When one thinks about country music, the mind quickly conjures up images of a heavily bearded fellow with a guitar over knee, cowboy hat tipped, boot heel stomping away, and an unmistakable Southern drawl. And while the Texas-born Eric Paslay does possess some of these qualities, it’s his prowess as a singer and songwriter that makes him such a well-known, respected figure in the industry. Having just released his latest record Even If It Breaks Your Barefoot Friday Night – for which he recorded new versions of some of his biggest hits – Paslay is arguably just hitting his musical prime. One thing’s for sure; he’s a modern day country artist bringing the genre to the fore, particularly back in Headliner’s home of the UK…
In fact, at the time of interview, Paslay is part-way through an extensive tour of the country in support of UK country duo The Shires. He’s been bringing his sound across the pond for six years now, building a strong fanbase in an industry nowhere nearly as saturated with country artists as back home: “everyone keeps asking me if I’m on holiday,” he starts with a grin. “The answer is yes and no; I love coming over here and it’s so cool to see people getting to hang out together again.”
As well as achieving a number one and a bunch of top ten singles, Paslay has written an impressive four number ones outside of his artist career, and while it’s his Nashville-ingrained artistry and exhaustive songwriting collaboration with like minded musicians in the community that have helped him make his name, Headliner is curious to know where it all began.
“I was 15 when I started playing guitar, and I just assumed that if you played music, you wrote your own songs,” he recalls. “I soon learned that it isn’t always the case; I just love writing songs and singing them. At 18 I decided I was going to go to school for the music business around Nashville, and people just kept encouraging me to figure out a reason to stay there.