Texan native Amanda Kate Ferris is capturing hearts with her new album ‘Rope the Wind,' a slick, passionate, and beautifully produced collection of songs. (Out today – July 26th) Growing up immersed in the sounds of 90s country icons like Wynonna Judd, Faith Hill, and Brooks & Dunn, Ferris also drew inspiration from pop powerhouses such as Celine Dion and Christina Aguilera. This eclectic mix of influences is evident in her powerful and emotive vocals, which are the cornerstone of her music.
Amanda's musical journey was profoundly shaped by her mother, Kathy Wright, a singer-songwriter with a storied career. Kathy was an original member of the Dean Martin Golddiggers, performing on The Dean Martin Show on NBC at the young age of 18. She also toured internationally with Bob Hope, performing in his USO-sponsored Christmas shows. Kathy's passion for music deeply influenced Amanda, who was introduced to the stage at just one week old, nestled in a bassinet while her mother performed.
By the age of two, Amanda was joining her mother on stage to sing each night. Her early experiences in music were further enriched by performing in church and singing original songs written by her mom. By the time she turned 14, Amanda was already singing professionally, showcasing her deep connection to country music and its industry. Life's twists and turns have taken her from the West Coast to Nashville to Texas, and all those journeys are reflected in the songs she sings on ‘Rope the Wind.' The album, produced by Jimmy Ritchey, features contributions from a roster of acclaimed writers and artists, including GRAMMY-winners Hillary Lindsey, Liz Rose, and Lori McKenna, as well as ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year Lainey Wilson.
We were thrilled to catch up with her to talk all about it.
Thank you for your time today Amanda, we know how busy you must be in release week! Are you planning anything special to mark the day?
We're actually playing a show at Texas Live which is a venue next to the stadium where Morgan Wallen is playing in Dallas! We're playing the post party which I've decided to hijack as my album release party too! (laughing)
Congratulations on the release of ‘Rope the Wind.' Were the newer songs that didn't feature on last year's ‘Pedal Steel' EP written recently or have you been sitting on them since the release of ‘Pedal Steel?'
A lot of them we did have. Originally my vision was to just put out a full album but nowadays you have to kinda trickle in some singles before an album because of the way streaming and algorithms are, you know?
We had the songs in pre-production and this grouping of songs I always saw as one collection. I knew this was always going to be the full album, we just released it in separate parts.
Did you put a lot of thought into the sequencing and how to integrate the older songs with the newer ones?
Yeah, that was a hard thing for me to do, trying to figure out where the songs went. I know that most people don't listen to albums in order anymore but I do! I listen to all my favourite albums in that way, like Faith Hill's ‘Cry' album. I had originally thought I might kick off the album with ‘Tequila and Jesus' but then that is such a strong song and I didn't know whether that was the first message I wanted people to hear. ‘Rope the Wind' turned out to be such a better opener with the emotion behind the song, it sets the tone for the rest of the album really well.
The hardest songs for me to place were ‘Are You a Real Cowboy' and ‘Chilli Pepper Lights.' ‘Are You a Real Cowboy' is a really original song and is quite different sounding to the rest of the album, as is ‘Chilli Pepper Lights' and the two songs are so very different in tone and sound. We listened to it so many times to get it right.
What was it about ‘Rope the Wind' that made you want to call the album after that song?
What that song and title visually inspires is so powerful. It talks about doing the impossible, which has been the story of my career, really. I'm always reaching for something that I've been told a million times I can't do. I've been told a million times that it's impossible to have a career in Country music – you know, if you haven't made it by the time you are 25 years old the likelihood is you are not going to make it. Or it's because I'm female or because my music is ‘too country.'
It feels like I've always been trying to rope the wind, right? ‘In This Town' was also up for consideration as a title but I ultimately felt like it was a little too safe a title.
I feel like ‘Are You a Real Cowboy' could have a life outside the album given what artists like Ella Langley and Riley Green are doing what right. What led you to Jenee Fleenor as a partner on that track?
Jenee is probably the most talented individual I've ever met. Beyond that, she's so kind and I've always loved her voice alongside her fiddle playing. I heard her sing for the first time live when she was playing fiddle with Trent Willmon and she sang a Pam Tillis song or something and I was, like, ‘Gosh, she's such a great singer too!' Jenee loves Country music so much and as soon as we thought about turning ‘Are You a Real Cowboy' into a duet I knew that I had the perfect person for it!
In the song you say that a real cowboy would know Louis L'Amour – I'm claiming Englishness here but can you tell me who that is!
He was a poet – a western poet and novelist. Old school western poetry. There were so many references to Texas in that song. The video was really cool to shoot too.
‘Til the Day I Die' feels like it was specifically written for you. I can see why when you heard it you knew it was for you.
Yeah. Anna Voss was the writer on that one, alongside Connie Harrington. She has a similar story to me, which I found interesting. She grew up in Southern California too so when I heard it I was, like, this could have easily been me too! It also had that 90s Country feel. We took it in a little bit of a different direction for me, from the demo, but when I heard it it was too perfect for me not to record it.
It has become my concert opener too for most of my show.
I'm old enough to have lived through the Brat Pack era of the 1980s and ‘Chilli Pepper Lights' feels like it has been plucked from the soundtrack to ‘The Breakfast Club.'
Yes!! The funny thing with that track was that the demo of that song was even heavier on the Pop side, right? There was a lot of loops and things like that. I loved the lyrics and the feel of the song so I wanted to try it and see how it worked out for my sound. We started playing it live to try it out and everyone loved it, it became a crowd favourite, people were requesting it at all the shows but there was some concern that it didn't really fit with my sound or style but I thought it did.
I grew up listening to every genre you could imagine. Country was home to me but I listened to other artists like Celine Dion so this song is a nod to those other influences. I was like, ‘we're putting this on the album,' and if I was the only one who thought it should be on there then we'll do it!
The album closes down with ‘Build a Life,' which is a solo write of yours. It must be very meaningful to you?
Two EPs ago I kinda started making the decision that if I was going to use outside writers on my songs then the last song on every project has to be mine. We did that with ‘Little Girl' on my first EP and I wanted to include ‘Build a Life.' When my mom passed away, I had so many songs that I had written for her, about her, you know but I wasn't ready to do a full album of those songs.
I think ‘Build a Life' is relatable enough for my fans who know me to understand why that song is there but for people who are hearing me for the first time to enjoy the song and relate it to their own lives. It is such an honour to have this song on my album alongside the raft of fantastic writers we have used on this project. I don't perform ‘Build a Life' live a lot because it's quite hard, emotionally, for me to sing it as it's so personal but I think it's a great way to close down this album and give people a hint of what the next project we are starting to work on might sound like. I want the next project to be a little more personal, this album is so heavy towards the genre of Country music that I want the next project to be a little more singer-songwriter and feature a bit more storytelling.
Congratulations on ‘Tequila & Jesus' getting to number one on Texas radio. Have you managed to speak to Lainey Wilson about it?
In November of last year we were both in Fort Worth and we ran into each other in a hotel. I told her, at that time, that we had just sent ‘Tequila & Jesus' to radio, it hadn't gone to number one yet but I did tell her we had sent it. She had just won ACM Entertainer of the Year so it was a really cool moment to give her a hug and grab a photo with her but I haven't seen her since but it would be cool to run into her again and thank her for my first number one!
With the family, the ranch, a day job and your music – how do you manage it all?
Gosh! The lord, Jesus himself, I don't know! (laughing) Honestly, juggling it all is hard at times. I have an incredible team around me that helps me with so much stuff, from my husband to my in-laws to my neighbours, even at times, they all help. I'm so blessed. It takes a village and a lot of scheduling and I feel hugely supported by people who want me to win just as much as I do!
You've sung the national anthem at plenty of ball games and rodeos in your time. I don't to make pass judgement on Ingrid Andress here, that isn't my place or yours, but I wanted to ask you, given Parker McCollum recently said he'd never do it because it's a lose-lose situation for an artist, do you get nervous beforehand and have you ever underperformed or felt like Parker does?
You know I view it differently and I got into a little trouble on Facebook because I commented on that exact quote from Parker. He essentially didn't see the upside of doing it but I don't look at the national anthem as a win for me, it's just an honour to be asked to sing it. My husband is a police officer so I've done it for events there, I've done it for NFL games, MLB, rodeos and I'm incredibly nervous every time because everyone is expecting you to mess it up but I'm also incredibly honoured.
It's not my song, it's not about me it's about freedom and fallen soldiers that preserve that freedom. It's such a powerful song and I would be disappointed in myself if I did mess it up but I go into it and hand over to the Lord and hope people see the flag and feel the importance of the song and don't focus on me singing it. I've started it in the wrong key a couple of times, which is rough, but that's where all of my vocal training comes into play (laughing) – I've done it enough times where I feel pretty good about it now. It is the hardest song to sing, hands down, but it's such an honour.
Check out Amanda Kate Ferris' terrific new album ‘Rope the Wind' which is out in all the usual places today (July 26th)
