 Nashville fixture Amelia White is gearing to release her seventh album, Rhythm of the Rain on January 25th. The singer-songwriter, who helped redefine the core sound of Americana, returns with twelve short stories and reflections written largely during a tour of the UK in 2016. Ahead of its release, White kindly took the time to speak about the album, routine as the enemy of creativity, a thoughtful gift from a fan, and much more. What’s the story behind your album’s title? “Rhythm of the Rain” was written while I was on tour in UK the summer of 2015. I had some downtime, and was tuning into the BBC news to follow the tensions that were building in our country. It was disturbing to me, and I wrote the song trying to soothe myself from my feelings of alarm, and homesickness. I stayed in a small attic room with a skylight window, and often on sleepless nights the tapping of the rain on the window would put me out. When/where do you do your best writing? I often feel like I do my best writing on the road, strangely enough. For me, routine is the enemy of creativity, and freedom from laundry, chores, and bills make my muse sing. The close connection that comes with an audience every night on a tour puts me in tune with my gift, and I become closer attuned to how to get my ideas across. What’s the best advice you have ever gotten from another musician? When I first moved to Nashville, Angelo ( who did a heavy amount of co-writing with early Kings Of Leon ) told me to throw out the ideas of who and what I was as an artist and just do and try everything for a year here in Nashville. My talented pal Jon Byrd also gave me a memorable tidbit on performing in front of talkers by simply saying, “if you let them get to you, they have won.”  Courtesy of the Artist What’s your favorite food on the road?
I am a really healthy eater, so it can be tough! Nuts, fruits and carrots, popcorn and more nuts .. haha I'm a squirrel. When in a city I try to make time for a good Thai meal. In a drowsy driving situation, I've been known to kill an entire package of Twizzlers, and when the shear boredom sets in Peanut M and M’s are not ruled out. What has been your biggest success? I like to come off stage at the end of many of my shows and sing a magical song called “Lucky” it’s a song that popped out after 9/11 when everything felt so strange and emotionally difficult in this country, and I felt like the tragedy brought us all together. So a successful moment for me is when I can get the whole audience singing along full throttle to the chorus, as I pretend to be a mariachi singer strolling around, and I can usually get a few tears happening, and lots of hugs after. It’s those moments that inspire me most. Is there a professional “bucket list” item you would love to check off? It is my biggest dream to have a music director, or producer use my songs to score and punctuate a film, in a way similar to how “Good Will Hunting” became a vehicle for the late great Elliot Smith. I’ve had some amazing artists cover my songs and record co-writes, but it’s a desire of mine to have that happen with someone who is selling enough albums so that I can not have to scramble so hard to make a living. Do you have a favorite gift from a fan? I was on a fruitless feeling East Coast tour with lots of gaps a few years back. I often stay with a very awesome fan/friend who puts me and my side people up in Maryland. That in itself can wrench my heart open for life:) but on one of our too many nights off he surprised both of us with tickets to see David Lindley at the intimate “Jammin Java” in VA. He took us to sushi, drove us to the venue, bought our drinks and drove us home. I’ll never ever forget what a huge difference that made on that particularly trying week of my life. I hope you choose this question, so that he really gets what that meant to us! Is there a recent release you cannot stop listening to? I have become a bit of a cheerleader for my East Nashville pal Kevin Gordon these days, but it’s an honest position for me. I have always been inspired by his consistent output and schedule. More than that though his lack of cliche, musically and lyrically, and the way his songs are put together and his performances define artistic greatness to me. “Tilt and Shine” his latest album is something I have had cranked up on relentless repeat in the last few months. Website/Facebook/IG
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