Originally from Saskatchewan in Canada, Tenille Arts first picked up a guitar when she was just 13 before finding her big break in 2019 when she performed her song ‘I Hate This’ on ‘The Bachelor’ in 2018. Since then she’s racked up over 8 million streams, won acclaim from the likes of Billboard Country Update, CMT and Rolling Stone, and released three studio albums, as well as regularly touring in the US, Canada and the UK. Now she’s back with her fourth record, ‘to be honest’, the follow-up to 2021’s ‘Girl To Girl’.
The 14-track project kicks off with the title track, which sees Arts fighting for her relationship and trying to avoid repeating past mistakes. It throws you straight into her soft, mellow vocals and frank delivery, underlaid by poppy touches and layers of instruments, and there’s a maturity to her approach that works nicely alongside the sweetness in her voice (and with some very impressive high notes!). She sets the scene straight away and you know that whilst this is going to be a breakup album, it’s going to be one with plenty of depth and quality about it.
That sense of balance is a thread that runs throughout the album, including on songs such as ‘So Do I’ with its sparse guitar and raw, breathy vocals as well as some great turns of phrase (‘lying on the floor and to everybody else’), or the 80s-influenced ‘Something I Can Cry To’ which features lyrics about ‘dancing with the memory’ alongside a swaggering rhythm and long drawn-out notes. Arts handles the contrasting tones with great skill and delicacy and it really enhances the sense of connection with the material, as well as capturing the gamut of emotions you feel in the aftermath of a split – often at the same time.
One of Arts’ big strengths has always been her message of ‘you are not alone’, and that’s definitely out in full force here, whether it’s the driving twang of body confidence anthem ‘Dying To Be Pretty’, ‘Wonder Woman’ with its catchy chorus and smooth, soulful vocals or ‘Call Me When You Get Home Friends’, a slick, joyous celebration of the people who always have your back. I particularly loved ‘Want Her Back’, which marries a bluesy guitar line with a knowing lyric that sees Arts telling a friend not to wait around for a former flame. You’re never quite sure if she’s talking to the listener or herself, but it’s a smart move and works incredibly well.
For me many of the project’s best moments come when Arts embraces her quiet confidence. The acoustic ‘How Do You Sleep’ puts the emphasis on her slightly husky vocals, which manage to be both resigned and yet full of bite as she wonders how her ex was able to move on so easily, whilst ‘Next Big Thing’ builds into a big kiss-off chorus as she takes off the rose-tinted glasses and moves on. I also loved the sharp, soaring ‘People Change’ with its driving down a road at sunset in the 70s feel, and ‘Mama’s Eyes’, a warm, affectionate piano-led tribute to Arts’ mother.
After the nostalgic, yearning ‘Summer Don’t Go’ with its detail-packed lyrics and references to Ray-Bans, red bandanas and Ferris wheels, Arts closes the album with two duets. ‘Jealous Of Myself’ is a bittersweet piano ballad laced with tinges of regret before kicking in to a huge powerful chorus, and Arts’ vocal blends with LeAnn Rimes’ absolutely beautifully. She follows that with ‘Last Time Last’, a shimmering, uptempo collaboration with Maddie & Tae that shows off the fantastic harmonies between the three of them and is a perfect blend of pop and country melodies. It’s a really positive way to end the record and you come away feeling uplifted and a little brighter as a result.
Overall ‘to be honest’ is an emotional rollercoaster of a record which shows Arts at her most open and vulnerable, as well as how much she’s grown as a writer and performer. You really feel every ounce of emotion that she’s poured into this album and it’s great to see her emerging as one of the leading wave of pop-country stars, as well as delivering smart songwriting and a sense that even in one’s darkest times there is a light at the end of the tunnel. There’s a slew of strong tracks here and I’m sure they’ll sound great live too – bring on that tour in September!
Track listing: 1. To Be Honest 2. So Do I 3. Wonder Woman 4. Dying To Be Pretty 5. Something I Can Cry To 6. How Do You Sleep 7. People Change 8. Want Her Back 9. Next Best Thing 10. Call Me When You Get Home Friends 11. Mama's Eyes 12. Summer Don't Go 13. Jealous Of Myself (featuring LeAnn Rimes) 14. Last Time Last (featuring Maddie & Tae) Record label: Dreamcatcher Artists Release date: 3rd May 2024
See Tenille Arts on the to be honest world tour in the UK this September – tickets on sale from 10 AM today at https://www.tenillearts.com/:
4 September – St Luke's, Glasgow
5 September – Night & Day Cafe, Manchester
6 September – Lafayette, London
7 September – Small Town Big Music, Bristol
9 September – Hare & Hounds, Birmingham
