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NYCS First Impression & Exclusive Interview: Mo Pitney ‘Ain’t Lookin’ Back’

Mo Pitney

Sophomore records are often the ones that make or break an artist, but for rising talent, Mo Pitney, his newest project, Ain’t Lookin’ Back is even more intriguing than his debut. The singer-songwriter knows his sound and his fanbase and delivers exactly what we want, a true-blue country album laced with a wide range of influences.

“So I took a long time to make the second album for a number of reasons,” Pitney began during our exclusive interview with the artist, “I wanted to find out how to have a common thread from the first album to the second album, but being open to introducing all of my influences and let them meet in one place.” It is safe to say that he accomplished that feat with this record.

Opening up with “A Music Man,” Pitney wastes no time showcasing his one of a kind talent. The single is a beautiful story about feeling like God put him on Earth to play music. The beautiful “three chords and the truth” song is everything fans could want to kick off the project.

Pitney continued to transition his vocal skills into a series of love songs, such as “Right Now With You,” “Boy Gets the Girl”, and “Mattress on the Floor.” Although all three are sublime in their own right, “Mattress on the Floor” is a standout track, where Pitney vocalizes that love is all you really need to get by.

According to Pitney, most of the songs were inspired by the love he has for his wife. “Local Honey” is a sweet and sultry song about falling in love that everyone can relate to. “Plain and Simple” is another stellar example of how well Pitney can express a simple story through the song. The love song is the perfect simplest declaration of endearment. “Always have and always will love you / Plain and simple”

On the other hand, “Looks Like Rain” is arguably one of the best songs on the project. Written about mental health struggles, Pitney takes vulnerability to a whole new level on this gut-wrenching, but much needed track. In our exclusive interview, he deemed this song one of his favorites and even opened up about the inspiration, sharing; “I wanted to record it because it is a song about depression. It is a song about having the sun shining, and the birds are singing, but the whole world is grey. And I think that’s a common human experience, and I wanted to share that I’ve been through that and other people aren’t alone with that.”

Of course, family remained a tenant on this record. As a recent father of two girls and a touring musician, Pitney knows how it feels to be away from his family.  In “’ Til I Get Back To You,” the singer expresses that sentiment through the lens of a truck driving industry. In our conversation, the singer-songwriter explained how effortless the songwriting process was for this song. “We talked about the history of country music and truck driving songs and we wanted to try to bring that to this record in a new way so I welded my story of traveling and wanting to get back to my wife with these truck driving industry.” “Old Stuff Better,” a fun country-folk jam about family roots and “Ain’t Bad for Good Ol’ Boy” also lend themselves to the family first mentality.

Overall the brand new project is a little bit of the old mixed with a whole lot of the new. Like most of us, Pitney is just on the journey called life, and constantly peeling back the layers that make him who he is. I’m sure true fans of music will continue to support his unmatched and refreshing talent.

To keep up with Mo Pitney follow him on Instagram and Facebook.

 

NYCS Picks:

  1. “A Music Man”
  2. “Looks Like Rain”
  3. “’Til I Get Back to You”
  4. “Boy Gets the Girl”

 

Ain’t Lookin’ Back Tracklist:

  1. A Music Man (feat. Jamey Johnson)
  2. Right Now with You
  3. Ain’t Bad for a Good Ol’ Boy
  4. ’til I Get Back to You
  5. Looks Like Rain
  6. Boy Gets the Girl
  7. Ain’t Lookin’ Back
  8. Old Home Place (feat. His All-Star Band)
  9. Plain and Simple
  10. Mattress on the Floor
  11. Local Honey
  12. Old Stuff Better
  13. Jonas

Ain’t’ Lookin’ Back is now available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released music here on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

 

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Mo Pitney’s New Unreleased Song “A Music Man” Might Be His Best Yet

Mo Pitney

“Somewhere along the way, our desires get hijacked by selfish things—whether it’s money, pride or fame, and you lose the reason why we started doing what we’re doing. For me, it was playing guitar and singing.”

That’s Mo Pitney’s honest introduction to the story behind his unreleased song, “A Music Man.” Set to be the opening track on his upcoming sophomore record, this epitomizes what country music is fondly described as: “three chords and the truth.”

As Pitney described in the video below, it took him a long, winding road to find true joy and purpose of being an artist as he questioned his purpose, because of the sheer realization that “pride and thankfulness can’t go together.”

“A Music Man” is an invitation to reflect on our journeys, whether you’re in the music industry as a creative or on the business side, or even outside of it. We all have a purpose, and while we live that out as we try to search for the greater purpose of it all, Pitney reminds us not to get caught up in the fame and glory—to not lose sight of the genesis of that love and passion.

Back in 2017, Pitney was part of NYCountry Swag’s Country Night in NYC, where he performed his debut single, “Country,” and other album cuts like the faith-leaning “Everywhere”, poignant “I Met Merle Haggard Today” and title track, “Behind This Guitar.” Fast-forward to almost 2 years later and 3 years after his debut record, the 26-year-old Curb recording artist is gearing up for his next highly-anticipated release, and we’re more than ready for it.

We don’t generally do this, but we thought it would be fitting to include the full lyrics of this song. Take a read of it, line by line, and let the weight and heart behind each lyric sink in.

“I didn’t come here to be famous, or to see my name in lights / I didn’t come here for the money, awards don’t even cross my mind / But as long as I can remember, I’ve had a guitar in my hand /  It’s like God looked at me from heaven, and said I think I’ll make a music man /  And it’s deep down in my bones, woven in my heart and soul / just a kid there on my bed, trying to get out what hurt his head

Now I live out on the stage, there’s people here to hear us play / So I’m just giving you a song you might remember when I’m gone / You might ask what keeps me going through the airports and the rain? / I just love to see your faces though I may never know your names / Truth is, I think I’ve found my purpose down here in the grand design / That’s just to sing the words God gives me, to know He’s with me all the time / And it’s deep down in my bones, woven in my heart and soul / still a kid out on the road, don’t ever have to be alone

Now I’m on another stage, you’re all here to hear us play / So I’m just giving you a song for you to remember when I’m gone / Let me leave you with this song—you might remember when I’m gone”

The heaviness in your heart right there? Don’t brush it aside. That, ladies and gentleman, is the power of music and impeccable songwriting from the heart, courtesy of Mo Pitney and Bobby Tomberlin.

The sophomore slump may be a legitimate fear and situation for some artists. But if “A Music Man” is any indication of what is going to be offered in the upcoming record, we firmly believe that it will put propel Pitney to greater heights and fortify his position as a permanent staple in the genre we all love– country music.

To keep up with Mo Pitney, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

 

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Thank You for supporting Country Music in NYC & Beyond!

Subscribe to our Weekly Round-Up here 
for ticket giveaways, meet & greet contests, upcoming events,
and all things country music in the New York metro area and beyond!

+ Follow our country music adventures on InstagramTwitter & Facebook:

Top 10 NYCountry Swag Moments of 2017 – #9: “NYCountry Swag Presents:”…

The countdown continues as we give you our Top 10 New York Country Swag Moments of 2017.

With two full years under our belt, New York Country Swag spent 2017 expanding our brand and working towards bringing more country music to New York City fans.  This brings us to favorite moment #9: “New York Country Swag Presents:”, a series of unique live events we coordinated throughout the year, showcasing country music’s hottest new rising stars in different settings.

 

After ringing in the new year, we kicked off our “New York Country Swag Presents:” Series with a suite experience for Eric Church‘s “Holdin’ My Own” Tour. The show hit Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in late January where New York Country Swag hosted 36 fans in a private suite for an unforgettable concert experience.

 

Next our “New York Country Swag Presents: Country Brunch” returned, where we hosted rising star, Russell Dickerson at New York City’s, Printers Alley. Dickerson performed songs from his debut EP and fans were able to see him in an intimate setting before he opened for Thomas Rhett’s Home Team Tour across the country.

Russell Dickerson Country Brunch

 

Following Brunch, New York Country Swag hosted Brandon Ray at Printers Alley for a”New York Country Swag Presents: Country Night.”  “The thing about country music fans is they’re loyal, whenever you go back to a city the same people sort of latch on to you and tell their friends about it.”  Ray introduced the audience to “Ends of the Earth” which he later released as a single and even a cover of Nick Jonas’ “Jealous”. Check out a full recap video including an interview with Brandon below.

 

Once summer hit, we brought the events to the beach as “New York Country Swag Presents: Country Night on the Water” returned. Jackie Lee, the “Getting Over You” singer headlined the first night, playing to a sold-out crowd at Rockaway Beach’s, Bungalow Bar, in late June.  “It blows my mind, I’m from a small town in East Tennessee, to be able to come up to New York and see all of the country music fans, all of the rednecks, as I like to say, it blows my mind every time I come up here, it’s very refreshing, it’s awesome,” he said before playing his set. Check out the full recap video above.

 

As summer came to a close, we returned to Rockaway Beach to host one more “New York Country Swag Presents: Country Night on the Water” featuring The Swon Brothers.  The deck was packed with fans not ready to let go of the warm weather.  The Voice alums took the stage to sing singles off their latest EP, Pretty Cool Scars including their current single “Don’t Call Me” and “Dwight Trashed” which they told us was an ode to 90’s country music. It was the perfect ending to a summer filled with country shows.

 

Marking the start of Fall, our events came back to the big city as we returned to Printers Alley for a “New York Country Swag Presents: Country Night“. The event featured Mo Pitney for a stripped down acoustic set.  He played songs off his latest album “Behind This Guitar” including the title track, “Country” and “Boy and a Girl Thing”.  His traditional twang filled the country-themed bar.  After his set, he told New York Country Swag about his debut performance at The Grand Ole Opry where he received a standing ovation from the crowd.  The hour-long set concluded with Pitney taking pictures and signing autographs for the crowd.

 

We’re looking forward to bringing you more great events in 2018.
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