Jeremy Parsons- Talks To Us About His Background, Career, And Music
Intro
Born in San Antonio, Texas, Jeremy Parsons grew up soaking in the sounds of Texas music in the dancehalls of the Lone Star State. Jeremy was always a fan of music, but it wasn’t until his later high school years that he discovered his knack for it. Driven by his passion, he taught himself to play the guitar and began to write and perform music.
Over the past decade, Jeremy has played all over the U.S. and in Europe, including numerous venues in Texas. Pulling from the example of Texas performance artists, Jeremy loves to interact with his audience. He captivates the crowd with his genuine personality, unique humor, and heart-felt love of his occupation.
Jeremy draws from his personal experiences to create songs that are keenly perceptive and meaningful. The first single from his latest album, “Things I Need To Say” was the Top 40 Roots Music Report and IndieWorld Report track, “Burn This House Down.” The song paints a poignant picture of heartbreak and acceptance that still remains relatable. It will stick with you long after your first listen. That single was followed up by the equally well-received, “Why is the Bluebird Blue,” also is a Top 40 Roots Report Americana single. “Bluebird” also reached #2 on the Hits You Love pop charts. The videos for both songs were nominated and selected for numerous Film Festivals, including the Jersey Shore Film Festival, Indie’s Best Films Festival, and the Monkey Bread Tree Film Festival, an IMDB-sanctioned film festival.
After living in Nashville for several years, Jeremy has returned home to Texas. His new album, “Things To Come” was released on January 8, 2021. He was recently added to a Spotify Editorial playlist, resulting in over 137K streams of the title track. The singles from the album have enjoyed international iTunes charting success.
Interview
Hi Jeremy, Welcome to Fanbase Music Magazine, can you start off by telling us where you grew up and where you reside now?
Hey, y’all! Thanks for having me. I grew up in San Antonio, TX, then moved to Nashville, where I lived for over ten years before my
homecoming in 2019.
How would you describe your sound?
I like to say it’s Americana, but if people aren’t familiar with that genre, I introduce it as Country-ish or Alt-Country.
What sort of bands and musicians did you grow up listening to?
I grew up listening to the older stuff like Hank Williams Sr., Bob Wills, and a lot of 90’s George Strait. When I got into my teenage years with help from my sister Katie and the radio, I branched out into the pop and alternative music realm and then into the Texas Country Red Dirt
Music scene. Later I would get more heavily into the songwriter standouts like John Prine and Guy Clark.
What instruments do you play?
I play acoustic rhythm guitar.
What is your favorite brand when it comes to your gear?
I think my guitar strings are the only thing I’m highly particular about. They’ve never done me wrong. I only use the Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze Medium gauge strings. They’re the string that came on my guitar, and that’s been with me since the beginning of my career.
Are you a solo musician or do you have a band you make music with?
I am currently a solo musician. I hope to get my good buddy and producer Dustin Martin on the road with me when the time is right. That’s my
hope. We need to figure out what that looks like and the best way to execute the whole process.
Let’s talk about your old releases, can you name each of them and when they were released?
Of Course! My first album, “Doggondest Feelin’,” came out in January 2010. I didn’t release anything else until seven years later, and that was my second full-length project, “Things I Need To Say,” in April of 2017. After that was my favorite project until we started working on this newer stuff: “Things To Come” in 2021. Since then, I released a single called “Tickin'” in October of 2022, followed by the second
single, “Humanity,” on April 7th.
Where do you record your albums and who else works on them?
A majority of my albums were recorded in Nashville. The first one was with my management at the time. The second album was with my good friend Micahel Flanders, and the third was with Micahel Flanders and his son Caleb Flanders. Both are incredibly talented people. We are doing all of the newer projects in Longview, Texas, out of an old place my friend Dustin Martin’s family owns. It’s a very cool setup, and we’re creating most of it in a spot that is essentially a living room space. It’s very cozy. For most albums, we bring in studio musicians, track everything live with everyone there, add stuff, and do the overdubs later. The newer project, which we started during the pandemic, was just Dustin, myself, and his bearded dragon Draco. Once Dustin has everything where he wants it, he’ll send it off to Mike Flanders for steel guitar or Caleb Flanders for bass and whoever else we might need on tracks like Doug Stokes for harmonies on the last two singles.
You have had success with some of your singles doing well in the charts on various platforms around the world, in your opinion what makes a great track and how did it feel when you got your first number 1?
That’s a very tough question to answer. I don’t think the artist putting out the song decides what makes a “great” track. The listeners determine
if it’s “great” or not, and even that boils down to differing opinions. All I can do is communicate my message or story in hopes that people
will feel and make a connection. Pursuing a number one was never one of my goals. I never really considered it would be a thing. When you get
there, it’s very shocking. You don’t expect it; you might even doubt it’s happening. It’s a whole array of emotions. I think, more than
anything, you’re so grateful. That means more than a few people could make that connection you hoped they would.
You are bringing out a new single called Humanity, what is the song about?
The lyrics emerged from looking at the world, choosing to slip into madness because of uncertainty and lack of patience. Whether it was all
the racism and brutality in general that occurred, which is mind-boggling to me, it should’ve been an awakening to show us how little progress we’ve made in 60 years and how much further we still have to go. I had a lot of time to think about my life and career around the time I was writing all these songs. For instance, the earliest part of my career was my most successful by industry standards and opinions. Although it was a great start, I did not like the energy and people I was surrounded by. It always felt gross and like the focus wasn’t on making art. It was about this constant need to be relevant but unwilling to adapt. It was foolish, stubborn, and proud. It was excruciating to watch. I decided then and there that I would always follow the creative current. This also calls out the withered souls line in the chorus. They would never know true wealth because they were essentially extorting the gift they had been given. They had lost sight of why they got into it in
the first place or had not gotten into it for what I consider to be the “right” reasons.
When is it expected to be released?
It’s out as of April 7th! I’m very excited!
When you write songs, can you explain the process, do you come up with the lyrics or the music?
The process differs for each song. Sometimes I will get the lyrics accompanied by the melody, and I have to bring it out by finding the right key and chord structures to make it sound how I hear it. Those usually come out the quickest. Sometimes it’s just hearing someone say something a certain way, like an old phrase you’ve listened to your entire life. Lately, they’ve been coming out of me right after I put new strings on my guitar, and I’m playing it to get everything ready for a show. My mind is off searching for the right words to match a melody that will emerge out of nowhere. Some songs will start as an easily written verse and chorus, and then you get stuck in the mental mud and have to walk away from it for a bit to wait and come back when you’re more in that headspace.
Do you play live and can you explain your typical live experience?
I do play live. I do somewhere between two and six shows a week. I prefer the latter as I love to work. The live show experience though exhausting, is one of my favorite parts of the job. You typically load up all your gear, primarily if you use your own that evening. You will
then chart your course for your destination and allow enough time to get there, feed yourself, set up, and start on time. For every gig, I usually try to get there an hour in advance; at least that way, I can set up and do my soundcheck and chill a little before show time. The shows range from relaxing and listening to non-stop crowd interaction, requests, and dancing. I love both kinds of crowds for different reasons. After all that, I tear down all my gear, load it up, and drive home or wherever I’m staying. Sometimes that trip is 30 minutes, and sometimes, it’s five hours. I love it, though.
Can you give us your social media links?
Thank you for doing this interview, do you have any last messages for your readers?
Thanks so much for reading along with us, and all the support on the music is always so appreciated. We literally couldn’t do this without y’all. I’m forever grateful and can’t wait to share even more new music.
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