Chris Janson Talks Writing “Outlaw Side Of Me”

Chris Janson is one of the most creative, lively, and overall talented country stars on the scene right now. He continues to give us an inside look at the creative process behind writing some of his biggest his to date.

While everyone has their style of writing, instruments they play, and perhaps even a location they prefer, it's what comes out of it that is so very special. Janson, who in recent months delivered a 13-track collection titled The Outlaw Side Of Me, is opening up on the title track.

"I love 'Outlaw Side of Me.' I'll tell you, I wrote that in my 'man room' at the house and, surrounded by deer heads and all kinds of things and taxidermy and guns," Janson said.

He continued, "Chris DeStefano and Lee Miller were over at the house, my co-writers on it. And Chris kind of had that melody. I picked up that guitar part on an out-of-tune gut string guitar that I paid 25 bucks for. I wrote 'Buy Me A Boat' on that, 'Fix A Drink,' 'Good Vibes,' and 'I Love This Life.' I mean, I wrote a lot of songs on that guitar. It paid off big time."

With numerous No. 1 hits now under his belt, we most certainly agree that the guitar "paid off big time" for Janson as he also co-wrote Tim McGraw's 2012 hit, "Truck Yeah," on that very guitar.

The day he wrote the title track to his new album, "Outlaw Side Of Me," using the $25 pawn shop guitar, Janson had the recorder pushed on and he ended up wrapping the whole song [done in one take].

Janson also revealed that new music is on its way and that it will be "knocking on the door" and will be "coming real quick." We can't wait to hear what's next from the country singer.

Some big country albums came out in 2023, including new projects from Luke Combs, Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, HARDY, Chris Stapleton, Tim McGraw, Cody Johnson, and many more.

At the CMA Awards and the ACM Awards, Lainey Wilson's Bell Bottom Country, which came out in the fall of 2022, was named Album of the Year. After winning Album of the Year, Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, and more at the November show, she told us, "I will say that we are at a very pivotal time now in country music. I am very proud to be a part of this generation of country music. You got Jelly Roll, you've got Morgan, you've got HARDY, you've got Luke Combs."

She continued, "You've got folks like Ashley McBryde and Kelsea, and they all look different, they all sound different. They all have different stories. They all come from different places, and I think It's really important for that to be a thing. There's a lot of different kinds of people in the world to hear all the different sides of the stories."

That same album for Wilson was nominated for Best Country Album at the upcoming GRAMMY Awards.

Kelsea Ballerini said of her GRAMMY Nominated album, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, "Making this record was simply my way of making sense of a really emotionally complicated place in my life. I went to one of my best friends and collaborators, Alysa Vanderheym, and she quietly and diligently helped me write my truth. I really don't have the words for the pride I feel for this music and the way that it's connected with people."

She added, "It's like nothing I've ever experienced. I'm deeply grateful to the Recording Academy for this honor. I am truly beaming."

We know that a lot of country artists sit down with their camps in January of the new year to plan their projects, including albums, meaning more will be coming out in 2024. However, we thought we would get a jump start and look at what albums are already on the books to be released in early 2024.

A little about Brittney: Her website bio notes that she has shared stages with Jason Isbell, The Highwomen, Willie Nelson, Reba, and Maren Morris, to name a few. She's also performed the National Anthem at The 148th Kentucky Derby, the Preakness in 2022 alongside Megan Thee Stallion and Lauryn Hill, and the 2023 NFL Draft.

Brittney told Music Row of her debut album, "These songs serve as my introduction to country music, and I wanted to give them all the time and care that they (and my fans) deserve." She added that she wrote many songs from the "back corners" of her mind.

Gabby [inlink id="gabby-barrett-opens-up-about-sophomore-album-chapter-verse" text="told us"] of the new project, "We've got some awesome collabs on it with Miranda Lambert, Luke Combs, Phil Wickham, and [some] Christian artists, and I'm co-producing it, so really leaning into it, making sure that it's the best it can be," Barrett has already released "Glory Days" from the project and it is currently moving up the country charts.

Blackberry Smoke is a southern rock band from Atlanta, Georgia. It was founded in 2000 by lead singer and guitarist Charlie Starr. The current lineup includes Charlie Starr, Richard Turner (bass), Brit Turner (drums), Paul Jackson (guitar, vocals), and Brandon Still (keyboards).

This new HARDY album will be centered around and as a tribute to the GRAMMY and CMA Award-winning catalog of country legend Joe Diffie. HARDY told us [inlink id="morgan-wallen-cma-post-malone-hardy-eric-church" text="backstage at the CMA"] Awards after performing some of Diffie's songs with Morgan Wallen and Post Malone on the show, "We have gotten a hold of all of Joe Diffie's tapes from the '90s, the actual session themselves. We have basically done what we have done with Hixtape, and we've taken some of Joe's vocals out and all that, and we've added some of the biggest singers in country music to help him sing some of his biggest hits, and you saw two of those tonight."

Crow, a 2023 Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductee, announced that she would release Evolution, her 11th full-length studio album debuting the album's lead single, "Alarm Clock" during a November 2 appearance on NBC's Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. She told Fallon she said she would never do another full album a couple of years ago but changed her mind when she ended up with several songs she wrote recently and wanted to share them. She quipped of changing her mind, "You can't believe anything that comes from my mouth."