 Chance McKinney was working as a teacher in Seattle when he entered (at the last minute) CMT's Music City Madness competition for unsigned artists. He ended up winning with his song, "Be Real" and has since toured with Blake Shelton, Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, and more. Now, after spending the last two years in the studio, he is about to release new music. In advance of his upcoming music, McKinney answered his Essential 8 and spoke about the album, I, songwriting, who he'd like to collaborate with, and more. Is there a story behind your album’s title? “I” (Roman Numeral 1 and “I” as in a self-titled album that cuts right to the chase). The method behind the madness will unfold as the projects begin to roll out. Let’s just say for now that I have a background in mathematics (hence the Roman Numeral “I”) and this will be the first nationally promoted album I’ve ever put out, thus explaining the “I” as a self-titled EP. When/where do you do your best writing? I do my best writing when I’m half-asleep or sick. It’s crazy, but there’s times when your subconscious takes over and your creative can shine through. I’m fairly rational most of the time, but it’s when my guard is down that the best of what I’ve written makes its way to the surface. "BE REAL," for example, was written in the back of a van on the way back from a track meet in California. I was exhausted, but here’s the lyric and the melody running repeatedly in my mind as I’m dozing off... so I bust out the phone, record it on voice memos and then pass out. Who knew it’d win the CMT Music City Madness thing? "DOWN TO GET UP" was written on a plane on the way back from shows. I was struggling from lack of sleep and starting to get sick. But, once again, I wasn’t all there upstairs, and up came D2GU. So,there’s no real “place” where writing happens consistently for me, but the time (or condition I’m in) plays a huge roll in how creative I get. Why did you choose to anchor the album with the songs you did? #Industrialized Country is pretty self-explanatory. I chose real songs, for real people, who really take pride in what they listen to. We chose these not only for the sound we’re defining, but also because they’re exactly me... so they’re easy for me to be genuine with. Whether I’m choosing my writing or outside pitches, the song has to hit me in a way that makes it deliverable. If I ain’t down with what I’m singin’ then folks are gonna notice. I’d say 95% of what I sing... I’m pretty damn excited to be presenting at concerts. What’s the best advice to give to a musician just starting out?
Everyone's journey is completely different. Some are signed to labels..Their path is different. Some build huge social network followings...Their path is different. Some tour and build regional followings...Their path is different. Some win national CMT competitions and fight several hardships until one day the stars align...those are truly crazy ones who have the strangest of paths. My route was anything but a straight line. Do you have any touring tips? Yes, I have the best tip of all. LOVE YOUR BAND. If you can’t stand the guys you tour with...don’t. There are soooooo many amazing musicians out there that it ain’t worth trading time away from family, friends and life IF you don’t really enjoy the guys you’re hanging with. I really do value my band. We are all sooooooo different, but I look forward to their opinions... their stories... and especially what they create on stage. They’re amazing musicians, but more than that, they’re genuinely fun guys that laugh first at most of the curveballs constant touring can throw your way (and will). What has been your biggest success? Athletically, I would say a couple National Championships, All-American honors or the relationships I built with my biggest competitors along the way. Musically, I’d say the CMT win a few years back. That one moment in time opened me up to a National audience and opened hundreds of concert opportunities each year since. Scholastically, I’d say my degree in Mathematics panned out pretty well. Who’d have guessed it’d play such a huge roll in music? Life-ically (yeah, I know... it ain’t a word)) I’d have to say there are too many to count. When you’ve got little kids, getting them potty trained ranks right up there though right?! Who would you love to collaborate with? Will Smith, Jake Owen or Karen Fairchild (of Little Big Town). Will Smith would be a kick in the pants to write with... we probably wouldn’t get anything done. Jake Owen would be terrible tour mate... only because we’d never get off the golf course. And Karen Fairchild, hasn’t everyone collaborated with her? Luke, Dustin, more... and she just makes everything sound better don’t you agree? Which song of yours gets the best crowd response? It really depends on the type of crowd we’re playing to. Outdoor concert goers love "BE REAL." Nightclubs and casinos tend to lean towards BOYS’LL BE BOYS. And then there’s the “end of the night” crowd that always seems to request WHY. For some reason, it doesn’t matter where we go someone will always yell out DIRTY ROTTEN PIRATE in the middle of the set. Then you know you’ve got a special kind of crowd. Ha! We’re starting to play some of the stuff off the EP that’s due out in May 2018 in our acoustic set... I’ll let you know what they like best when I start to see a difference. Right now, they’re diggin’ it all... so we must be heading in the right direction. Website/Facebook/Twitter/Purchase
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