Tanner Usrey’s musical journey is a testament to his Texas roots and unwavering dedication to authenticity. From a young age, music was his passion, belting out Alan Jackson tunes around his hometown of Prosper, TX. Inspired by the likes of George Strait, Tom Petty, and Whiskey Myers, he honed his craft tirelessly, performing at any venue with a stage while balancing a job as a skip tracer. In 2019, he took a leap of faith, quitting his job to pursue music full-time, releasing the acclaimed Medicine Man EP and garnering millions of Spotify streams with hits like ‘Come Back Down’ and ‘Beautiful Lies.’ His dynamic live performances, totalling over 180 shows in 2022 alone, solidified his reputation as an electrifying stage presence.
Signing with Atlantic Records marked a new chapter for Usrey, and in 2023, he made waves with singles like ‘Take Me Home,’ surpassing 10 million streams. With each release, Usrey stays true to his roots, blending country grit with rock ‘n’ roll energy and Americana storytelling. His ‘Crossing Lines’ album showcases his raw talent and unfiltered lyrics, backed by soul-stirring guitar solos and infectious beats. For Tanner Usrey, the music speaks volumes, capturing the essence of his journey and leaving an indelible mark on the hearts of listeners everywhere. He’s heading to the UK in May to play the Highways festival at the Royal Albert Hall and is supporting Shane Smith & the Saints on their UK tour. We were thrilled to catch up with him to talk all about it.
Hey there Tanner, great to talk to you today. Thanks for your time, we very much appreciate it.
No problem, man, great to talk to you too.
We’re big fans of your music so we can’t wait to see you over in the UK in May. Are you looking forward to it?
Oh, absolutely. I love Shane Smith and the rest of the guys, they have been like mentors to me and have kind of helped me come up in the scene here. I’ve been to Ireland but I’ve never been to anywhere else over there so I’m super excited about it. We’re bringing the full band over with us – my other guitar player is unable to make to so Dustin from Shane Smith & the Saints is going to fill in for him actually.
Have you got any sightseeing goals whilst you are over here?
I want to see a castle! (laughing) We have a day off in Amsterdam, so whatever happens, happens, there you know? (laughing) It’s going to be a great time. The history over there is insane and I’d like to tap into a bit of that whilst we are there.
Both yourself and Shane Smith and the Saints share the distinction of having had songs on Yellowstone. How did that come about for you?
I had tweeted out a while before that I had thought it would be really cool if I had a song on the show and a couple of months later I got a message from the head of programming asking me to submit a song! It was, like, 10pm at night and I was playing ‘Call of Duty,’ right? (laughing) I was screaming in my apartment and freaking out. We’ve become friends with Taylor Sheridan and his team now, so that’s pretty cool.
(Watch the song ‘The Light’ that featured on Yellowstone below)
You hail from Texas. Did you grow up in a musical family and at what point did you know you wanted to do this for a profession?
I didn’t really grow up in a musical family but I did grow up listening to music and singing along. I was always that kid being annoying and my dad would always tell me to shut up! (laughing) It was in my senior year in high school and I was at a Wade Bowen concert and I turned to my buddy and said, ‘Man, this is what I want to do!’
I bought a guitar and started to learn how to play songs and graduated to gigs after when I got better and it all just kinda evolved from there.
Alongside the southern sounds and influences like Wade Bowen, Lynyrd Skynryd and Black Crowes that I can hear in your music I can hear British rock n roll bands like The Rolling Stones and the Faces in there too. Were you fans of those bands?
Yeah, man, I’m a HUGE fan of the Faces! We might have a little something cooked up for our show at the Royal Albert Hall in London in honour of them! (laughing) I got into them through the guys in my band who are young as hell but old school when it comes to music. They came in and widened my interests from the red dirt stuff and bands like Whiskey Myers to bands like the Stones and the Faces.
Your album ‘Crossing Lines’ is such a great listen. It’s been out for a while now, then there was the deluxe version and now you’ve released the ‘Radio WV Sessions’ so some of these songs have had three incarnations. You must be so pleased with how it’s resonating with people?
Absolutely, man! It was the favourite project we’ve done so far. All the songs mean so much to me on that album. It definitely was a labour of love to get finished and get out there but it’s been a rewarding project. We love playing all of the songs live, which is not something you can always say about your albums.
You’ve got music on Spotify stretching back to ‘Daytona Nights’ from 2018. How have you evolved as a write since then?
I think I’m better now than I was back then! (laughing) I’ve learned to paint with more colour, I think. I’ve also learned to let each song emerge as its own thing and not try to force through ideas or lines, just let each line be what it is.
Talking about letting songs have their own journey, ‘Beautiful Lies’ has had something of a remarkable journey with various incarnations and versions of it available. When did you know you wanted to cut a version with Ella Langley and what drew you to her?
Ella is a force of nature and a real force to be reckoned with. I really like what she’s doing with her career. Atlantic records wanted us to cut a new version and have another artist on it and I thought of her right away. I love the way it turned out, she brought a different flare to it, for sure.
I still love that we’ve got the Gracie Yorke version still out there as well, though. ‘Beautiful Lies’ is probably my biggest song to date and got a lot of the traction started. It’s the one that everybody wants to hear.
The one I want to hear is ‘Guns, Drugs and Allergy Pills.’ I think if they remade ‘Smokey and the Bandit’ it would be the lead track on the soundtrack to that film.
Oh man, that song has an interesting story behind it. We’d just played a gig in Houston and we were on our way to Austin. The opening verse of the song tells what happened! We got stopped by the police and we got pulled out of the van whilst they looked for something……………they might have found a little something………(laughing) and we almost got arrested but we didn’t, thankfully.
Me and the boys started writing the song with the idea of what else could have gone wrong! That’s the PG version of that story, maybe we can get together and have a pint when we are over in the UK and I’ll tell you the full version of it! (laughing)
When people listen to your music they hear raucous rock n roll, they hear southern Americana, they hear a touch of country and some songwriter finesse too. When people ask you what style of music you play, what do you tell them?
I just tell ’em it’s rock n roll. Ou southern rock, maybe. That’s what I love about what we are doing, because we can do it all and there aren’t that many artists out there doing that right now.
A lot of the songs on the album deal with isolation, loneliness and self control. Was that the narratives you wanted to get out with the ‘Crossing Lines’ album or is that just how the songs naturally emerged?
A little bit of both, I think. During the times I was writing these songs and we were putting the album together I was on the road a lot and it was a very lonely place to be. I don’t know that I wanted all of them to be like that but I definitely knew that when I recorded the songs that’s how a lot of them were coming out.
Have you noticed any themes or similarities coming out in the songs you are writing for your next album?
Yeah, we’re sort of exploring the idea that’s it kinda OK to be at home. I’m not sure if I’ve noticed anything really explicitly strong yet but there’s a kind of acceptance coming through right now.
What did it mean for your career and the possibilities for your career in signing to Atlantic Records compared to being an independent road warrior?
They know more about what they are doing than I do!! I can tell you that! (laughing) They definitely help with things like coming over seas and being able to play for a wider set of fans. I have the best team between all the people involved with me and the band and I’m super excited to see what the next year, and beyond, looks like.
Check out Tanner Usrey’s ‘Crossing Lines’ album, out everywhere now and pick up a ticket to see him live right here.
