 "I try to make sure my personality comes through in every single song I write." - Randall King Singer-songwriter Randall King brings his distinctive neo-traditional country style to the forefront with his upcoming self-titled full-length, due April 27th. The self-produced thirteen-track project is a rich outing of smartly crafted tunes which balance tug at your heart-string ballads [“Reason To Quit”] with rowdy honky-tonk numbers [“Dent In It”] made for the dance floor. Ahead of the release, King graciously took the time to speak about his roots, reflect on the personal nature of the album, and more. You’ve been playing music for a while now, having established yourself on the Texas charts with your previous EP, Another Bullet. The new self-titled album is due April 27th, but before we dive into the record, as the son of a hay hauler, how did you find your path to music? Since I was a kid, I was always singing and one day my dad told my mom that since I was never going to never shut my mouth, they might as well get me a guitar (laughing). So, in first grade, my daddy got me my first guitar and I’ve been playing and singing ever since. I led worship in middle and high school and when I got to Texas Tech in Lubbock, which has such a tremendous musical history, I started seeing guys like Wade Bowen, William Clark Green, and Josh Abbott explode on the scene. I’d go to this dance hall, which was the only place you could get in if you weren’t 21 unless you had a fake ID - which I did not (laughing) - and hit the dance floor. And I’d listen to the Red Dirt Rebel where I’d hear Josh’s “She’s Like Texas” and Will’s “Wishing Well,” two songs that were big reasons why I wanted to be a part of music. Eventually, I switched to Southwest, got a Sound Tech Degree, put together a band, and released my self-produced EP. That connected me with my booking and management company and here I am with this new record, which I self-produced in Nashville, due in a few weeks.  At its core, the new album centers around well-written songs replete with humor and heart, King’s smooth vocals, and a sound reminiscent of 80’s and 90’s country, which is not surprising as King cites Alan Jackson, George Strait, Keith Whitley, and John Anderson as strong influences.
There are thirteen songs on the record, and you co-wrote twelve of them with a variety of co-writers. Was that intentional? I had a bunch of songs I was sitting on and wanted to pick through for the record, but I also went to Nashville to co-write and that was a turning point for me. I had the chance to write with Mark Nesler, Tony Lang, and Brandon Kinney and I not only learned a lot, but I really embraced co-writing. There are a lot of people who don’t like writing with new people, but it’s probably one of my favorite things because you get to hear someone else’s point of view and see where they’re at with a song, which is exciting. That’s a refreshing perspective. So, in the end, what bonded these songs, some of which seem incredibly personal, together for you? I wanted to pick the songs that not only had the best writing, but the ones that also showed my character and personality, which I try to make sure comes through in every single song I write. For example, there’s a lot of humor on the record, which I get from my daddy, and there are other songs that are really personal, like “Freightline” which is about my dad and “When He Knows Me” which is about my grandfather. These songs are all tied together because they reflect who I am as a person, which is the reason the record is self-titled. You mentioned “When He Knows Me”, which is a particularly emotional song. Can you share the story behind that one? My Paw-Paw was one of the four generations of hay-haulers and for over 20 years, he had a slow progression of Alzheimer's. In the late 90’s, they were able to put him on meds, which slowed it down quite a bit, but over the last four years, he got to the point where sometimes he would recognize you, sometimes he wouldn’t, and other times he would look at you and cry. So when we came out with our trucker hats, which have my name on them, I made sure to get him one because I wanted him to be able to look in the mirror and see my name so he could remember me. I remember the very last day I saw him was Father’s Day of last year. It was him, my grandmother, and my daddy and when we left the nursing home I went to Nashville and 2-3 weeks later, I wrote that song with Antony Smith and Carson Chamberlain. He passed away some months ago and this song truly means the world to me. It’s a beautiful song and I can only imagine how meaningful it is to you. The album is bookended by the driving “Freightline” and the poignant “Reason To Quit.” Was there any significance behind ordering the album that way? Aside from my momma, my daddy is the person who always bent over backward for me. As a trucker, he was only home two days a week, but he made those two days count and that made a huge impact on me. I wanted to honor my father by kicking off the whole record with “Freightline.” “Reason to Quit” is a beautiful, intimate Bluegrass song that I wrote with the phenomenal Bobby Terry. We didn’t really write that song with anything specific in mind, and it almost didn’t make the record, but my grandmother heard it and asked me to play it at Paw-Paw’s funeral....after that it became important to me and I knew it belonged on the record. Anchoring the album with songs about your family is incredibly special, but it’s also another way you allow the listener to see your character, as you spoke of earlier. The single currently at radio is “Tuggin’ On My Heartstrings” which is a really jaunty, fun track. We chose that one as the first single because it really catches people’s ears and has that mix of humor and seriousness that can be found throughout the record. It's just a fun song, a single man's ode, that really lets people see my personality. Finally, as you're busy touring and preparing for the album’s release, when you do get a day off, which I imagine is few and far between, how do you like enjoy spending it? Yeah, I don’t get those very often. I love fishing, and my favorite thing to do is go to Lake Texoma and fish. We jugline which is redneck as hell (laughing). We take a pontoon out and tie a weight to a line, let it drop to the bottom of the lake then tie a big empty milk jug, attach a hook and some bait, and check the line three times a day. We catch a good amount of fish that way, I think the biggest one was a 53-pound catfish. It’s not quite dropping a line in the water, but you get to drink a lot of beer in between checking the jugs (laughing). Website/Facebook/Twitter/Insta/Purchase
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