Home for you is still Nashville? How is that going for you?
I love Nashville, conceptually. I grew up in a small town outside of Phoenix called Casa Grande, Arizona, and it is like a dairy farming hub in the middle of nowhere. There are a lot of things about Nashville that almost feel like idyllic versions of where I grew up – like, instead of being in the desert, I can go fishing before work. But it's Tennessee, and it just won't stop being so fucking Tennessee. It's crazy. Not to say that I don't have community and people I love, but it's been a tough thing to navigate. I don't think I'm naturally vocal. Sometimes I’m driven by the feeling of, “If I don't speak up, the next person that's in my shoes will have to deal with this thing.” But it's chill; it's fine, it's cool. I never go to Broadway [Nashville’s “Honky Tonk Highway”], so I don't really have a lot of problems.
Let's talk about your community there, and the people that you surround yourself with musically.
Even though I've played massive venues and met some of my heroes, I still feel new. I don't know how many people who are new to Nashville have their stuff in the Country Music Hall of Fame, and I think I have to let my brain catch up to what I've accomplished. The cool thing about Nashville is it's so communal, in that writing sense. There are a lot of people who just want to be healthy and make good music, and they don't care if they're involved or not. I think that's so rare.
Now you've shown people what you have to offer.
