February 12, 2019 • 18 mins
Adam Hambrick is a lucky guy. He would even go so far as to say he won the “songwriter lottery” when country star Justin Moore found him on an Arkansas morning TV show in 2011. Adam has notched two number ones on his belt, “How Not To (Dan & Shay) and “Somebody Else Will” (Justin Moore) and today he joins Cody Alan to talk about his own single, “Rocking All Night.”
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Cody Ellen's podcast. This is Cody Cast. Is
it on? No? No, no, no, I think we're ready.
Adam Hamburg is here everybody? Yeah, they are you from Arkansas?
I am from Arkansas. So so there's there's confusion because
I have cleared up convoluted backstory. So if I have
(00:21):
if I have a a hometown, like a town that
I grew up in is Corinth, Mississippi. But all my
families from Arkansas. I live there when I was really young,
and then I lived there after high school. Like all
my famis from there. I'm a Razorback fan. That's my
cross to bear, Like Arkansas is home right well, because
I know Justin Moore like discovered you saw you on
Good Morning Arkansas, which I watch every morning. It's debated,
(00:46):
breath waiting and fantastic show Good Morning Arkansas. Who doesn't
watch Good Morning It's the original g M. As before
there was a Good Morning American truth, there was a
Good Morning Arkansas. So he saw you on that show. Um.
I was just some dude like making music on the
side in Arkansas and uh I'd made this record that
um with just some friends from church in Arkansas, and
I was doing like a local morning TV show promo. Um,
(01:10):
and and he just saw me. He's like, man, that
guy's pretty good. And let me tell you thing about Justin.
If Justin can help out somebody, uh from the state
of Arkansas, like nobody bleeds Arkansas like that does, like
that guy does. And and he he's just super like
giving and that's just that speaks of the kind of
guy he is. He made a phone call on my
behalf to his producer. His producer just happened to be
(01:30):
building a publishing company and looking for writers and talent
to work with and it kind of just worked out
for me to come in Nashville. Is amazing. Good for you. Well,
I love Justin and like so many people who do
my job, we've known each other for years because he's
been around for I mean, the guy has been around
for like Almo is it twelve years now? Did we
talk about that last? And he said, you know, numerous
number one and all these albums out and he's such
(01:50):
a good dude. So I'm I'm thrilled that you're somehow
connected to him, because that means you're you're a good man. Handbrick. Well,
I also loved that when Justin calls uh. He's firstly,
he's always late. He's not a very functual okay, what
I won't hold that against him, um, although I bring
it up every time he's around me. But I love,
just love. It's like his demeanor is so funny to me.
(02:12):
He's like so country and so Arkansas mega country, mega
country and Mayanna when I call you, I don't know
if we're being serious or stupid? That was Is that
a direct quote? That was a direct quote. I don't
know if you're being serious or stupid, which is kind
of true. You're kind of you don't strike me as
(02:33):
a Justin Moore like Arkans arkansan arkansan arkansa nite Yeah, um,
what would is it? What would be Arkans? Yeah, Arkansas.
I think that's right because you do come to us
from via Arkansas but through Mississippi, so maybe that's what
it is. But you strike me like, um, Radney Foster
In looks. Yeah. People tell me how look like Radney
a lot, which is a great compliment. He's like handsome man,
(02:55):
handsome man, uh with the glasses and the hair and
the things. And he's also very talented like he is
to maybe when I top five all time country music single.
I just love that guy, and I love what he does.
Um And after listening to some of your stuff, I
mean I see some similarities there as well. I mean
(03:16):
there are just the serious tone of some of these songs,
Like there's some depth here. It's not just ear candy
bubblegum country. It's like actual depth. So congrats on being
also that guy. Things. I've always been a kind of
a lyric first guy, Like like, like words, what you
say in songs? I feel like that's the most important,
(03:37):
Like what do you what story you trying to tell?
What do you want people to feel? Um? And uh
and and yeah, that's a that's a big compliment for me.
How old were you when you wrote your first song?
I think I was in the fourth grade when I
try to write my first song. Yeah, well, my mom so,
dad's baptist, prettychot, mom's piano player. We all sang together
growing up. And and when me and my me and
(03:58):
my sisters were all sang together growing up, my mom
you just always wrote songs. So I thought, like, if
you want to do music, that's just what you do,
you know, and so um, so I remember trying to
write my first song, I was like in the fourth grade,
Well you come a long way since then. I don't
know what that song was, but I'm guessing, uh, you
gotta had a lot more to write about. And it
seems like when I hear some of the stuff you've written, Um,
(04:19):
the guy in the song at least has been through
some stuff like it's not he's been through relationship ups downs, yeah,
mostly downs. Yeah. Well it's kind of funny. Thing is
I'm very happily married, dude, very uh you know, like
like I don't have a lot to like be down
about in my life. I think just when I when
I was growing up, there's like this sense of just
(04:40):
like not fitting you know, uh, because I mean you
talk about me not looking like the stereotypical Arcanson or
uh like like there's you know, I was kind of
a creative guy in in in a lot of small
towns where there's just not like like where does that
guy fit into that kind of kind of place and um,
and and so there's just like this like like longing
in me. I think that just kind of comes out
(05:01):
in my in my songs and the stories i'd like
to tell. Rocking all night long, is the debut single.
And when you hear the title, you think, oh, this
is gonna be a bob, this is gonna be a
banger Beer and Tail Gates Country Brother, But it's not. Yeah,
it's um actually again a song with some depth here
and somewhat about your daughter by the end of the song. Right, So,
how was she know? She's three? Now? It looks like
(05:22):
the pictures you took on Instagram at Disney, We're just
she was living her best life. She was absolutely living
her best life. She got she got to be a
princess from day we we took uh we we put
in a princess dress and set her free to uh
go harass every Disney princess that we could come across.
It was awesome. Um But like that song rocking on
(05:44):
along the first ever, it's the first time I ever
like wrote a song that had a nod to being
a dad because I didn't I didn't want to like
like there's there's there's cheese factor associated with writing songs
about your kids, and and I don't want I don't
want to come across that way too. I don't those
kind of things don't hit me like they strike me
(06:05):
sometimes it's like disingenuous or whatever. And and I wanted
to write something that I feel and that is like
true and real. And what what came out was just
a song about the thrills in life that happened late
at night. They just kind of look different. They're still
there when you're when you're older and you're more responsible
and you've got stuff to do, but they just kind
(06:26):
of look a little different. And um, that's kind of
that's kind of where it comes from for you. Uh.
And again going back to the song, because it sort
of relates to this sort of transition in life. Um,
what was that transition like for you going from you know,
a single guy to the married guy now to to
being a dad? What was the transition from you know,
being married as a couple to parenthood? Man, Um, well,
(06:48):
we we've been we've married for a while now. So
we got married straight out of college. We've made for
ten years now and uh and and so like we had,
we had a good stretch of time there. We just
got to be us, you know, we we got to
know ship, we got to travel a little bit. We
moved to Nashville and lived here for a few years
before we uh, you know, before we became before we
became parents, So we got the experienced Nashville. We got
(07:10):
to go to shows, and we got to be like,
you know, stereotypical Nashville transplants for a little bit, you know,
and and and so it was kind of just a
natural transition, this is what's next. And so she just
kind of jumped in both feet. Yeah. Well you seem
to be loving and you love it so much. You're
having another kid. Yeah, yeah, July, we're gonna be rocking
on that along again. Part two. Part We're starting to
(07:31):
feel the baby kid here. So we're we're coming along
and she got cravings? Is it a tough house to
live in right now? Man, I'm gonna be honest. Uh,
my wife is the true rock star. Like she doesn't
get sick, she doesn't get like she she handles it
like a champ. It's amazing. She should have been the
one on Good Morning Arkansas. That's the truth. That's the truth.
(07:53):
We'll tell me about your influences show. Who would you
say would be like your top three? Four? Oh? Man? Um, well,
I feel like it kind of went phases for me.
So when I was a kid, it was all country
radio was everything was on the radio and in in
the nineties countries Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson and Mark
Chestnut and Joe Diffy and Sammy Kershaw, like those were
the things that gave me the baseline of what a
song is, like like I write songs like like that,
(08:16):
you know, like like that's that's that's my ideal of
what a song is. And then uh, then when I
got the six and seventh grade, um, I descared every
stuff like Boys the Men and a lot of pop music.
Like I was like, I want to sing like those
guys and my mom was like, but you're a white guy.
And I was like, shut up, Mom, you don't know me. Um.
And then uh, you know, then like when I was
in high school, it got to be like a lot
(08:37):
of rock music is like Third Eye Blind and Food
Fighters and um, so a lot of influences, a lot
of various Yeah, it really it really kind of like
cycled me and I came back to country because that
is that songwriting to me and um, but probably my
biggest one was John Mayer. Um when when Roof for
Squares came out, that was kind of the record that
sort of changed the game for me. In the most
(08:58):
like dramatic way of a music that I've ever listened to.
You going back to how you sort of song, right,
if you're not the guy in the song who sings
like how many Miles, which I have on loop this
morning because I thought it was such a great song
and it's such a great play on like a relationship
going wrong and how many miles are you gonna, yeah,
be gone before I see you again? Or whatever? Um?
(09:19):
Do you channel that person or have you lived some
of this? Um? I mean, it's it's most it's mostly
just like telling the story around the kind of like
ache that comes from I might, like I said, I
might be a happily married dude, I might like have
a lot of good in my life, but I know
what it feels like to need and know it feels
like to hurt, So you really do have to channel it.
It's just like you go there in your mind and
(09:40):
let it, let your imagination sort of take you, for sure,
to whatever those weird depths, because it might not be
my story, but it's somebody's story. And you said that
comparison and that we talked about all your influences. A
comparison is the thief of joy absolutely, especially in Nashville. Yeah,
is that a difficult kind of thing to understand? Um,
(10:01):
not to compare yourself to other people. Yeah, because because
when you're in Nashville, like everybody sort of you know,
you got you get the you go into a random
coffee shop and you've got Keith Urban sitting over there,
and and you're like, man, I wish I could have
it on one his as an artist and and and
it's like the successful people kind of run next to
the people who haven't had success yet, and and so
(10:23):
it's easy to kind of like get discouraged by other
people's success. And sometimes the best thing you can do
is just like just cheer for everybody and like and
and and do your best, and sometimes that is success
in a lot of ways. My thief of joy is
reading comments on Instagram. So you too, do you ever
(10:43):
read the comments? And like, yeah, I go that road, Yeah,
because because there there's this thing in me that just
like needs the validation and I try to like turn
that off or or or more importantly like like look
forward in the right ways, like look for it. And
the people who like love me unconditionally and like not
so much. Uh, Internet strangers, you know, because because that's
that's a ficklebird. Yeah, it's easy to go down that
(11:05):
road and like, um, get down on yourself when there's
criticisms that are maybe personal or even worse sometimes the
professional stuff that you're trying so hard to get right
and then someone doesn't like that for some reason. Yeah,
and especially like in people like people like us, like
our business is our name, like our businesses is us.
(11:26):
And so even though it might be like that song
sucks or like whatever it is, like it feels personal
because our names on it, you know. True enough. Um,
by the way, great ironed uh jeane jacket you're wearing.
Not everybody can pull off the blue jean jacket. And
this is more of an Alan Jackson style if I
if I'm gonna be honest, not quite full stone wash,
(11:49):
but it's got a light stone wash. And I feel
like you did take the time or someone in Adam
Hambrick's entourage here the Hambrick tarage took the time to
like iron it as well. Did you iron this or
your wife? I'm gonna be honest, I did not iron it.
I just kind of hung it up the drive. Here's
my problem with the Jeene jackets. The things curl up,
(12:10):
the things curl up, and the pockets and the the
collar curls, curl, curl to the collar. I don't mind
the curl to the collar. But when this right here
you can like like the chest the chess pocket flips up.
It's about you got iron that real world music problems
right here. Um the first test, first world problem. You're
(12:31):
gonna play London, the c two seeds coming up. Keith
Urban's on that we're getting away a free trip to
I'll go see him at CMT Cody dot com Shandley's plug.
I think you have two Sunday itntder that, um So anyway,
So how's exciting is it gonna be to play over
in the UK? Man? I am unbelievably excited about that.
I've never even spent any time in the UK, so
I've I've done some traveling, I've the only English experience
(12:54):
I have is like flying through Heathrow one time. Oh yeah, yeah.
So I'm looking forward to actually getting the experience London.
And and from what I from what I've seen from
other artists who are getting their start over here, maybe
haven't like found chart success or whatever. They get over there,
like Gillian Jacqueline freaking kills it in London, like people
know all of her songs and like like like people
(13:17):
like her who are real songwriters and real like artists,
like they killed over there because there's a specific type
of like music fan over there that that loves love song. Right,
you get to play as you are in the States. Um,
the songs that are out and released right now, including
your version of how Not To, which you wrote Dan
and Shay's big huge hit, and again a song about
(13:37):
heartbreak and real Um, it's a downer but yeah, but
your downer but feels like a bop, right, but yeah,
but Dan and Shay somehow made it a bop anyway. Um,
so you'll play that one. And by the way, I
don't tell Dan and Shade, but I think I mean
like your version better. It's more of an acoustic sort
of like feel to it, and it's very unique. Well,
thank you, and again it felt a little more again
(13:59):
I love Danna say, but just it was I could
feel the heart that you were the writer of it,
not just um, not just you know a song that
you're you're you're mixing mid tempo. Yeah, I'm gonna be honest,
I don't really know how to respond to that that.
I'll take it as a comment I do. Sometimes it's
easier for people to um some like people want to
(14:20):
uh and I know that's not what you do. But
sometimes people like diminish uh an artist because like, oh,
he didn't write that song. This guy wrote that song.
Um man, that song wouldn't be that song without what
Danna shay Uh did to it. And man, she's one
of the best freaking singers on the point is amazing.
I hope everybody really knows that. Like for I was
(14:41):
so bummed for those guys when they didn't win more
the CMAS. I guess it was the last show about it,
so maybe they'll win big at the a c MC
fingers crossed. Man. They deserve whatever whatever comes to them.
Danny's a haircut. Can we all agree on that? Though?
There goes that Instagram comments I could have does the
Instagram comments that that Dan gets there. If he was
(15:04):
sitting here, I tell him that too. He would probably agree.
He's like, He's like, I'm killing it right now. I
can do it. Everyone where whatever the hell here I want? Um,
you went to the University of Central, Arkansas. What was
your major? I was a broadcast journalism major. Yeah, so
I did um so. When I was in high school
in Corinth, Mississippi, I worked at a radio station, w
(15:25):
y D l f M why one point seven, the
cross Roads number one hit music station, and uh and
and I loved it. And I went took my official
visit to U. S A. And They're like, what do
you want to major? And I'm like, I want to
major in radio and They're like, that's not a thing,
you idiot, and and so I like what else you
got there? Like broadcast journalism? All right, I'll do that.
And so that's how I picked my major. Really, so
(15:47):
you must have thought maybe I'll do music at some point,
but that seemed like the pathway for you at the time.
I wanted to do music, But you gotta be practical, right, Like,
like I've never I've never seen anybody do music as
a career like successfully. Like like I knew some people
who had done cover bands and they, you know, kind
of made a hustle on the side. But um But
(16:08):
then I'll tell you what changed the game for me
was Chris Allen is a good friend of mine. We
went to college together American Idol, American Idol. Christ all
He's U see A's U s A's Finest cent to Arkansas.
He's a great guy, great dude, like incredible singer. But
we used to play shows together in college. And then
I saw him one I saw him win American Idol,
(16:31):
and I was like all right, like like if this
is ever gonna happen like you, I've got to like
make real steps toward it. And so that's when I
made the record, um that had me on Channel seven
Good Morning Arkansas and a little rock that justin Warsaw
And so like seeing Chris Allen do that, like was
a kind of a big big step for me. Were
you in college at the time. Was it post college?
(16:53):
It was like a year after we graduated college, so
you really did get your degree with the idea maybe
of being on the radio doing that for a living. Yeah.
So like before um, before doing this, I was on
staff of the college ministry, I was doing video and
graphic design work, and so like my broadcast journalism, like
all that stuff like really prepared me to kind of
(17:14):
like it kind of like I don't know the best
way to describe it. It gave me a lot of
skills that you know, are still serving me today with
like how I still tell stories like visually through even
Instagram and videos and all that stuff. And then you
go on the radio tour where the record company takes
you to all the radio stations, uh, coal miners daughter style,
(17:35):
and you get to visit all the radio danglings like me.
It's kind of probably prepared you for a little bit
of that too, Like, yeah, it went into radio station
fee uncomfortable. Yeah, not, it's not. It's not. It's quite
a foreign language, and maybe it might be for some
of the people. So that's helpful. Good stuff. Well, I'm
so glad I got to meet you. Congratulations all the
success so far and what's to come? So the song
(17:55):
is out rocking all night long? And is the is
there an epieces it all official soon? So so the
singles out now, Um, we have a brand new song
that's going out to Spotify and iTunes and all that
stuff actually on Friday. Uh, and what's that called February eight,
that's called all You, All Night, All Summer. And so
I'm already in I love the title. Alright, Okay, all
(18:16):
You All Night, All Summer. Yeah, yeah, so this one,
this was a little less heartbreak, a little more feel good.
It's a banger, yeah, all right, bring us a banger. Handbrick.
By the way, people call you Hambrike. I feel like
that would have been a nickname at some point in
your life. Um uh called. The high school football team
was it was hand Bone. Hand Bone was a too
(18:38):
small to actually be alignment, but a little too chunky
to actually be a receiver. So so Handbone was a
deep snapper on the Corent High school football team. Loo.
Thanks that, Thanks, Thanks Cody all Right, we'll see on
the next edition of Good Morning Arkansas. Thanks for listening
to Cody Allen's podcast. This is Cody Cast.
This is Cody Ellen's podcast. This is Cody Cast. Is
it on? No? No, no, no, I think we're ready.
Adam Hamburg is here everybody? Yeah, they are you from Arkansas?
I am from Arkansas. So so there's there's confusion because
I have cleared up convoluted backstory. So if I have
(00:21):
if I have a a hometown, like a town that
I grew up in is Corinth, Mississippi. But all my
families from Arkansas. I live there when I was really young,
and then I lived there after high school. Like all
my famis from there. I'm a Razorback fan. That's my
cross to bear, Like Arkansas is home right well, because
I know Justin Moore like discovered you saw you on
Good Morning Arkansas, which I watch every morning. It's debated,
(00:46):
breath waiting and fantastic show Good Morning Arkansas. Who doesn't
watch Good Morning It's the original g M. As before
there was a Good Morning American truth, there was a
Good Morning Arkansas. So he saw you on that show. Um.
I was just some dude like making music on the
side in Arkansas and uh I'd made this record that
um with just some friends from church in Arkansas, and
I was doing like a local morning TV show promo. Um,
(01:10):
and and he just saw me. He's like, man, that
guy's pretty good. And let me tell you thing about Justin.
If Justin can help out somebody, uh from the state
of Arkansas, like nobody bleeds Arkansas like that does, like
that guy does. And and he he's just super like
giving and that's just that speaks of the kind of
guy he is. He made a phone call on my
behalf to his producer. His producer just happened to be
(01:30):
building a publishing company and looking for writers and talent
to work with and it kind of just worked out
for me to come in Nashville. Is amazing. Good for you. Well,
I love Justin and like so many people who do
my job, we've known each other for years because he's
been around for I mean, the guy has been around
for like Almo is it twelve years now? Did we
talk about that last? And he said, you know, numerous
number one and all these albums out and he's such
(01:50):
a good dude. So I'm I'm thrilled that you're somehow
connected to him, because that means you're you're a good man. Handbrick. Well,
I also loved that when Justin calls uh. He's firstly,
he's always late. He's not a very functual okay, what
I won't hold that against him, um, although I bring
it up every time he's around me. But I love,
just love. It's like his demeanor is so funny to me.
(02:12):
He's like so country and so Arkansas mega country, mega
country and Mayanna when I call you, I don't know
if we're being serious or stupid? That was Is that
a direct quote? That was a direct quote. I don't
know if you're being serious or stupid, which is kind
of true. You're kind of you don't strike me as
(02:33):
a Justin Moore like Arkans arkansan arkansan arkansa nite Yeah, um,
what would is it? What would be Arkans? Yeah, Arkansas.
I think that's right because you do come to us
from via Arkansas but through Mississippi, so maybe that's what
it is. But you strike me like, um, Radney Foster
In looks. Yeah. People tell me how look like Radney
a lot, which is a great compliment. He's like handsome man,
(02:55):
handsome man, uh with the glasses and the hair and
the things. And he's also very talented like he is
to maybe when I top five all time country music single.
I just love that guy, and I love what he does.
Um And after listening to some of your stuff, I
mean I see some similarities there as well. I mean
(03:16):
there are just the serious tone of some of these songs,
Like there's some depth here. It's not just ear candy
bubblegum country. It's like actual depth. So congrats on being
also that guy. Things. I've always been a kind of
a lyric first guy, Like like, like words, what you
say in songs? I feel like that's the most important,
(03:37):
Like what do you what story you trying to tell?
What do you want people to feel? Um? And uh
and and yeah, that's a that's a big compliment for me.
How old were you when you wrote your first song?
I think I was in the fourth grade when I
try to write my first song. Yeah, well, my mom so,
dad's baptist, prettychot, mom's piano player. We all sang together
growing up. And and when me and my me and
(03:58):
my sisters were all sang together growing up, my mom
you just always wrote songs. So I thought, like, if
you want to do music, that's just what you do,
you know, and so um, so I remember trying to
write my first song, I was like in the fourth grade,
Well you come a long way since then. I don't
know what that song was, but I'm guessing, uh, you
gotta had a lot more to write about. And it
seems like when I hear some of the stuff you've written, Um,
(04:19):
the guy in the song at least has been through
some stuff like it's not he's been through relationship ups downs, yeah,
mostly downs. Yeah. Well it's kind of funny. Thing is
I'm very happily married, dude, very uh you know, like
like I don't have a lot to like be down
about in my life. I think just when I when
I was growing up, there's like this sense of just
(04:40):
like not fitting you know, uh, because I mean you
talk about me not looking like the stereotypical Arcanson or
uh like like there's you know, I was kind of
a creative guy in in in a lot of small
towns where there's just not like like where does that
guy fit into that kind of kind of place and um,
and and so there's just like this like like longing
in me. I think that just kind of comes out
(05:01):
in my in my songs and the stories i'd like
to tell. Rocking all night long, is the debut single.
And when you hear the title, you think, oh, this
is gonna be a bob, this is gonna be a
banger Beer and Tail Gates Country Brother, But it's not. Yeah,
it's um actually again a song with some depth here
and somewhat about your daughter by the end of the song. Right, So,
how was she know? She's three? Now? It looks like
(05:22):
the pictures you took on Instagram at Disney, We're just
she was living her best life. She was absolutely living
her best life. She got she got to be a
princess from day we we took uh we we put
in a princess dress and set her free to uh
go harass every Disney princess that we could come across.
It was awesome. Um But like that song rocking on
(05:44):
along the first ever, it's the first time I ever
like wrote a song that had a nod to being
a dad because I didn't I didn't want to like
like there's there's there's cheese factor associated with writing songs
about your kids, and and I don't want I don't
want to come across that way too. I don't those
kind of things don't hit me like they strike me
(06:05):
sometimes it's like disingenuous or whatever. And and I wanted
to write something that I feel and that is like
true and real. And what what came out was just
a song about the thrills in life that happened late
at night. They just kind of look different. They're still
there when you're when you're older and you're more responsible
and you've got stuff to do, but they just kind
(06:26):
of look a little different. And um, that's kind of
that's kind of where it comes from for you. Uh.
And again going back to the song, because it sort
of relates to this sort of transition in life. Um,
what was that transition like for you going from you know,
a single guy to the married guy now to to
being a dad? What was the transition from you know,
being married as a couple to parenthood? Man, Um, well,
(06:48):
we we've been we've married for a while now. So
we got married straight out of college. We've made for
ten years now and uh and and so like we had,
we had a good stretch of time there. We just
got to be us, you know, we we got to
know ship, we got to travel a little bit. We
moved to Nashville and lived here for a few years
before we uh, you know, before we became before we
became parents, So we got the experienced Nashville. We got
(07:10):
to go to shows, and we got to be like,
you know, stereotypical Nashville transplants for a little bit, you know,
and and and so it was kind of just a
natural transition, this is what's next. And so she just
kind of jumped in both feet. Yeah. Well you seem
to be loving and you love it so much. You're
having another kid. Yeah, yeah, July, we're gonna be rocking
on that along again. Part two. Part We're starting to
(07:31):
feel the baby kid here. So we're we're coming along
and she got cravings? Is it a tough house to
live in right now? Man, I'm gonna be honest. Uh,
my wife is the true rock star. Like she doesn't
get sick, she doesn't get like she she handles it
like a champ. It's amazing. She should have been the
one on Good Morning Arkansas. That's the truth. That's the truth.
(07:53):
We'll tell me about your influences show. Who would you
say would be like your top three? Four? Oh? Man? Um, well,
I feel like it kind of went phases for me.
So when I was a kid, it was all country
radio was everything was on the radio and in in
the nineties countries Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson and Mark
Chestnut and Joe Diffy and Sammy Kershaw, like those were
the things that gave me the baseline of what a
song is, like like I write songs like like that,
(08:16):
you know, like like that's that's that's my ideal of
what a song is. And then uh, then when I
got the six and seventh grade, um, I descared every
stuff like Boys the Men and a lot of pop music.
Like I was like, I want to sing like those
guys and my mom was like, but you're a white guy.
And I was like, shut up, Mom, you don't know me. Um.
And then uh, you know, then like when I was
in high school, it got to be like a lot
(08:37):
of rock music is like Third Eye Blind and Food
Fighters and um, so a lot of influences, a lot
of various Yeah, it really it really kind of like
cycled me and I came back to country because that
is that songwriting to me and um, but probably my
biggest one was John Mayer. Um when when Roof for
Squares came out, that was kind of the record that
sort of changed the game for me. In the most
(08:58):
like dramatic way of a music that I've ever listened to.
You going back to how you sort of song, right,
if you're not the guy in the song who sings
like how many Miles, which I have on loop this
morning because I thought it was such a great song
and it's such a great play on like a relationship
going wrong and how many miles are you gonna, yeah,
be gone before I see you again? Or whatever? Um?
(09:19):
Do you channel that person or have you lived some
of this? Um? I mean, it's it's most it's mostly
just like telling the story around the kind of like
ache that comes from I might, like I said, I
might be a happily married dude, I might like have
a lot of good in my life, but I know
what it feels like to need and know it feels
like to hurt, So you really do have to channel it.
It's just like you go there in your mind and
(09:40):
let it, let your imagination sort of take you, for sure,
to whatever those weird depths, because it might not be
my story, but it's somebody's story. And you said that
comparison and that we talked about all your influences. A
comparison is the thief of joy absolutely, especially in Nashville. Yeah,
is that a difficult kind of thing to understand? Um,
(10:01):
not to compare yourself to other people. Yeah, because because
when you're in Nashville, like everybody sort of you know,
you got you get the you go into a random
coffee shop and you've got Keith Urban sitting over there,
and and you're like, man, I wish I could have
it on one his as an artist and and and
it's like the successful people kind of run next to
the people who haven't had success yet, and and so
(10:23):
it's easy to kind of like get discouraged by other
people's success. And sometimes the best thing you can do
is just like just cheer for everybody and like and
and and do your best, and sometimes that is success
in a lot of ways. My thief of joy is
reading comments on Instagram. So you too, do you ever
(10:43):
read the comments? And like, yeah, I go that road, Yeah,
because because there there's this thing in me that just
like needs the validation and I try to like turn
that off or or or more importantly like like look
forward in the right ways, like look for it. And
the people who like love me unconditionally and like not
so much. Uh, Internet strangers, you know, because because that's
that's a ficklebird. Yeah, it's easy to go down that
(11:05):
road and like, um, get down on yourself when there's
criticisms that are maybe personal or even worse sometimes the
professional stuff that you're trying so hard to get right
and then someone doesn't like that for some reason. Yeah,
and especially like in people like people like us, like
our business is our name, like our businesses is us.
(11:26):
And so even though it might be like that song
sucks or like whatever it is, like it feels personal
because our names on it, you know. True enough. Um,
by the way, great ironed uh jeane jacket you're wearing.
Not everybody can pull off the blue jean jacket. And
this is more of an Alan Jackson style if I
if I'm gonna be honest, not quite full stone wash,
(11:49):
but it's got a light stone wash. And I feel
like you did take the time or someone in Adam
Hambrick's entourage here the Hambrick tarage took the time to
like iron it as well. Did you iron this or
your wife? I'm gonna be honest, I did not iron it.
I just kind of hung it up the drive. Here's
my problem with the Jeene jackets. The things curl up,
(12:10):
the things curl up, and the pockets and the the
collar curls, curl, curl to the collar. I don't mind
the curl to the collar. But when this right here
you can like like the chest the chess pocket flips up.
It's about you got iron that real world music problems
right here. Um the first test, first world problem. You're
(12:31):
gonna play London, the c two seeds coming up. Keith
Urban's on that we're getting away a free trip to
I'll go see him at CMT Cody dot com Shandley's plug.
I think you have two Sunday itntder that, um So anyway,
So how's exciting is it gonna be to play over
in the UK? Man? I am unbelievably excited about that.
I've never even spent any time in the UK, so
I've I've done some traveling, I've the only English experience
(12:54):
I have is like flying through Heathrow one time. Oh yeah, yeah.
So I'm looking forward to actually getting the experience London.
And and from what I from what I've seen from
other artists who are getting their start over here, maybe
haven't like found chart success or whatever. They get over there,
like Gillian Jacqueline freaking kills it in London, like people
know all of her songs and like like like people
(13:17):
like her who are real songwriters and real like artists,
like they killed over there because there's a specific type
of like music fan over there that that loves love song. Right,
you get to play as you are in the States. Um,
the songs that are out and released right now, including
your version of how Not To, which you wrote Dan
and Shay's big huge hit, and again a song about
(13:37):
heartbreak and real Um, it's a downer but yeah, but
your downer but feels like a bop, right, but yeah,
but Dan and Shay somehow made it a bop anyway. Um,
so you'll play that one. And by the way, I
don't tell Dan and Shade, but I think I mean
like your version better. It's more of an acoustic sort
of like feel to it, and it's very unique. Well,
thank you, and again it felt a little more again
(13:59):
I love Danna say, but just it was I could
feel the heart that you were the writer of it,
not just um, not just you know a song that
you're you're you're mixing mid tempo. Yeah, I'm gonna be honest,
I don't really know how to respond to that that.
I'll take it as a comment I do. Sometimes it's
easier for people to um some like people want to
(14:20):
uh and I know that's not what you do. But
sometimes people like diminish uh an artist because like, oh,
he didn't write that song. This guy wrote that song.
Um man, that song wouldn't be that song without what
Danna shay Uh did to it. And man, she's one
of the best freaking singers on the point is amazing.
I hope everybody really knows that. Like for I was
(14:41):
so bummed for those guys when they didn't win more
the CMAS. I guess it was the last show about it,
so maybe they'll win big at the a c MC
fingers crossed. Man. They deserve whatever whatever comes to them.
Danny's a haircut. Can we all agree on that? Though?
There goes that Instagram comments I could have does the
Instagram comments that that Dan gets there. If he was
(15:04):
sitting here, I tell him that too. He would probably agree.
He's like, He's like, I'm killing it right now. I
can do it. Everyone where whatever the hell here I want? Um,
you went to the University of Central, Arkansas. What was
your major? I was a broadcast journalism major. Yeah, so
I did um so. When I was in high school
in Corinth, Mississippi, I worked at a radio station, w
(15:25):
y D l f M why one point seven, the
cross Roads number one hit music station, and uh and
and I loved it. And I went took my official
visit to U. S A. And They're like, what do
you want to major? And I'm like, I want to
major in radio and They're like, that's not a thing,
you idiot, and and so I like what else you
got there? Like broadcast journalism? All right, I'll do that.
And so that's how I picked my major. Really, so
(15:47):
you must have thought maybe I'll do music at some point,
but that seemed like the pathway for you at the time.
I wanted to do music, But you gotta be practical, right, Like,
like I've never I've never seen anybody do music as
a career like successfully. Like like I knew some people
who had done cover bands and they, you know, kind
of made a hustle on the side. But um But
(16:08):
then I'll tell you what changed the game for me
was Chris Allen is a good friend of mine. We
went to college together American Idol, American Idol. Christ all
He's U see A's U s A's Finest cent to Arkansas.
He's a great guy, great dude, like incredible singer. But
we used to play shows together in college. And then
I saw him one I saw him win American Idol,
(16:31):
and I was like all right, like like if this
is ever gonna happen like you, I've got to like
make real steps toward it. And so that's when I
made the record, um that had me on Channel seven
Good Morning Arkansas and a little rock that justin Warsaw
And so like seeing Chris Allen do that, like was
a kind of a big big step for me. Were
you in college at the time. Was it post college?
(16:53):
It was like a year after we graduated college, so
you really did get your degree with the idea maybe
of being on the radio doing that for a living. Yeah.
So like before um, before doing this, I was on
staff of the college ministry, I was doing video and
graphic design work, and so like my broadcast journalism, like
all that stuff like really prepared me to kind of
(17:14):
like it kind of like I don't know the best
way to describe it. It gave me a lot of
skills that you know, are still serving me today with
like how I still tell stories like visually through even
Instagram and videos and all that stuff. And then you
go on the radio tour where the record company takes
you to all the radio stations, uh, coal miners daughter style,
(17:35):
and you get to visit all the radio danglings like me.
It's kind of probably prepared you for a little bit
of that too, Like, yeah, it went into radio station
fee uncomfortable. Yeah, not, it's not. It's not. It's quite
a foreign language, and maybe it might be for some
of the people. So that's helpful. Good stuff. Well, I'm
so glad I got to meet you. Congratulations all the
success so far and what's to come? So the song
(17:55):
is out rocking all night long? And is the is
there an epieces it all official soon? So so the
singles out now, Um, we have a brand new song
that's going out to Spotify and iTunes and all that
stuff actually on Friday. Uh, and what's that called February eight,
that's called all You, All Night, All Summer. And so
I'm already in I love the title. Alright, Okay, all
(18:16):
You All Night, All Summer. Yeah, yeah, so this one,
this was a little less heartbreak, a little more feel good.
It's a banger, yeah, all right, bring us a banger. Handbrick.
By the way, people call you Hambrike. I feel like
that would have been a nickname at some point in
your life. Um uh called. The high school football team
was it was hand Bone. Hand Bone was a too
(18:38):
small to actually be alignment, but a little too chunky
to actually be a receiver. So so Handbone was a
deep snapper on the Corent High school football team. Loo.
Thanks that, Thanks, Thanks Cody all Right, we'll see on
the next edition of Good Morning Arkansas. Thanks for listening
to Cody Allen's podcast. This is Cody Cast.
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