Corey Crowder was recently signed to Tooth & Nail/EMI Records and will be releasing his debut with the label on August 5th. Prior to the signing, Corey has been recording and releasing material on his own, with heavy promotion on websites such as Myspace and CD Baby. After hearing one of his songs on the popular national TV show The Biggest Loser, we thought it was time to check back in with Mr. Crowder for an update on his winning career…

What is the name of the very first song you wrote and what initially got you started in music?
The first song that I can remember is a song called Montana Sky. I had some friends from church that I jammed with from time to time and that ended up sparking a deeper interest in music.

On the re-release of Starting All Over, what significance does the spider and web have on the CD title? And who is your little friend you are holding in your hand?
Starting All Over is about rebuilding. It was written during a huge transitional period in my life. I felt that a spider was a great representation of that because they are constantly having to rebuild their webs after being destroyed. That is actually a real Tarantula that I am holding in that photo. I wasn't super fond of the idea at first, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

How did you wind up having one of your songs on The Biggest Loser and were you watching the show that it appeared on?
The music supervisor for the show contacted me after hearing some of my songs on Myspace. He was interested in the song The Last Ones Standing as it seems to apply the most to the theme of the show. We are big fans of the show so it was strange hearing my music on the episode.

Describe your music to someone who has never heard it before.
Well, I would have to describe the way that we sound as of now. Over the past couple of years my style has changed quite a bit. So, I would describe my music as Bluesy Country.

You were recently signed to Tooth & Nail Records. How did that come about?
We made contact with T&N a couple years back and have stayed in touch with them periodically ever since. Tooth & Nail was looking for something new and different for their label and it seemed like the perfect fit.

With Tooth & Nail being primarily known as a Christian label, do you consider yourself a Christian artist? Why or why not?
I don't. And honestly that was a concern of mine in the early stages of talking with T&N. I didn't want people to tie my music to my faith. But, I feel like T&N is a great fit because I am able to do business with like-minded people who are willing to give me the artistic freedom to write the music that I need to write.

Do you have a working title for your new CD yet? If so, is there a story or concept behind the title?
Yes, it is titled Gold & the Sand. The title is pulled from a song on the album called Innocence. The album is a full circle view of my life over the past couple of years. Looking back over the lyrics for the album, I feel that it is the most transparent I've ever been.

What did producer Aaron Sprinkle contribute to the recording process, and did he give you any good advice while recording?
Aaron was a huge help in taking the songs to the next level. He sees music on a different level than I do, and was able to see the big picture for the album. I could not be more pleased with how it turned out.

How easy or difficult has it been to self release all of your material up until now? What advice would you give an artist looking to self release their own work?
It hasn't been easy. There are definitely some financial benefits to doing it that way. Anyone looking to release an album on their own should be prepared to work extremely hard to get the fans involved in spreading the word. I am a believer that the best way to grow your fan base is word of mouth.

Tell me about the new single Southern Way and where did you get the ideas and inspiration for the lyrics?
Southern Way is one of my favorites because it combines a lot of the different musical elements that you hear on this record. The song is about 2 paths in life. One path is a busy life of worry and stress. The other path is a slower paced life. These paths have plagued me for the past few years because I can't seem to stay away from the busy lifestyle. I am constantly fighting to get to that slow pace of life.

At this point, do you prefer acoustic shows or playing with a full band?
I definitely prefer playing with the band. There is a total different energy when I play with those guys.

Do you have any strange or inspiring Myspace stories that you could share?
Well, nothing strange really ever happens to me on Myspace. But, I can honestly say that Myspace has been one of the biggest factors in growing my fan base over the past few years. And honestly it was a big part of getting a record deal as well. It is so crazy to think that something like Myspace has had such a huge impact on the music industry.

What's up next for you?
Well, the new album comes out August 5th. So, we will be looking to tour in promotion for the record for the rest of the year. Besides that, I am in the process of recording an album for a friend of mine named Mark Webb at my studio in Taylors, SC. I've been working at launching that for quite some time, so it is nice to finally have that up and running.

Any messages for people who would be into checking out your music?
You can listen to my music on Myspace, face book, and pretty much all of those music sites. You can also pick up the music on iTunes, Rhapsody, and CD Baby. (Kenneth Morton)

Recently concluding his first cross country tour with Brandston and Melee, Corey Crowder and his introspective music has been gaining him a good deal of fans. A lot of his work has appeared on MTV’s The Real World, and he came pretty close to appearing on the show himself. The music Crowder performs is timeless and he often finds himself winning over even the hardcore kids at shows. Here is a recent interview we conducted with Corey on the phone while he was out doing errands on a typical weekday…

Tell me about the title for your new album Starting All Over, and what inspired it.
Since I put out an album, lots has changed. I got married, I moved to a new city, and changed up my style a little bit. I started adding some guys to the live show in the band, and just getting a little older and getting out of the college years and more into the “I’m married years.” It really was like my life was starting all over, so it seemed like a fitting title. And it just happened to be the title of one of the songs I had written, so I thought I would just go ahead and do it up that way.

Your project was once called A Farewell To Arms. Why the change and did your name it after the Hemingway novel?
Sort of. It wasn’t that it was my favorite book ever or anything like that. I typically had to read it in school. Back in the day when I first started this, which was six years ago, it was sort of the trend where a lot of people were using book names. I thought it sounded good, but as I got a little older and started taking the project a little more serious, it seemed a little stupid – it didn’t make much sense anymore to go by a band name for a solo artist. So I just started going by my own name for marketability reasons.

You recently did a tour with Brandston and Tokyo Rose. Was that your first national tour and how did it go?
It was my first national tour. I had never been out of the East Coast area. It was pretty cool – it went great! The guys in Brandston were really nice. I was with Brandston for the entire tour. We sort of split the tour with Tokyo Rose and a band called Melee. All those guys are really great, which is cool, because my style is a good bit different from theirs and they all took a liking to it. I think it was a good change of pace for them and for me. I play anything from bars and clubs to underground music venues – like we were playing with this tour. It was a lot of fun – easy to get along with and everything like that.

Do you have any road horror stories that you care to share?
I’ve been pretty lucky so far – I really haven’t had any. As much as I’ve driven my van, it has been good to me. I’ve never really had anything bad happen, other than the typical venue trying to stiff you on money. But I’ve never really had anything bad happen luckily. I’m sort of wishing I had some wood to knock on here…

Where did you get your lyrical ideas for some of the songs on Starting All Over?
I think I based most of the stuff on my relationships that I was going through or my friends and just sort of life lessons I was learning. There’s a couple songs where it seems like the relationship is not going so good, and those are some my friend’s relationships that I sort of pulled information from. You could tell exactly what’s going on in my own life and the people around me just judging by the lyrics. I usually don’t stray too far from that.

What’s the significance of April 25th?
It’s the day that I wrote the song and a day that I wanted to remember. Just a day that I got a lot of thinking done. Without going into too much detail, it’s a date I wanted to never forget, so I just kept it.

Do you prefer playing with a full band lineup or solo acoustic?
It sort of depends on the night. I really like playing by myself, because I think I’m able to interact with the crowd a little better. With the band, I’m more focused on how we’re sounding and things like that. But there’s certainly times that I’m glad I have a band, when maybe a crowd of people wouldn’t get into me so much if I didn’t have the band with me. In an ideal world, I could play by myself every night and everybody would get into it.

What will the next CD be like?
Actually I’ve been taking this whole year so far off from touring. I’ve been writing every day and have a little small studio set up in my house. It’s sounding really folky and really bluesy. I’ve been listening to a lot of old stuff like James Taylor and Jim Croce. I’ve been really getting some influence from some older guys, and trying to bring the older sound into the new music scene that’s going on. I think it’s going to be pretty different for me, but I think it will be enough of my past stuff for people who are currently fans to be into it.

How has Myspace helped out your career?
Myspace has pretty much been my career. There wasn’t much going on until Myspace. It’s hard to set yourself apart, being a solo artist. There are so many people out there these days trying to do that. I try not to spend a lot of money on promotion – just because I don’t have it. I try not to go into a lot of debt over it – and Myspace has been awesome because it’s all free. It’s cool to be able to get word of mouth, and let the fans help promote. It really has blown up. I really can’t pinpoint why, but it just happened to be that way. I think it really helped when fans started putting the songs on their sites. I really saw a difference in the way things were going when that started happening.

What has been the best and worst part about releasing music on your own?
Well, it’s great because you’re in full control of everything. You get to keep all the money – that’s obviously a good thing. But it’s definitely not good because you reach a certain point where you can’t go much further. And I feel that’s much the point I’m at – I’ve pretty much reached the apex of what me and my management can do with things. It will be nice to have some money and support behind me from a label – once that happens.

Have you had any label interest?
Just the typical things. I’ve showcased for different labels. We’re just feeling it out. I’m not really in any big hurry to sign with anybody. I want it to be the right deal with the right people who are on the same page as I am. I’m sure when that comes along, I’ll know it.

Your music was on MTV’s The Real World. How did that happen?
One of the music supervisors contacted me. He actually asked me to be on the show. I don’t know if you watched The Real World back in the day. Instead of giving them a job, they just had people who were doing careers. They wanted to go back to that, and he wanted me – since I’m a career musician – they wanted me to be on the show. I just sort of told him that it wasn’t my thing – I’m about to get married and all this kind of stuff. We started talking, and we agreed that they could just use my music instead of me being on the show. And he ended up doing it. I didn’t think it was actually going to pan out, but he ended up using it. He’s actually helped us get connections with several different seasons and helped us out to get on an ABC show last year. There’s some cool stuff that came from a random phone call.

What advice would you give a band about to go on the road for the first time?
I would say if they’re going out, to be as humble and as nice as possible to everybody you meet – because the more friends you make, the more favors and connections it will end up resulting in. It never pays off to act like you’re big time. My philosophy is to always be nice to the people that have been there and done that and are where you want to be. And that will help you get to the next step.

If there were any band you’d like to be a support act to, whom would it be and why?
Norah Jones. I am madly in love with Norah Jones’ music. She is fantastic and I think it would awesome. I listened to Norah Jones for years, and I think that would be great to play in front of crowds of that size, and opening up for somebody that talented.

Do you ever get nervous when you go up there by yourself and play?
No! I get more nervous when I’m with a band, believe it or not. I don’t know why. I think it’s because I did the solo thing for so many years. I actually used to play a lot of hardcore shows back in the day – which sounds really funny; but I was friends with a lot of the people in bands and it’s the only way that I could get out there. And I think that helped build my courage a little bit, cuz getting in front of crowds of people that I knew weren’t going to like my music – and having to sort of win ‘em over – I think that really built my confidence up.

Your manager was once in a band, wasn’t he?
He was. He was in Across Five Aprils. Those guys let me tag along with them on a lot of tours and gave me some good experience and helped me build up my self-esteem a little bit onstage.

Do you have any messages for those who would be into checking out your music?
It’s worth giving it a chance, no matter what kind of music you listen to. I listen to everything, so I’m sure you could find some common ground in there somewhere. It’s definitely worth a listen – going on Myspace or if you have Itunes – just to go and check it out. (Kenneth Morton)

Corey Crowder links

Corey Crowder: The Official Home Page!
Corey Crowder on Myspace: Their Official Myspace Page!
The Highwire Daze Home Page: Return to the Main Page!

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