This Week’s Backstage Country Host: Jon Pardi
Backstage Country’s Elaina Smith has a new co-host this week! With four number-one hits, the 2017 CMA and ACM New Male Vocalist of the Year awards under his belt, and…
Backstage Country’s Elaina Smith has a new co-host this week! With four number-one hits, the 2017 CMA and ACM New Male Vocalist of the Year awards under his belt, and a brand-new album, Honky Tonk Hollywood, coming out soon, it’s none other than Jon Pardi!
How Jon Pardi Shares His Sexy Songs to His Wife
Smith and Pardi discussed the songs on his latest album, eventually getting to 'Love the Lights Out,' another sexy track from Honky Tonk Hollywood. Smith got curious about what Pardi’s wife thinks of his sensuous songs. The California-born singer replied that his wife loves them and always says she enjoys the more soulful side of him. Pardi chuckled, “She always makes fun of my rowdy beer drinking, honky tonk, I've done a lot of that. But for this record, I really tried to bring a more grown-up [vibe]. I guess it's more of a soulful album, but ‘Love the Lights Out’ is one of the lead [singles] like gentle, but loud at the same time.”
He added that when they play the song live, especially the breakdown verse: “When it feels right, baby / Right where I want to be,” that they always get “a couple of girls screaming during that [verse] because you're connected to it. ‘Love the Lights Out’ for people that haven't heard it, or just hearing it live for the first time, it's the one that really gets a reaction.”
Listening to Songs by Other Songwriters
As a singer-songwriter, Smith asked Pardi how he feels when listening to songs by other songwriters, particularly “She Drives Away,” which Smith was surprised to learn wasn’t written by him. Pardi shared that, as both an artist and a songwriter, “If you ain't cutting songs that you wish you wrote, well, you're doing it wrong, okay?” He added, “I idolize these songwriters in Nashville. I'm all about recording outside of music. But this one, it's like I wrote it. And in my mind, when I sing it, I feel like it's mine, and it's just well-written. I love the story, and I love the toughness of it.”
Pardi also acknowledged his album’s producer, Jay Joyce who “always delivers these kinds of songs so well.” The “Dirt on My Boots” singer also called the song “cinematic.” He continued, “Like in your mind, you're watching this guy go through his whole [life], meeting his wife and his daughter, and then 16 years [later] and then a new baby. From the songwriting to the way it's produced, to my vocals, [there’s something] heartfelt about it. It's crazy. I'm not a huge TikToker dude, but I went out and [checked] TikTok and there's hundreds of videos of new babies being born and the dad's holding a baby girl, and ‘She Drives Away’ playing the background, and it's beautiful.”
Be sure to catch Jon Pardi on Backstage Country all week! For more of his music, tour dates, and official merchandise, visit his website here.
