Russell Dickerson, a dynamic force in modern country music, honed his skills at Belmont University in Nashville, where he studied music and developed his songwriting and performing abilities. Dickerson's breakthrough came with his debut single ‘Yours' in 2015, a deeply personal love song that quickly garnered attention for its sincerity and catchy melody. The song's success was followed by his debut album of the same name, which produced multiple chart-topping hits and solidified his place in the country music scene.
Since then, Dickerson has continued to rise in prominence, known for his energetic live performances and relatable, heartfelt songs. Beyond his music, Dickerson is recognised for his genuine connection with fans and his positive, down-to-earth personality, his love for his family and his willingness in trying to put a smile on everyone's face. As he works his way towards the release of his fourth album, we were excited to catch up with him to talk about the release of new song, ‘Bones,' (out today, July 12th) his current tour with Sam Hunt and his return to the UK in August to headline the Long Road festival and play some shows of his own too.
Thanks for talking to us today, Russell. It's always lovely to speak to you. How are you?
I'm wonderful, thank you for your time.
There's a lot going on in the world of Russell Dickerson right now! It's great you are coming back for UK shows in August. Headlining the Long Road festival and playing some headline shows of your own.
Oh man, it's so great. We try to come over every year now but last year was just too crazy with having a baby and all that. It's always good to come back and play for our fans in the UK.
You've been a regular visitor over the past few years. What similarities and differences do you see between your UK fans and your American ones?
The main thing is probably when we play the slower, more intimate songs everybody is so tuned and dialled in and respectful. But then when we rock it up a little, they completely take over the show, you know? They turn it into a soccer stadium chant! (laughing)
I feel like America is a little more down the middle. They get a little rowdy, we drink a little bit and sing along for some of the songs but the UK and European fans are with you every step of the way.
To headline the Saturday night at the Long Road festival is a cool accolade.
Yeah, man, that's huge. That show is the anchor of the entire tour – we've built all the other shows around the festival.
If you can imagine a house from Bridgerton or Downton Abbey – that's what you are going to be playing infront of on the Long Road stage!
Wow! That's insane. Let's go! My wife has been watching Bridgerton, she'll have to help me with the British accent, right?
You've kicked off the next phase of your career with ‘Good Day to Have a Great Day' which is bursting in positivity. Tell me about writing it and why it's the lead for this next part of your career.
I feel like a lot of times music can get so serious and I wanted to come out with something fun. I love the vibe and the message in this song and I didn't want to overthink it – let's just put it out.
I wanted to kick the next phase off in a positive way. There's so many whiskey and break up songs around right now, so many angry songs in Country music and I'm like, ‘There's so much negativity in the world right now, why would you contribute more?' I wanted to make people's days better. I'd rather put a smile on someone's face than the opposite.
You're following it up with ‘Bones' (out today – July 12th) Looking at the buzz around this song I get the feeling it's going to be a big one for you. Are you feeling the same?
Yeah, I honestly am. Even within my team before we put anything out, we were all buzzing about this song. It feels like a big moment for me – we are going into my fourth album with this song, the true debut single for the project. I knew it, no pun intended, in my bones, that this was the song to push things forward and take us to the next level.
Did you sit in the writing room that day with the express intention of writing a song about your wife and your family?
I knew that I had the title ‘Bones' and I thought we could get something unexpected and impactful out of it. It wasn't a morbid, tell the gravedigger that you'd better dig two, type of idea. I think that's why the song is resonating with people already – it's a cool juxtaposition in terms of what you would think would be a morbid vibe that is actually a love song!
I went to my go-to writers and pitched them the idea of ‘Bones' and started playing the guitar part, the chord progression and we started chipping away at the story and the progression of the story. I feel like it is such a well written song although sometimes that doesn't matter if the emotion doesn't connect with people. I feel like this one does. I still get chills every time I hear this song and I've heard it 4,000 times! (laughing) It's one of those ‘I can't believe this is actually one of my songs' type of songs! (laughing)
When you go to the Instagram post where you are teasing the song there are lots of artists on the thread, like Thomas Rhett, Natalie Stovall, Kylie Morgan, expressing their support for you. Do you have a trusted mentor or artist in the industry that you run your ideas by at all?
Absolutely. And Thomas Rhett is one of those. We both have a high respect for each other's artistry. He came over not so long ago and played me his entire new record – I was so proud of him. He's produced something that only Thomas Rhett can do on this next record. Then I played him some of my songs and we bounced ideas off each other. We have very honest conversations too, that's how I know I can trust him.
Tyler Hubbard is another great buddy of mine. Me, TR and Tyler all wrote a song together on his last record. I trust what he has to say about things.
Talking about special people, you are out on tour with Sam Hunt right now for a string of dates across the summer. How have the first shows gone?
Incredible. There are so many parallels between his crowds and mine. There are quite a lot of his fans that know my music, they know ‘Yours' and ‘Blue Tacoma' and they are singing them and recognising who I am. Then we play ‘Love You Like I Used To' and ‘She Likes It' and they are, like, holy shit, this is that guy!! (laughing) So I think I am doing quite well on the fan conversion and crossover rate out with Sam.
You and Sam are both muscular guys these days. Who would win in an arm wrestle between the two of you?
Ohhhhh, man. I think he would. I will humbly admit that. We were working out the other day and we started off on a kind of similar playing field and then he stepped it up a little too far past my abilities. (laughing) I mean, he was a football player and I was a band nerd! (laughing) I feel like I have the ‘most improved' award from where I started from to where I am now, though!
You've mentioned RD4 a couple of times now. Are ‘Good Day…..' and ‘Bones' going to be part of a wider body of work coming down the line and do you have any ballpark estimates as to when that might be at all?
I don't have a ball park right now. There will definitely either be a smaller sampling of songs, like an EP later this year or it'll be a full blown album in early 2025. It's my fourth album so do we do four EPs with 4 songs each on? I want to do something really cool and unique rather than just putting out twelve new songs, I think.
Does the business side of how we release music intrude on your thoughts at all? Things are still quite wild west out there in that no-one really knows how to release music anymore in the most effective way.
I always watch people and how they release songs. Is it 4? Is it 6? Is it 12? Is it 70? You know, Morgan Wallen put out about 500 songs on one album, right? (laughing) I leave the main business up to my team though – they are so locked in and constantly analysing data and streams. I write the songs and record them, then it's up to those guys to figure out the best way of releasing them. Team work makes the dream work!!! (laughing)
Check out Russell Dickerson's new song ‘Bones' which is released in all the usual places today, July 12th. Tickets for the Long Road festival and his UK tour are available right here.
