I sat down with country-rock artist Will Day to discuss his recent single ‘Home Town’, his experiences writing and recording in Nashville, and the unique joys of being a festival performer. [NB: He’s since released the single ‘My Kinda Crowd’ – it took me longer than usual to post this interview due to the fact that, well, this is a solo operation and sometimes I can’t keep up!]
Day, who hails from south-east Queensland, has been making waves in the country music scene with his blend of country rock and heartfelt storytelling. His recent trip to Nashville proved to be a pivotal moment, both professionally and creatively.
‘It's been a goal of mine to get to Nashville for quite a few years,’ Will shared. ‘I wanted to go as an artist and songwriter.’
Day is the Head of Music at JMC Academy and travelled to Tennessee to present a paper at the International Country Music Conference, exploring the changing landscape of Australian country music production and its place in the international market. He stayed on for another week to do some co-writing and perform.
‘I wrote “Home Town” and I squeezed in six co-writes in about five days,’ he says. ‘I got to play a show on Broadway, which was absolutely awesome.’
‘Home Town’ is a breakup song, written with Bill DiLuigi and Scott Barrier, and it’s a slower tempo than a lot of Day’s songs.
‘I didn't think I was going to write any ballads over there at all because I don't write that many ballads anymore,’ Day says, although the finish product belies this. ‘But we had this song, and I just said, “You know, I really like this song. I want to release it.”’
He then took the song to producer Jared Adlam, and the result is a song that showcases Day’s voice capturing the emotional essence of the track.
Beyond the studio, Day is a seasoned festival performer. At the time we spoke he was gearing up for the Groundwater Country Music Festival on the Gold Coast, which has now happened but, hey, I left it in the interview because it was part of the conversation and it’s still interesting to hear Day talk about playing festivals which have, he says, taught him the importance of stagecraft and connecting with the audience.
‘If you signify to the audience when you walk on stage that you are there and you're comfortable and you're happy and you're going to have fun, then the audience relaxes,’ he says.
One special audience will be aboard Day’s upcoming Christmas Cruise on the Brisbane River on 9 November, where he'll be hosting a line-up of special guest artists and raising funds for a local charity.
Day is also looking ahead to a new album, the successor to his debut LP Countrified, which he released in 2021. While working on that, he’ll also be playing live, which is pretty much his natural habitat. You can catch him live at the following shows:
Saturday 9th November
Country Christmas Cruise
Brisbane QLD
Friday 15th November
Dirty Harry’s
Toowoomba QLD
Saturday 16th November
Roma Cup
Roma QLD
Saturday 30th November
Goondiwindi Races
Goondiwindi QLD
Friday 13th December
Dirty Harry’s
Toowoomba QLD
Saturday 14th December
Moree Races
Moree NSW
Listen to Will Day on Apple Music
Listen to Will Day on Spotify
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