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Speaker 2 00:01:25 What's up everybody? This is Rowdy Alternative. I am Sam and I'm here with Trenton Fletcher. How are you doing, man? Oh, that's good, dude. It does seem like you've been pretty busy, especially lately this year. Really?
Speaker 3 00:01:45 Yeah. Honestly, since, um, we dropped, it Rains in Tulsa too in September. That's kind of the jumping off point for everything. Um, it, uh, it's been cool. It's, uh, it's been fun and you know, we're just excited for everything on the horizon. It's, uh, definitely about to get busier too, I think.
Speaker 2 00:02:04 So when it rains in Tulsa too came out, uh, was what made, what, what was it that you're like, okay, that's the jumping off point, like, we're actually kicking it in here?
Speaker 3 00:02:16 Well, we had that song done early last year and then, um, like we sat on it for a while, you know, until September when it dropped. And, uh, like last summer was kind of just a, a getting our, getting our stuff together, um, time of life. And, you know, it, it's a good thing we waited as long as we did cuz you know, we wasted a whole album of releases that we could have marketed as singles that we just kind of dropped at one time and they kind of got lost in the algorithms. And, you know, I didn't know anything about using marketing or promotion or even pushing on social media other than just posting about it every now and then. And, uh, so I kind of took some time to study on that and just sit back and think what would work better. And, you know, we landed on the ideals of doing singles and that's kinda what we're still doing now, just trying to incrementally do 'em, push 'em out every few months.
Speaker 2 00:03:08 Yeah, I mean, especially nowadays, that seems like the right route to take when you're looking at like, productivity and like, create marketing and everything. It's the singles.
Speaker 3 00:03:20 It really is. Um, you know, and I, I love records just as much as anybody. I love listening to records front to back, um, and that that's something special and it's unique and like it's a journey from start to back on a good record. And, um, it is a shame that, you know, people's attention spans are so short now that you had to release singles just to keep their attention. But, you know, if you don't wanna adapt, you're gonna get left behind. And like, we're still trying to navigate those waters and figure out how we can push singles and when to do 'em and how often, and you know, how to go about it, how to not annoy people, how to get it out there enough. But it's just a, it's throwing you out in the middle of the ocean and just hoping you can tread water long enough to figure it out.
Speaker 2 00:04:02 Yeah, man. The short attention span thing, that's, that can't be any more true with the, I saw you ramping up your TikTok game. Speaking of short attention span, I saw you ramping up your TikTok game and hitting that pretty hard recently,
Speaker 3 00:04:17 Dude. Yeah, that's stressful. Um, it took me a long time to like swallow my pride enough to like just say, okay, we're gonna, we're gonna make tos and this is how we're gonna do it. I'm gonna do it every day. And I've definitely gone in spurts and it's, it's paid dividends some months and some posts and other times it's just like, why am I doing this? But it's the, it's the best free marketing you can get, especially if you tap into how to do it Right. And, you know, I'm still trying to figure that out, but it's definitely, um, been a game changer. And, you know, it's free if you can just be creative enough to capture people's attention. So short videos.
Speaker 2 00:04:55 Yeah, for sure, man. But, uh, so anyway, yeah, thanks for coming on. Uh, I guess we'll just hop right into when you started and everything for those who don't know. Um, so I guess just start out like where you're from. Uh, when did you start playing music? Uh, when did you start writing your own music?
Speaker 3 00:05:14 Yeah, man, I'm from southern Oklahoma, a little small town called Fox. Um, I graduated with 24 people. We didn't have a gas station in town. We had to go the next town over to Fuel Up. But, uh, I got a guitar when I was 11. Um, my whole family played music, has been involved in music, um, been songwriters in Nashville and, you know, country music's always been a part of my life. And so from an early age, you know, it was just constantly around like family reunions, you know, I'd have a bunch of great uncles up there just playing bluegrass. And, um, it was just always really cool. And, you know, I started playing guitar when I was 11, got my first guitar as a Fender Show master. Um, and I, I went really hard at it for a few months and then my guitar teacher's house burned down, and then I just kinda plateaued and just started playing chords until I was like 18 years old.
Speaker 3 00:06:08 Um, I think I, I wrote my first song when I was like 16 or so, and it was trash, I'm sure, but, uh, I kind of got interested in it. Then, uh, I got to college. I was playing football at Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee. Uh, you know, so that was my main priority. That's what I wanted to do. That's what I thought I was gonna do for the foreseeable future. And, you know, I started playing a little bit more, um, got involved with some buddies that were picking around playing on the drums, and I got really interested in songwriting and that's when I really started, you know, trying to figure out how to write songs that people liked. And I'd start going to some open mics. Um, you know, once I realized like people, at least a handful of people enjoy what I'm trying to do, it kinda inspired me to like, figure out how to get better at it.
Speaker 3 00:06:54 And, um, around my sophomore year into my sophomore year of college, I decided to transfer to Oklahoma State and, uh, just go to school and play music, move to Stillwater. And that's when I decided, all right, if I'm not gonna do football, I'm gonna, I'm gonna figure out this music thing. And I had it in my mind that, you know, I was gonna be playing every night of the week somewhere on the strip. You know, I never really spent a lot of time in Stillwater, but I heard all the stories growing up, knew that was the Red Dirt hub. And, uh, so that's kind of what I had in mind, uh, when I moved there and spent a lot of time there, but a lot of songwriters and, you know, a lot of future band members. And it was just a, a really good move and, you know, started playing acoustic shows and eventually got a band together and it's just kinda been a learn on the fly type thing the whole time.
Speaker 3 00:07:39 And, you know, once I realized I could do it as a, a career and I, I could quit my day job and only play music, that was a turning point. Um, a buddy of mine, Isaac McClung, probably the most underrated singer songwriter in Oklahoma. Um, if anybody's listening, go check Isaac McClung out. He's a monster. He gave me some advice. He was hosting the open mics. Uh, when I moved to Stillwater, I wasn't even 21 yet, he told me, you know, if you're gonna make it in music, you need to make yourself rely on it. And if that includes quitting your day job, you know, if you don't have a source of income, you're gonna get better at booking shows, better at writing songs, better at singing if you're forcing yourself to rely on that. And that was damn sure. Right? Um, and so I kind of took that to heart and that's something that I still hold true to this day. But, um, it's just been kind of an every evolving process of, uh, all right, well how do I put a band together? How do I book shows? And, you know, we are where we are now and we've got a whole new slew of things to figure out. But, you know, it's, it's a fun journey and it's fun to look back and see how things have changed over time.
Speaker 2 00:08:46 Hell yeah, man, that's, that's a real cool story. And like you, the Stillwater scene, and I talked to Gannon Freeman yesterday, uh, interviewed him, and then before that I, I think it was, uh, Matt Williams. So I've been, you know, getting my help into these Stillwater artists and it's, um, yeah, like, and I've lived there. I said this, I think every single podcast I've done so far, I've mentioned this, but <laugh> and I'm sure if, if anyone's listening, they're probably tired of it. But, uh, yeah, I lived there for a little bit and it was really cool. I met you briefly at, uh, Willie's, cuz you, uh, did open mics there, uh, hosted them, right?
Speaker 3 00:09:26 Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:09:27 So how'd, how'd that all happen? Yeah, I Does that mean Willie's is pretty legendary in that area?
Speaker 3 00:09:34 Yeah, so, you know, for anybody listening that's not familiar, Willie's was kind of the birthplace of Garth Brooks. You know, his first paid gig is there's a sign on the wall there behind the stage and, you know, there's videos of Cody Canada, pictures of Cody Canada, Jason Bowlen, you know, those Stillwater guys, uh, on that stage. And I just always wanted to be a part of it. And, um, Isaac was hosting the Isaac McClung, he was hosting the Willie's and great white buffalo open mics. And I would just go all the time. I just wanna be around songwriters and singers and create people and just learn from 'em and ask, pick their brains how to, how to book shows, how do I be a better writer? Like, what are some just things I can do. I just wanted to soak it all in. And, um, I learned a lot from Isaac, but it's kind of a sacred thing.
Speaker 3 00:10:22 The Willie's open mic, um, it's been passed down through a ton of people and it, it's kind of been like, you know, a treasured thing in Stillwater there at Willie's. And, you know, before me it was Isaac McClung and Ben McKenzie and Jeremy Ni, you know, countless others before that. They're just monsters, songwriters. And, you know, I take a lot of pride in keeping that tradition going. And so when I took over, um, Willie's up Mic Isaac asked me if I would do it, I was like, yeah, of course I'd love to. So I I really put a lot of effort into, you know, trying to make it a, a creative space where people could come and showcase themselves and get better and, you know, just kind of a hub for, um, local songwriters that wanted to figure out how to do it. And just, it was a fun space.
Speaker 3 00:11:05 You know, whenever I moved to Stillwater there was, you know, only a handful of people showing up on a Sunday night and we'd be singing to each other and it grew and it was so cool. There was 25, I think is the most people I ever had sign up on a Sunday night at Willie's, 25 people on a list for starting at nine o'clock. And so we had to start starting earlier sometimes. And I never wanted to kick anybody off the stage. I wanted everybody to play like what they felt like they should play. And it was cool, but it also, it got overwhelming at the end. You know, we were starting to pick up a lot of steam and, uh, I was gone a lot on the weekends and then I'd come back and I'd play my three residencies I had in Stillwater, you know, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and, you know, doing that on top of playing some three day runs, you know, that's, that's tough.
Speaker 3 00:11:51 And I had to make a decision that if I was really gonna try to push to the next level of what I wanted to do with my personal career, no. That was when I decided it was time to turn it over. And then I gave it, Avery sent it and, uh, Avery's still there in Stillwater right now, but it's a cool thing and it, like, it'll always be hold a special place in my heart. Um, it's, uh, some of my favorite memories from sorters, you know, Sunday nights at 1:00 AM just drunk singing songs that, you know, eight of us are gonna hear or something like that.
Speaker 2 00:12:22 <laugh>. So. And so, um, being in that area, uh, were your main influences for you and your band, um, were they more the Red Dirt guys or is it from everywhere? Like any genre, any area? Or is it more centered in the red dirt scene?
Speaker 3 00:12:47 I would say it's pretty all over the current, like the current members, it's pretty all over my personal writing and my personal favorites. Um, I grew up on a lot of Nineties's country in early two thousands country and that's kind of what I, what I always knew growing up. And like, I tell this story live all the time cuz we'll play the song on Bet, the mention, uh, and we don't cover many songs, but this is one that, you know, I love to do. Uh, when I was nine years old, me and my dad went to a Hastings in Duncan, Oklahoma mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And, you know, I don't remember much from when I was nine years old, but I remember this vividly. Um, we go in there and, you know, we're just, we're just kind of browsing around. I'm just being a kid, you know, I'm not paying attention to anything.
Speaker 3 00:13:29 Well, he buys this CD and he walks out and plays it in the truck and, you know, it's a, it's a cool dark colored CD with, um, an engine on the front and it just so happened to be Ragweeds Garage album. Yeah. And I remember hearing that and I was like, man, this is crazy. Like, what is this? The name Cross Canadian ragweed just to me as a nine year old, I'm like, what the hell? Like, <laugh> like, what is this? You know, I had no idea. No one, my dad didn't know, like he, you know, he, he didn't know a lot about the Red Dirt scene back then and, but he knew them and had that cd and, um, I remember the song Dimebag, that's the the first red dirt song I ever remember hearing. And like, I lost it. I stole it from him.
Speaker 3 00:14:12 And I lost that CD throughout, you know, my teenage years. And I never thought of it. Every now and then I hear that song, I'd hear Dimebag on the radio when they like just firing me up. And, uh, I'd always be like, man, I don't know where that CD is. And you know, back then, you know, all you had was really YouTube and, uh, iTunes I guess, but I mean, I don't know. So I ju it took me a while to get back into it, but, uh, then I got into Stony Roue whenever I was, you know, probably a junior in high school, uh, about that time. And really whenever I dove into the, the, the Red Derrick stuff and, you know, the Oklahoma songwriters is when I was a freshman in college, and that's about the time I was really taking an interest in writing and being a better writer.
Speaker 3 00:14:54 So all this kind of happened at the same time and I was like, man, like this whole music scene right here just shits on everything else. Like the writing is incredible compared to what I'm hearing on the radio. And so that's just what I naturally fell into. And, um, you know, it's been my main influence for sure. Um, those guys early on, ragweed, mcc, clear, boing Stony, just all those Oklahoma guys, that's just what I like. That's just, I'm just lucky that that's what I fell into first. Um, and I'm, I'm glad that's what it was. But as far as like the guys I'm playing with now, uh, somewhat similar, um, you know, more of like a, a punk thing on drums, probably, um, on bass, definitely some old country, and then on guitar, kinda like some metal. But, um, yeah, it's, it's kind of been a cool, um, process over the last few years of ironing out our, our sound and my sound personally.
Speaker 3 00:15:44 And, uh, we're in a place right now where I think we have a pretty unique sound. I think you could definitely hear, um, a mix of influences, specifically like my writing influences. Um, but I think you could also kind of get a refreshing sound and do, you did an awesome job with that article and the new song describing it. Like, that's exactly how I envision it whenever I'm, um, kinda writing these songs and putting 'em together. And, you know, I think I was really, really glad you put it the way you did. I thought that was cool.
Speaker 2 00:16:12 I appreciate it, man. That, that's nice to say. Um, but yeah, no, you're right. And I meant it like, it's, I think I put it was like, and we'll get to that song by the way, we're gonna talk about that a little bit. But, uh, like, it, it's like you're, and I've been listening to you now for a couple years and with every release, it's, it's progressed in a way that you're finding your own sound, but you're s you're changing it up with each release, but you're staying consistent with your own unique sound, which is I think is the key to it. And like, you see a lot of guys doing it. Some guys pull it off sometimes, sometimes they don't. But yours, especially the last one, the hard times hard living, like it's definitely my favorite that you put out so far. Like, it, it just sounded like, okay, this shit sounds like super fresh. It sounds, this sounds like a classic red dirt rock song. Like akin to like ragweed akin to those guys. Like this sounds like it would be like right in that playlist, you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 00:17:16 Heck yeah. That, that means a lot. You tell me that because that, that's, that's kind of what I envisioned, that's what I want. Um, oh, shoot. I think, uh, did I lose my sound?
Speaker 2 00:17:25 No, I got you.
Speaker 3 00:17:27 Okay, cool. Um, you know, that's kind of what I, what I envision, that's what I want, um, one out of it. And that's, I have a notification pop. I'll try canceling a tab over here to get my quality. Uh, but anyways, yeah, that's, uh, that's definitely my influences and I'm glad you can hear it. Um, you know, that's, I want to, I want to have that sound, and I think it's, uh, not to me personally, it, it speaks Oklahoma, you know, it's, it's oaky Red Dirt and oh yeah, that's, um, that's kind of what I'm leaning into and that's what I wanna stay true to, you know?
Speaker 2 00:18:02 Yeah, for sure, man. So, uh, I guess let's go back to when you were still kind of starting up. Um, what were some of the first, uh, uh, clubs, bars, venues that, um, come to your mind thinking like, like when you first started up that really helped you along when you were like, cutting your teeth and everything?
Speaker 3 00:18:21 Okay, yeah. Uh, so the ones that stick out to me in Oklahoma, um, you know, there's, there's a bunch that come to mind. I would say Grady's in Yukon. And, you know, we still play there. I think Grady's plays a huge part in, uh, the Oklahoma music scene and getting in new acts and giving bands a shot. And, uh, you know, we, we've got a really personal relationship with, uh, all the people there and we love playing there. And, uh, I'll continue to love playing there. It's an awesome place for live music. And if you've never seen a show at Grady's, I encourage you to go see one. But, um, you know, that's, that's, that's the main one. That's
Speaker 2 00:19:01 The, um, uh, the club owned by, um, Grady from, uh, cross Canadian Ragweed. Ragweed, right?
Speaker 3 00:19:10 Yeah. Yeah. Okay. It's super cool. And, uh, it's just a, it's a super cool environment and it's, it's built for live music and it's built for red dirt and just, uh, it just, you can smell the red dirt seeping out of the walls, but, uh, you know, and other ones like the Mercury Lounge in Tulsa, it's a, it's a good one to get into early, and we've been playing there for years and it's just a little dive bar, but they're avid about live music and, um, you know, some, some, uh, other ones that we don't play as much, but that are good. As, you know, Bubba's Brewhouse and Durant and, uh, lately Meal Street Tavern Ardmore has been really good for getting some up and coming bands in and giving 'em a place to play in southern Oklahoma. Um, and then, uh, we got in the tumbleweed earlier, thankfully, uh, you know, the Tumbleweed was huge and for us in Stillwater and, you know, oh, oh them a lot.
Speaker 3 00:19:57 But, um, yeah, I mean, I could go on and on about like Oklahoma venues. I think the first, um, I do have a cool story, I guess, uh, the first couple venues we got into in Texas that really kind of changed things for us. Uh, you know, we played, we played the stock cards, we do Fil Min Nasties, um, some that was about the only place that we could play, but you know, it's, there's a lot of, uh, cover bands that go in there and a lot of, you know, acoustic stuff. And we kind of wanted the, the listening rooms, you know, the, the place where people truly go to like, you know, put on a, a performance and, uh, you know, you can do that at Filthy, like, love that place to death. They've given us a ton of opportunity. But the first two places that stick out in my mind, that was game Changers.
Speaker 3 00:20:40 Um, the Blue Light in Lubbock was huge for us. We got it. We played the three times we're going back in September. Um, you know, and the Blue Light was just awesome for us to get into Lubbock. Uh, Lubbock is so similar to Stillwater that, you know, the people are, it just feels like home. You know, you're, we're six hours from Stillwater or whatever it is, and it feels like Stillwater, it feels like home. And it just reminds me a lot of, uh, like the places I wanted to be a part of. And so shout out the Blue Light. But, uh, honestly, the first place that reached out to me personally in Texas, cause it was hard for us to get into Texas, you know, it's Oklahoma, is, everybody knows everybody in, you know, you can put in one word and you can get abandoned in any of these places usually.
Speaker 3 00:21:24 Um, Texas is different. There's a, there's a lot of bands trying to play and get in there, and if, if you don't know the right people, it's hard to even get your foot in the door. Um, but that being said, Cody at the, at Blaine's Pub in San Angelo shot Cody, he, uh, he gave us a shot, wanted us to come down to San Angelo and play at Blaine's. And I had been hearing about Blaine's forever. Um, I knew it was a historic venue. I knew, you know, it kind of was one of those places that everybody on the circuit hit starting out. And, you know, I just, I heard a lot of good things about a lot of good stories from people playing there over the last few years, and I knew I wanted to get in there and he reached out to us. And, um, you know, that's, that's one of my pla favorite places to play for sure. We've played there twice now, and, uh, we're going back in July on the 28th to play the after party at Wild Bus Fest, and I am stoked to get back to San Angelo. Blaine's is awesome, but that's, you know, that's kind of a long story, but that's a few that really, in my mind, stick out to me that were, you know, played a large part in what we're doing.
Speaker 2 00:22:30 Awesome, man. So what about, um, when it comes to writing songs, uh, is it, what is that, it's kind of a cliche question, but what's that pro process to you like, in a way? Like, is it a group effort? Do you have some co-writes or is it mainly just you just like working it out?
Speaker 3 00:22:54 Um, so there's been a few songs, I think, I don't know, probably three or so, um, on the non-essential record that my old roommate, Zach Ray and I, uh, we co-wrote together and, uh, we lived together too, and he played guitar for me. And, uh, we wrote a few together. Um, you know, I've written songs with buddies, but a lot of the times it's just, just me and my own head. Um, that's just kind of, I operate a little bit better like that. I think, um, you know, it's, it's been kind of a, a hectic process, especially, you know, try once, once we're taking it a little bit more serious, and I'm really trying to, to dive into making this thing happen. I realize like I've got step up, my, my, uh, my writing process, I guess, and I had to be more consistent with it, and I had to figure out what works and what doesn't.
Speaker 3 00:23:43 And it's always been just a spontaneous, like in the moment, like, this song comes to me and I'll write it, and then I'll go, you know, I might go months without finishing a song, and it's frustrating. But as of late, um, I've moved into a house down here with my drummer in Long Grove, and, uh, you know, it's just like I create a space, like you can kind of see behind me. We've got drums set up, we've got a little studio set up in here, and, uh, it's just us two live here. So we do a lot of working up our set list, a lot of writing, a lot of spitting ideas, and I've got a pretty good routine now that's working for me. Um, I'm do, I'm doing a lot of my writing in the morning, um, first thing in the morning. Like, I'll get up, you know, do some, uh, like some meditation, just kind of, you know, chilling in the morning and I'll just like sit on ideas and just be still and think on it and just let, let ideas kind of come and go.
Speaker 3 00:24:32 And if something sticks out, you know, I'll write it down. Um, I'll get on my computer, uh, you know, just write it on pen and paper, just, I feel like it's too slow sometimes. Like, it just, it's frustrating. So I'll have to type, and that's a new thing that I picked up on that's helped me a lot. But I'll, um, I'll write these ideas down and I'll just kinda write short stories on different ideas. And once like the stories kind of start funneling down, um, I'll be able to start putting some lines together, then rhyming 'em. And like lately that's been what I've finished most songs, um, on. And like, there's always like the, in the moment in my notes on my phone, or like if there's a pen and paper around, that's all I have. Like, I might have some ideas and write a verse or chorus, but I'd say 80% of, uh, what I've been writing lately, it's been kind of structured in the morning, just consistent. This is my riding time, no distractions type thing.
Speaker 2 00:25:25 Okay. Right on. Uh, do you, have you ever been to Nashville?
Speaker 3 00:25:31 I have never been to Nashville. I've stopped in Memphis, ate some barbecue in there. I've never been to Nashville. Definitely haven't played in Nashville, but, uh, I can't say too much right now, I don't think. Um, but I will say we're playing in Nashville end of the summer, late, early fall, I believe. Um, so we are gonna be there soon.
Speaker 2 00:25:53 Also. You're potentially working your way over east, are you?
Speaker 3 00:25:58 Yeah, we're definitely gonna be heading east, um, sooner than later. I think we're going gonna like Minnesota, Nebraska, um, in September we're actually going to Nebraska, July 13th with Josh Malloy. Um, so we we're getting outta state and we're going other ways other than South <laugh>, but, uh, we will be going east and I think we'll be going east, uh, a good amount.
Speaker 2 00:26:22 Hell yeah, man. Um, so would you say that there's, like, there's a both in the red dirt scene and the Texas country music scene, which I don't even put country half the time after it, because what I'm getting at is that in, in the greatest way possible, by the way, I just mean like it's progressing into more of an alternative sound where pretty much anything goes, which personally I love. Um, is that, and you kind of already, you're diving into that more grittier, rawr kind of sound. Uh, is that something that you wanna explore? Like, I don't wanna say permanently, but like in the long, like a long run kind of thing you want to do? Or are you just kind of experimenting with it now, or how's that all working out?
Speaker 3 00:27:09 Yeah, you know, it's more so, um, the sound is kind of coming out like, again, back to it's reminiscent of like major influences that, you know, I listen to constantly, like some ragweed and Whiskey Meyer stuff. Like that's, I think that's coming out a lot in like, the style that we're doing. Um, and also, you know, I, I don't wanna get too heavy because, you know, I did grow up on country music and that's, you know, all my favorite songwriters are pretty much country musicians. I mean, that might be a stretch, but, you know, I, I still want to keep like the, that theme and like that genuineness to my writing and like, those are things I wanna be able to talk about. And it not just totally contradict the music going on. So I think there's like a, a fine line that we're gonna walk, uh, tying it all together. But I think, I think we'll keep going the direction we're going. Like, like I said, we're getting closer. Um, at least in my mind, we're getting closer to what I can envision, and we are still playing some of the older stuff that's a little more way country, but I don't know, I mean, even those songs live, we've kind of beeped up and made heavier, but yeah, you know, I I think you can still listen to it as long as people can two step to it. Um, I think we'll be all right,
Speaker 2 00:28:27 <laugh>. That's a good way to put it. Um, so, uh, your first album, uh, non-Essential, uh, which came out in, uh, 2021? Uh, first off, I think that's the, that is a great album name, uh, <laugh> not, it just kind, it's, it sounds cool, but also the context behind it is great cuz it's the tail end of Covid the non-essential, you know, but, uh, and hopefully down the, throughout the years, I hope people will still get that, you know, cuz it makes it even more unique, but, well, you know, COVID is kind of a big deal. I feel like it might make the history books, you know, but, um,
Speaker 3 00:29:05 It might <laugh>. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:29:07 So, uh, when that came out, how, what'd you feel about the, um, the, I guess reaction or the reception, I guess is a better word, from, uh, your fans and everything? Did that perform like you wanted it to?
Speaker 3 00:29:21 Um, it did to an extent. Like, I knew we had to finish it. I knew we needed to get it out. Um, I knew that if we didn't put out a significant amount of music, uh, you know, you just won't be taken seriously. And when you're starting out, it's in, like nowadays it's a little different. Uh, anybody can blow up overnight now with, with the way social media is. But like, when we dropped that album, I mean, TikTok was a thing, but it wasn't a major avenue yet. Um, there was only a few people I think that are tapped into it and it really wasn't occurring, it hadn't occurred to me at all to even try, you know, promote music on there. And so like, we dropped it as an album. I knew we needed it out, it felt great to get it out. I definitely had really high expectations for it. Um, and it was disappointing to see it kind of get lost in the algorithms, but it did teach me some valuable lessons. Um, it taught me that, you know, unless you have a following, a dedicated following that's gonna look forward to hearing every song you put out already, um, you know, an album's gonna be not essential <laugh>,
Speaker 3 00:30:27 But uh, you know, you can, you can look at the stats on it and from front to back, all 11 songs, they kind of taper off like, you know, pretty solid angle and you can go to TikTok now and what are all the videos doing? They're getting shorter and shorter. You know, he, even people's attention spans on the short video, you know, it, it does like that. So, I mean, you can only hold people's attention for so long. Um, so that's kind of really influenced, uh, how I'm doing things now. That's why we're doing singles the way we are is, you know, we'll put all of our effort into getting this one song in front of people's faces and instead of flooding their, their brain, overwhelming 'em, you know, like just give 'em the one thing. And I think that's gonna be key moving forward, especially, you know, we don't have a huge falling. So I think that's still really key for us. Um, I think we're, we're definitely gonna focus one song at a time and, and just roll that way until, you know, we can stand on its own as an album. But you know, there, there's an album coming, but I know we're just gonna roll it out piece by piece or now.
Speaker 2 00:31:33 Right. Yeah. And that makes sense. And like we were talking about earlier, the attention span. Just keep getting shorter. I'm guilty of it too. I, I love listening to albums in full. That's, you know, that's how we've grown up cuz the, the constant singles, that's more of a new thing that we have to adjust to, but that's un unfortunately, unfortunately. I guess that's the way it goes. So, um, but yeah. Let's, uh, let's jump forward to, uh, hard times, hard living, which, which just came out. Um, so first of off, who was all the personnel on this? I don't know if you, does your, uh, live band also play in the studio with you?
Speaker 3 00:32:12 Yeah, they have recently. Um, and they have in the past. It just kind of depends, um, you know, who can make it, uh, during the week, you know, everybody still has day jobs and lives going on and like, I'll, I'll book the studio and like, we'll get them what we can when we can. But, um, so we recorded it with Dwight Hamlin at Class Center Quarters in Oklahoma City. Shout out the white lighters. That's, uh, Dwight's man, and they're awesome. Uh, great. But Dwight is a hell of a producer and I feel like every time we go in, you know, like he knows us well, he knows me really well, and we go in and like, he knows what we want and like he knows the sound we're going for and, you know, so I, I know what to expect already. He knows what to expect.
Speaker 3 00:32:56 And it's like every time we go in and learn something, whether it be vocally, musically, just, you know, it's just, uh, to me I look at it as a learning experience and I like to look back and see vocally what I'm doing different now as opposed to prior songs. And, you know, um, we'll go in and, uh, Jordan, my drummer, he, he's tracking all the drums, Knox moves out and, uh, does an awesome job. I think Marty, our new guitar player, uh, it's been seven months, but he, uh, he's done the guitars on the last couple songs, the solos. And, you know, him and Dwight, they'll kind of sit and write 'em out together, coach 'em through it. And, uh, it's really cool to see that process. And Tanner, my bass player come in, knock out the bass and, you know, we'll just bounce ideas around and um, you know, Dwight will hop on the keys or the organ, whatever it needs.
Speaker 3 00:33:48 And, you know, sometimes we'll throw some, you know, cowbell on tracks or something, throw some phaser and distortion on it or just like, you know, just do weird stuff to see what works. And, uh, there's a lot of cool stuff you can throw under songs, um, that you really, you know, can't hear in context. It just kind of adds, adds an element to it. And I'm just, uh, I'm, I'm really pleased with, uh, like our process and how things come together for us in the studio. And um, like I said, it's, it's definitely evolving into like our own sound and, um, it's becoming more consistent yet, you know, pushing the boundaries at the same time.
Speaker 2 00:34:26 So, uh, how'd that come to be? Uh, lyrically like what, what, what was the story behind that one?
Speaker 3 00:34:35 So it's kind of encompassed, um, in like a broader theme of an album. I would say. If you look at all my songs on the Enseal record, a lot of 'em are like hateful heartbreak songs. Not all of them, but that was kind of just, you know, most of the songs I was writing, uh, were like that style. And I would say like, it's, it's kind of been like a ch a different chapter of writing the last year or so. And it's definitely a more towards, um, like a growth type of, uh, mindset. In most of my writing I'm still writing about a ton of different topics and different things, but I would say most of the songs I'm finishing right now are kind of towards the growth and, you know, sticking out the hard times and uh, uh, just kind of like leaning into that.
Speaker 3 00:35:25 And it feels good to write those kind of songs. And like, I still wanna give people something that they can relate to, um, you know, something genuine and something like people, you know, can take my word for things and, you know, know that I'm speaking from an experience or from, uh, something that they truly believe, you know. And so hard times hard living. It's uh, not as wordy as most of my songs, but I've been having to make myself be less wordy. Cause I'm, I'm terrible about writing essays and song format and, you know, that doesn't work, especially with the attention span, <laugh> pandemic that's going on. But, uh, so it's kind of a challenge just to condense, uh, songs down, but it makes you be pickier about what you allow to put on paper. I think, at least for me. And, you know, hard times hard living.
Speaker 3 00:36:14 It's pretty self-explanatory really. It's, I mean it's, it's kind of a song just about like going through the shit, going through the hard stuff and you know, once you hit rock bottom you don't have an option but to go up. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you just stay at rock bottom or you figure out a way out and, you know, that's a long way to fall, but it's also a long way to rise. And um, you know, a lot of people get stuck in their environment and the negativity around them, they get stuck in their own mindsets and they get addicted to their own negativity and their own vices. And I think it's kind of the song about looking past that and understanding that those things don't happen to you, they happen for you. Um, you know, it's just kind of, it's, it's kind of a rugged song, you know, there's a line in there they don't make 'em quite like they used to in the last of my kind.
Speaker 3 00:37:05 Like obviously I'm not the last of my kind, like that's just, you know, but, uh, I like was, I was trying to set an example of just like, you know, sticking your nose out and just, you know, just grinding it out and you know, not getting, uh, caught up in the suffering, you know, just pushing through it and you know, looking back and seeing how it shaped you at the end of it all. And that's just, it's kind of a song that I feel like anybody going through something difficult or that's already gone through something difficult and came out the other side can probably relate to.
Speaker 2 00:37:40 Yeah. And um, I, when, uh, my first listen, uh, what stuck out to me, um, aside from the uh, lyrics was the instrumentals were just batshit dude. Like, they were like, there was like that, I remember that solo towards the end was like, what is this? Like, like it was great and it was like, I didn't expect that. Like it was, it was really good. That's, and that's why I said like, this is like a, this is like a heavy song, kind of like it's, it is, it was really cool to hear from you for sure.
Speaker 3 00:38:13 Heck yeah man. Um, yeah, so that guitar riff, um, you know, kind of the, the hooky riff throughout the song, that was Marty, he came up with it and he sent it to me. I, I, I sent him a few records to listen to, um, just a lot of my influences cuz he was a, you know, he's a, he wasn't a big red dirt guy and uh, you know, we've just been um, kind of like meshing our, our um, our sounds and our influences and I sent him a few records to listen to a checkout, um, over a span of time. And I was like, just come up with some like, riffs that are like this style, like, just listen to these and see what hits you and send 'em to me and then, you know, I'll see what I can do with it. Cause I'm not a crazy guitar player, but, you know, see if you can come up with something that fits this, this feel and let's see what happens.
Speaker 3 00:39:00 And then I wrote that song I think in, I don't know, 20 minutes one morning at like 11:00 AM he sent it to me. I was like, dude, this is awesome. I love that riff. Um, I gotta finish his song. And then we took it in the studio like two weeks later, a week later maybe hadn't even played it, just worked it out in the studio. Um, but yeah, the, the solo on there, um, Marty played the first half, Dwight played the second half. And so you can kind of hear like halfway through that, the first long instrumental, you kind of hear the, the style change and that's what that is. And I think there's some cool elements to, um, to doing something like that. You know, it kind of pushes your guys to, to think outside the box and think outside of their own, their own habits and go to risks. And, um, it, it's, it's cool for learning for everybody. I mean, I think it just elevates the song instead of just, um, having a set of ideas that you wanna bring to the table, you know, explore some outside options and uh, I think it adds up and contributes.
Speaker 2 00:39:59 Yeah, for sure. Um, so, uh, coming up, and forgive me if I get the name wrong, I'm pretty sure it's called American Honey, right?
Speaker 3 00:40:09 Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 00:40:10 Yeah. And, and I don't know, are we good to talk about this?
Speaker 3 00:40:15 Yeah, we talk about it. Uh, I'm not gonna put any dates out or anything. I will say we just finished one called American Honey, but, uh, oh
Speaker 2 00:40:21 Shit, well my bad
Speaker 3 00:40:22 I'm, no, I'd already, I'd already put it on a TikTok and Instagram and everything, but, uh, and I'd posted some clips from the studio. We've, we're sitting on a couple right now and uh, we've got a plan to, uh, roll 'em out incrementally and I'm pretty stoked about the next two for sure, working on getting the third one done and, um, yeah, I think, uh, it's definitely right at the alley of the same stuff we're doing. You can definitely hear like the, it getting heavier. You could definitely feel like the heavier elements. I will say that the American honey, um, it's not necessarily fitting with the theme of kind of like the, the album, the growth stuff, but I think it adds a different factor to it. It adds kind of a, um, like a fun free, um, element that fits in nicely with the overall structure of the album.
Speaker 2 00:41:18 Okay, cool. Um, so what are some, uh, and we'll close it up here in a, in a couple minutes. What's the, uh, are there any, um, short-term and long-term goals for you and the guys who are playing with you that you could, that kind of come to mind, uh, as you stand right now that you really want to hit hard? Uh, whether it be the end of this year or couple years or anything?
Speaker 3 00:41:43 Yeah, you know, um, I'm kind of careful about setting too specific of a goal just because like I don't want to fixate on only getting there. Like I, I don't want to, you know, tape my foot off the gas whenever we're getting close. And I think that's something people do subconsciously whenever they set goals. So we're kind of careful about being too specific on numbers or places or, you know, timeframe or anything like that. Just kinda let things happen as they happen. Get better every day, do something creative every day, you know, um, like, you know, deep down what you need to be doing to, to get better at whatever you're passionate about. And you know, we, we all take that same, um, approach towards it. But, you know, with that being said, we do have some goals. Um, we just did, you know, we did Kane's Ballroom back in April in for Wade Bowen and that was a huge bucket list show for me. I mean that was crazy. I'm still euphoric from the response and the crowd and this, the whole, the whole event. Um, you know, we, we wanna play aff, right? We wanna play Billy Bobs obviously, like just stuff like that, which, you know, everybody wants to, so, you know, there's, everybody wants to do it. So obviously we do too. Um, we do want to play more, uh, we just got on with um, wild River talent and um, so we're, we're about to get busy. We got a lot of cool stuff coming up. Tell me about,
Speaker 2 00:43:08 We're getting the, tell us that way. I know you were talking to me about that over text, if you want to kind of explain what that's all about cuz I'm still a little bit confused over what that is.
Speaker 3 00:43:18 Okay, yeah. Um, I won't say a whole lot just that, uh, you know, we, we've been independent for, um, most of this time. Um, you know, I've done a lot of booking, most of my booking for years and, uh, that's been, you know, a huge learning curve going from just cold calling venues to sending emails and sending emails under an alias sometimes, you know, just to see if you can elicit a response. And that's, I think it takes away and not necessarily takes away. I mean, if you have a lot to do during the day, like if you're fully invested in your craft, you don't have a lot of time, you know, you have something to do constantly. And if you're spending, you know, three hours a day emailing, researching venues, that's a lot of time that you could be writing. And a lot of time you could be, you know, working on the bus mechanicing, like just doing things that are necessary, um, working on your set, practicing, I mean there's just booking once you really dive into booking, especially if you're doing it yourself.
Speaker 3 00:44:19 Um, it does take away a lot and um, you know, now we've got some melt booking and um, you know, we're, we're planning some runs going outta state. Like I said, we're going up north for a couple weeks and we're going east and it's already just, uh, since we've made this final, it's already opening up a lot of time for me to kind of invest in, in more writing and, you know, the content stuff, the social media stuff. And that's something I've really been lacking on. But, um, yeah, that's, uh, so that's gonna be cool. That's, that's kind of a big change lately. Um, if anybody's interested in booking, it's uh,
[email protected] but uh, you can find that, that address on my website and on with a phone number to, uh, reach out on. But yeah, it's uh, things are getting crazy and we're just, uh, we're getting, getting things situated in order to hit the road and stay on the road. Just got a generator for the bus. We don't have an AC on it, so trying to find a portable, portable AC to run where we can sleep at night and, you know, not lose 20 pounds a weekend. Didn't
Speaker 2 00:45:25 You buy, didn't you like you guys buy like a bus and just gutted it or something?
Speaker 3 00:45:31 Yeah, I bought a, it's a 2003 Ford, a seven three diesel, well passenger shuttle bus. And my daily driver's, the 96 Ford was seven three and my brother's a seven three guru so, you know, had some help, you know, working on this thing and had low miles and I knew, uh, I knew we could gut it and just throw some bunks and futons in it and we could be good as long as, you know, as long as we can keep it maintained. And I had hell with it for the first month or two. Had to do a lot of mechanic and work, a lot of learning how to be a mechanic on the fly and you know, a lot of help from my, my brother and my dad. But you know, we finally got it where it's pretty reliable now and um, just kind of rolling around that thing.
Speaker 3 00:46:13 And it wasn't bad in the winter when it was still cold, you know, you can just bundle up and be, be all right. But this heat we did 14 or 1300 miles a couple weeks ago, four days in that thing, slept in it and oh my gosh, <laugh>, it's, it was rough in the heat. Oh man, that I went and bought a generator that week and trying to find a little AC or something that we can throw in there and take cuz it's not bad driving, but once you get parked, the thing is like another
Speaker 2 00:46:40 I bet <laugh>. But,
Speaker 3 00:46:42 Um, you know, it's fun though. I mean that, that's gonna be the stories we're telling in 10 years. Yeah,
Speaker 2 00:46:47 I mean you gotta rough it at first man, but, um,
Speaker 3 00:46:51 Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 00:46:51 But yeah, I'm excited for you. Uh, I know, I know some people who listen to you too. We're all, we're all pumped for you guys. It's, it's really cool to see you, your music finally present itself in a way to like, you hear like, okay, this is Trenton's song. Like this is, this is his sound, this is his, this is hi his art in a way. You know what I mean? So, uh, is if there's any plugs, any socials or announcements shows music, any anything you want to get out there, uh, go ahead.
Speaker 3 00:47:22 Yeah, uh, I mean obviously everybody that's listening to this go get our new single hard times hard living, save it, share it, playlist it, you know, help us out. You know, we don't have a huge following so every little like helps that out in the algorithm and you know, it helps us out and, you know, um, social media, Instagram's, Trenton Fletcher Music, uh, Twitter's Trent Fletcher. Facebook is Trenton Fletcher music website is trenton fletcher.com. Um, when, when is this, when are you hearing this podcast?
Speaker 2 00:47:51 Honestly, man, I'm not real sure. It might be a while. Okay. Uh, we have two in the pipeline before you, so
Speaker 3 00:47:58 There'll be a little bit. Yeah. So, um, trying to think. Um, I know July 13th we're gonna be in Omaha, Nebraska with Josh Malloy, July 14th, we'll be down in Atoka, Oklahoma, July 15th. We're with Chris Knight in Bridgeport, Texas. Um, July 28th we're doing the Wild Westfest after party in San Angelo at Blaine's Pub. And then July 29th we are doing the River Bottom Bash in Davis, Oklahoma with Noah Bowman. So that's just kind of some shows coming up in July for wherever you drop this if it's before then, but yeah, I mean, July's getting busy and we're looking, we're getting on the road in August.
Speaker 2 00:48:40 Oh yeah man. And dude, whene, whenever you put something out, just hit me up. We'll get, we'll do this all over again man. It's a pleasure talking to you finally after all this time
Speaker 3 00:48:50 <laugh>. Yeah man, I know it's, uh, I appreciate you having me on man. It means a lot to me. And again man, thanks for all the write-ups bro. You, uh, you help us out big time with that and uh, it's cool to, cool to see you enjoying them.
Speaker 2 00:49:02 Yeah man. Sure. Um, so stick around after I sign off here, make sure all this is uploaded and shit. So, um, but yeah, in the meantime everyone go look up Stream, buy shit from Trenton Fletcher cuz his music's dope. So everyone do that and, uh, thanks for listening. I'm Sam, this is Trenton and we're signing off. See ya.
