who also has the blues deep down in his heart and soul.

At the age of 21, bluesman JONTAVIOUS WILLIS may be the one.

“That’s my Wonderboy, the Wunderkind,” Taj Mahal said after inviting Jontavious to play on stage in 2015. “He’s a great new voice of the twenty-first century in the acoustic blues. I just love the way he plays.”

“When I heard him play I said to myself: this is how the blues, as I know it, is going to stay alive,” said Paul Oscher.

“Only a few like him emerge every decade or so, when even the most hard core blues fans realize immediately that this is the real deal,” writes Frank Matheis in Living Blues Magazine.

Hailing from Greenville, Ga., Jontavious grew up singing gospel music at the Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church with his grandfather. At the age of 14, he came across a YouTube video of Muddy Waters playing “Hoochie Coochie Man” and was hooked. That’s when he set his course on the blues. All types — Delta, Piedmont, Texas, gospel. As a fingerpicker, flat-picker and slide player. On guitar, harmonica, banjo and cigar box.

And four years later he was playing on Taj Mahal’s stage.

Currently Jontavious is finishing his studies at Columbus State University, majoring in sociology. But on most weekends you can find him playing a small house show, up on the main stage or posting music videos for his friends and fans around the world.

A musician and actor, Tyler Hilton has accomplished a lot in his career so far. As a teenager, he released two Top 40 singles. He starred alongside Taylor Swift in her video for "Teardrops on my Guitar." He played the role of one of his musical idols, Elvis Presley, in the Oscar-winning Johnny Cash biopic 'Walk the Line,' and co-starred with Robert Downey Jr. in the acclaimed indie film 'Charlie Bartlett.' He may be most known for his musical role on the show 'One Tree Hill,' which earned him a devoted fan base around the world. His new album 'City On Fire,' out January 18th 2019, comes from a much more personal place for the California native, who grew up in a family of musicians and songwriters and spent much of his childhood performing and jamming alongside of them. Steeped in country, blues, folk and rock traditions, the album captures the loose, organic musical style that runs in Hilton’s blood. Hilton remembers trying to explain that style to producers in Nashville as a young songwriter. "I’d play them my favorite records; Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Townes Van Zandt, Weezer’s ‘Pinkerton,’" he says. “I’d just get blank stares like, ‘So...are you rock, pop, blues, country...?’ And the answer was always, ‘Yes, all that.’” It may not have been the easy answer they were looking for, but as Hilton explains, “there’s a common denominator in all of that music to me. Maybe it’s a feeling of adventure, or rebellion, or just hearing real people,” he says. “Whatever it is, that’s what my feelings sound like, and that’s what the music that comes out of me sounds like.” Hilton recorded the album both in California with bandmate and childhood family friend, Jaco Caraco, as well as in Tennessee with his former roommate and another longtime collaborator, Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum. Hilton and Caraco had started recording what was supposed to be a side project for film and TV soundtracks in their spare time. Hilton was on hiatus from filming a pilot for CMT, and Caraco was on break from touring in Miley Cyrus’ band. It was during this time that Kelley called Hilton about working together as well. "I knew this was rare, to have both of my favorite collaborators available at the same time. It just hit me, this is way more than a side project." That collaborative spirit is in Hilton’s songwriting DNA. He’s written with Taylor Swift and Michelle Branch, co-wrote on Joe Cocker’s final studio album and is currently in the studio working on new music with Billy Ray Cyrus. For Hilton’s new album, the title track and first single, "City On Fire," was written around the 2016 election, a period where Hilton found himself listening to a lot of traditional folk songs and western movie scores. "It was strange and comforting to listen to that music during a time of so much change. Everything seemed to be changing," he recalls. "And then a good friend of mine from high school passed away, and all of my friends came together. I sang some songs, we cried, but mostly we were just left numb and blinking. A lot happened really fast." "'City On Fire' came out of me really quickly," he explains. "It was kind of like a dream I should have had, but instead the images came out as a song, a fully formed murder ballad. It was
eerie, but I think it painted the picture just right. It really felt like the city was on fire and a lot was being lost very quickly." The accompanying music video was directed by Hilton's wife, Megan Park, who is most recognizable for her work as an actress ('Secret Life of the American Teenager,' 'Central Intelligence') but has recently made waves directing music videos for Billie Eilish, Alina Baraz, Blackbear, and Gucci Mane. For the video, Park teamed with production company PRETTYBIRD, the studio behind videos for Beyonce’s “Lemonade” and Rihanna's “We Found Love," and choreographer Andrew Winghart (‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ Lorde's 'Melodrama' tour, Kahlid's 2018 tour). Tyler will showcase the new music from his album, “City On Fire,” on a February and March tour of the U.S. 'City On Fire' will be released on January 18th, 2019 from Hilton's label, Hooptie Tune Records.