In a world of bro country, unoriginal lyrics, snap tracks, and synthetically overproduced mixes, it’s easy for new music to get sideswiped. But every now and again, you find a must have album, a true artist, and a songwriter’s songwriter. If you can get that all rolled into one, you have found the diamond in the rough. Josh Kerr may be just that. Kerr has long been a staple in the circles of Nashville, but many outside are just now finding out about one of our best kept secrets.
Kerr first hit the big time back in 2016 with two number one hits for Kelsea Ballerini—“Dibs” and “Love Me Like You Mean It.” The string of success continued as co-writer of top singles like Dylan Scott’s “My Girl” which achieved platinum status in 2016 and Keith Urban’s “Coming Down” in 2019. He even co-produced Urban’s CMA nominated album, Graffiti U. And as if this year couldn’t get any better, the cherry was placed on top of the sundae when For King and Country’s “God Only Knows” spent 11 weeks at #1 and took home a Dove and K Love Award. The song was co-written by the lyrical genius that is Mr. Kerr.
And now, the Upstate New York native is ready to embark on different journey—that of an artist. His debut album, How Do You Remember Me, drops Friday, November 8th, and takes listeners on quite the reflective journey from the first song to the last. Every song is more simplistic in arrangement and melody than what we hear on the radio lately, which is actually quite a relief. Beautiful piano, guitar, and even banjo moments accompany his smooth, heartfelt, easy listening voice perfectly. And the lyrics come full of reflection, frustration, regret in some instances, letting go, and finally forgiveness and hope for the future. If you ask Kerr, he’ll probably tell you this project is a “blend of ‘feel-good nostalgia’ coupled with ‘sensual sadness’.
Phrases like “There’s still graffiti on that sign on that back road and I can’t erase the words we wrote” from “Still Our Town” paint the picture of a more innocent time and place. Words like “I didn’t lose you to a person; I lost you to a place” in “Oklahoma” (a haunting duet with Heather Morgan) reignite the ache we have all felt when someone moved away. But don’t worry. While the songs are reminiscent, they are not all sad. “Only Love” features the vocals of his fiancé Taylor Dye of Maddie and Tae and would make the most picture perfect wedding song (we’ll be waiting for that Instagram first dance video by the way). “Whole Damn Thing” with its catchy, up tempo beat is a declaration of love and abundance. And that is because Kerr lives to convey meaning and realism while also allowing the listener to dream. If it’s one thing Kerr doesn’t do, it’s write fluff. Heavy hitters in town have taken notice since he first signed his publishing deal with Black River Entertainment in 2012. On this record alone, he wrote with the likes of Jordan Minton, Nick Wayne, Tom Douglas, Trent Harmon, Jacob Davis, Cary Barlowe, and Jordan Reynolds, just to name a few. These songs were not specifically written for this record. They have been held in his back pocket for years, perhaps only played at writers rounds that he frequents, such as The Listening Room Café.
“I had a lot of help and asked for a lot of opinions to be honest,” Kerr told The Country Note when we asked him how he chose the songs. Three came out early. “Still Our Town”, “Oklahoma” and “In Case I Never See You Again” were available for release as early as the end of this summer. And now, you get the whole shebang just in time for cold weather, sitting by the fire, and dancing to music in the living room.
To see our full interview with Josh Kerr, watch below (or click HERE).
How Do You Remember Me Track Listing
- “How Do You Remember Me” (Josh Kerr, Jordan Minton, Jordan Reynolds, Nick Wayne)
- “In Case I Never See You Again” (Kerr, Jacob Davis, Michael Hardy)
- “Still Our Town” (Kerr, Minton)
- “Oklahoma (feat. Heather Morgan)” (Kerr, Davis, Sean McConnell)
- “If I’m Being Honest” (Kerr, Cary Barlowe, Trent Harmon)
- “It Wasn’t That Long Ago” (Kerr, Minton, Reynolds)
- “How Do You Know (feat. Amy Wadge)” (Kerr, RaeLynn, Amy Wadge)
- “Love Me Now” (Kerr, Tom Douglas)
- “Only” (Kerr, Reynolds)
- “Whole Damn Thing” (Kerr, Minton)
- “The World Didn’t Stop Spinning” (Kerr, Ben Roberts)