As we all know, the sound of country music has become very different from what country music was in the 90’s. A new wave of artists have taken their own upbringing and inspiration and applied it to their interpretation of country music. In this world of modern country music, there are a few artists who are bringing their love of traditional country music to mainstream country radio. Artists like Jon Pardi, Chris Stapleton, and William Michael Morgan to name a few. After spending some time at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Music City, the latter, William Michael Morgan, dedicated some time to us here at New England Country Music.
William Michael Morgan’s sound is refreshing and smooth and it hasn’t gone unnoticed as he reached the top of the country charts last year with his first single, ‘I Met A Girl.’ The Mississippi native had just released his debut album, ‘Vinyl,’ and was in his hometown for an autograph signing when he found out that there was a chance the single could be Number One on the charts that week. A few hours later, while they were driving back to Nashville, he got the news that ‘I Met A Girl’ was indeed the Number One song on country radio. “We pulled over and had a little party. We had some drinks and a good ole time. It was a lot of hard work, a lot of people that believed in it. A lot of people that fought for it,” William recalled.
The single was written by hit songwriters Shane McAnally, Trevor Rosen (of Old Dominion), and country music sensation, Sam Hunt. And while William Michael Morgan has his traditional sound, he had no problem bringing that sound to this single written by a couple modern country singer-songwriters. He said, “I didn’t. I have a great team of producers and everyone that heard the song and ran with it. They knew exactly what to do with it. I loved the song when I first heard it. I loved the lyrics. I loved Sam’s version of it. Obviously it’s a little more his side than what we do. But we went in and put our own spin on it and made it ours.” Regarding modern country music, does William have any issue with it? “No. Not at all. The best way I can say it is that it (modern country radio) is not what I do but it doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Everyone listened to different stuff growing up. I, in particular, listened to Merle Haggard and George Strait and George Jones. And that’s what I incorporated into my music as much as I can. Other people might’ve listened to this guy or that girl and that’s what they built their music off of. I think it’s all country music. I think if you lay out bro-country and traditional country and pop country, there’s one key word in all of them- and that’s country.”
With all the success that ‘I Met A Girl’ brought William Michael Morgan, it also brought more opportunities. He recently made his national television debut, “That was unreal. I was out in New York- the big ole Big Apple. It was on The Today Show and I was a little nervous; I usually don’t get nervous but I’ve never been on national TV before. We went in and did a quick little interview and got done and played our song ‘I Met a Girl.’ Then went out and had a big ole steak to celebrate. My dad actually got to come up from Mississippi. He had never been to New York before. We had a ball. I showed him around a little bit but I’m still a stranger there, I’ve only been there a handful of times. It was good to share that moment with him.” He will also be included in a coming exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame called The American Currents, which will open next month. “It’s unreal. I walk into his room and I’m paired up with Keith Whitley. I look over and here’s Jon Pardi with Buck Owens and Brett Eldredge with Ronnie Dunn and Reba with Dolly Parton. I see all of us- not them physically- but all of their history, and old clothes and shoes and belt buckles and rhinestones and everything in between. I was blown away to see all of that history in one place.”
After you listen to William’s ‘Vinyl’ record, it’s hard not to fall in love with the record. The entire project flows well together and features some incredible songs and that was one of the main intentions of the record, “I am very proud of it. A lot of time went into this album. I think for the most part we were all in agreement of what went on the album. There may have been one or two that I liked a little more than other people. It just felt good, it felt right. I wanted to make sure you can sit in a car and ride around and listen to this album from top to bottom.” Last November, William released the second single off the album, a song called ‘Missing,.’ He loved the message behind the song and was the reason why he wanted to release it as the second single off the record. “It’s one of my favorite songs off the record. ‘Missing’ stood out to me because of the message that it speaks. The whole world will beat you down, and life in general can wear you out. It’s a matter of getting out of the house going in a boat or going in the woods. Even just sitting on the couch. Whatever the case might be, just shutting the world out for a minute and getting missing. Clearing your head and getting away for a little while. When I heard that message, I said, ‘that’s right.’ I love to clear my head and rejuvenate for a little while. And that’s what we did over the holidays. I loved this song when I first heard it.”
William is current on the American Made Tour, which is headlined by Lee Brice and also features Justin Moore. He describes the experience by saying, “Lee is a good cat, Justin is a good cat too. Their shows are phenomenally and outrageously great, they just entertain with great songs. And that’s what I went to do. I wanted to go on this tour to learn as much as I can. And what I have learned so far is that it’s all about the great songs and treating the fans with love and playing for them.” This summer he will join Frankie Ballard and Michael Ray at the 3rd Annual New England Country Music Festival presented by The Harbor Agency on August 6th in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. And while he is excited to play with some of his friends, William is also looking forward to listening to some local talent play. “I know Michael and Frankie pretty well, especially Michael Ray- he signed over at Warner Brothers right about the same time that I did. We’ve been brothers the whole time, real good friends. I’m looking forward to getting up there. I love watching local talent too. I was local talent once. Michael was local talent once and so was Frankie.”
While modern country music may be at the forefront of the genre, artists like William Michael Morgan are sticking to their roots and preserving that traditional sound and really bringing it to mainstream country radio. This is a guy who genuinely loves what he does and feels blessed to be able to play music for a living. If you haven’t gotten a copy of ‘Vinyl,’ we highly recommend it. It’s an incredible album. And make sure y’all come see William Michael Morgan at our festival.
Main Photo Credit: Jack Guy.