Georgia-born Peytan Porter started out singing at church, as well as fairs and festivals before moving to Nashville after she graduated high school. She signed her first publishing deal as a songwriter in 2020 before breaking through on TikTok, and has been winning over fans out on the road ever since. Now she’s releasing her latest project, ‘Grown’, the follow-up to 2023’s ‘In My Head’.
The six-track EP opens with recent single ‘Lemonade’. It’s a crunchy, grungy number with stomping drums that balance Porter’s sweet, rich vocals, and right from the off shows her talents as a songwriter. The track’s characters, who are all leaning on their own vices – be that alcohol, weed or Jesus – to get through a rough life or just a rough day, are portrayed in great detail and Porter’s wry approach brings them to life immediately. I loved the straightforwardness of her delivery on this track and the organ notes on the fade-out are a nice touch as well.
That blend of rock and country is something that continues throughout the record, particularly on songs like ‘God’s Hotel’, which appropriately has an almost spiritual quality to it as Porter sings about walking her own path. It balances smooth, take-me-to-church vocals and twangy guitar with a sharp, punchy beat and there’s a great bluesy guitar solo in there too. Elsewhere, the sultry ‘High Road’ gives her a chance to show the huskier side of her voice, as well as hitting an impressively huge note towards the end, whilst the drum count and harmonica give the track an organic feel that marry well with its theme of isolation and keeping your cool amid small-town gossip.
For me the project’s two highlights are ‘Speaking Of Georgia’ and the title track. The former – which name-checks classic hits including ‘Georgia On My Mind’ and ‘Midnight Train To Georgia’ – is a soft, acoustic number that sees Porter reflecting on life on the road, with a big soaring chorus and a bittersweet lyric. You can tell it comes from the heart and it provides a nice change of pace from the rest of the EP. Meanwhile, ‘Grown’ paints a picture of wanting to strike out on your own route yet feeling torn over loneliness and missing home, with its vivid imagery of a starter apartment in a dodgy tower block and a great twist at the end of the first verse. The fragility in Porter’s voice balances the narrative really well and it’s an incredibly powerful moment.
Porter closes the EP with ‘Run The Radio’. Lyrically reminiscent of Eric Church’s ‘What I Almost Was’ and with a chorus that echoes ‘Where The Wild Things Are’ by Luke Combs, it’s a driving, rocky track which features Porter’s reflections on being born to young parents and the ex-love she left behind for ‘making my own melody’. Her vocals almost float over the chorus as she drags out the notes and it’s a really solid, engaging way to end the project.
Overall ‘Grown’ is a highly personal body of work which taps into Porter’s past and shows her as an artist who’s wise beyond her years. There’s a strong narrative thread of stepping into your own power that runs through the project and the blend of country and rock influences is sure to endear over plenty of fans, alongside her solid vocals and great songwriting. I’m really excited to see what she does next, and hope we might get to hear some of these songs live sooner rather than later!
Track listing: 1. Lemonade 2. God’s Hotel 3. High Road 4. Speaking Of Georgia 5. Grown 6. Run The Radio Record label: Warner Chappell Nashville/Jody Williams Songs/Red Light Music Release date: 1st March 2024
