We caught up with Jordan Davis after the release of his new self-titled EP to talk about the project, how his songwriting has changed since becoming a father and more.
Jordan Davis’ new self-titled EP is a masterful example of stellar songwriting. Here, we interview Jordan about the project, how being a father has affected his songwriting and what the next project is shaping up to look like.
Hi, how are you doing?
Great thanks, how are you doing?
Not too bad thanks, just getting through quarantine. How have the past few months been for you, I mean the release of the EP must have felt like a really different release process?
It was. I really didn’t think… coming out with new music I was just excited and I really didn’t think much past being excited to give my fans something new, so I really didn’t expect any difference. It wasn’t until that first day where I guess you’re used to being on the road, you’re not used to being at your house when you’re putting new music out so it was. It was kind of weird to wake up that day and just be like ‘oh it’s out.’ It was definitely pretty odd, but still the main thing was just getting new stuff out and I was excited about that.
This EP is honestly one of my favourite projects of this year, just because the depths that you went with this music as a songwriter, felt a level deeper. ‘Church in a Chevy’ is one of the standout tracks of this year, just in terms of the frankness and the way that you talk about faith. It’s all just much deeper than you’ve gone before, was that a conscious decision?
Yeah, I definitely think that it was. I’m very proud of my faith and it was definitely a conscious decision to go with that and to lean into that. I think a lot of that comes down to just being a new dad – that stirs up a lot of things in your heart and your head. For me, it was ‘what am I going to put out into the world that she can look at and be really happy and be proud that her dad was a part of that?’ I felt like ‘Church in a Chevy’ was that and also with ‘Detours,’ even though ‘Detours’ dives a little more down into me before I met Kristen, it’s still something that I can’t hide and so there was a little more growth in it.
I remember you saying back at the Hammersmith Apollo when you were supporting Old Dominion that being a dad has affected your songwriting and this project felt a little bit like a gift to your daughter, in terms of it being autobiographical. Was that part of it?
Definitely. Everything changes, my whole world is totally different now and we started making this when Eloise wasn’t born yet but we went in and put the final touches and picked a few of the last songs after she was here. I think that’s when you wake up and it’s just such a world changer, so singing about some of the stuff I was singing about before, you don’t want to do it. It’s not even like you miss it, it’s just something that was very natural and very comfortable to do. I’m really proud, I hope she likes it (laughs).
Oh I’m sure she will, it’s a very special project. I know ‘Detours’ and ‘A Little Lime’ you wrote with your brother. Do you find that it’s easier to write with him because he has known you all the way through?
Yeah, ‘Detours’ was a breeze to write, because he was. We lived together in college and then whenever I moved to Nashville, he was right there with me through the early years of trying to get a publishing deal and trying to get my feet planted in town and saw all those ups and downs. He was kind of on the other end of the conversation sometimes, when it was like ‘hey man, maybe you ought to rethink some of these things and refocus in on music a little more.’
It must be nice also having him be a part of the project, in terms of being able to share the joys and successes.
Right, he’s actually a little more involved in it than people would know. The day we wrote ‘Church in a Chevy,’ Jacob was supposed to be there, but my third niece was born that day – Piper his youngest daughter – so I got a phone call the night before. He was just saying ‘hey man, I’m not going to be able to make the write tomorrow, because Lane’s in labour, so it makes it even more special that the day that was created was Piper’s birthday.
Obviously, another of the tracks on the album that stood out was the collaboration with Julia Michaels. I felt like that was a very clever, creative decision to have her be a part of it. Did you always know that you wanted her to be a part of that song and that project?
I actually went into the write that day with that in the back of my mind. I had written with Julia just once before and just got to hang with her and just thought that she was an awesome person, an awesome artist and just very genuine. So I went in that day thinking that I was going to pitch an idea that I wanted it to be a duet with Julia Michaels, Nicolle Gallyon was in the room and she had been a part of the Keith Urban song that Julia was on and so it was kind of cool to have her be there that day. Also, it was really cool to have that idea, not a lot of times in music that something like that is rolled out that way, going in and saying ‘hey I want to write a song like this and I want this to happen with it’ and it actually come to fruition. That did, it was definitely something that I wanted her to be a part of.
You can always visualise something but then when you go into the writing room quite often a song that comes out, might not necessarily be the song that you went in thinking you would write.
Right it definitely did, and that Julia liked it and wanted to be a part of it. There were a lot of moving parts that just all worked out.
I guess the next thing will hopefully be to get it out played live in some capacity. Do you think that this will be a part of a longer project?
So, that was the plan from day one. I just wanted to get this music out and I wanted it to be the bridge to this next album, with some of the writing, but I feel like it’s going to be really tough – just with the love that it’s getting. People are really excited about it, which is just amazing, especially with ‘Church in a Chevy’ and I would hate it not to get the full life that it deserves. If that means adding this to an album and letting it be a close to twenty song album then I’m totally fine with that. I definitely want to come with another full-length project next time, whether this is part of that or not.
Final Few
If a biopic was made about your life, what would be the opening track?
‘Leaving New Orleans’ off the first album.
Complete the sentence…
Music is… my life, I’ve been doing it, it feels like, since the day I came into the world, so I’d be pretty lost without it.
Country music is… it’s my anchor, it’s the thing that I always go back to. I don’t try to get too far from it, the songwriting, the honesty of what I believe country music is.
Jordan Davis is... trying to figure it out, trying to figure out the next chapter of music, being a new dad. (laughs)
