Country Music Features

Charlie Starr discusses working with Dave Cobb, the cultural misconceptions highlighted within You Hear Georgia and how he makes sense of genre classifications.

Following the tragic sudden death of their co-founder Jason "Rowdy" Cope, The Steel Woods have released one of the finest, most personal and critically acclaimed albums of their already stellar career. Now, with the blessing of Cope’s family, the group are out on the road, celebrating the life of their friend and bandmate who in a short time left an indelible legacy.

Calling from a front porch swing on her Mt. Juliet, Tennessee farm with dog Whiskey by her side, Taylor candidly reflected on everything from using nature as inspiration to working on your own terms, while discussing the long and difficult road to releasing Real Me.

What’s particularly special about Russell’s choices and the stories behind them, is how they relate directly to the autobiographical nature of her own record. Having dealt with such trauma and abuse growing up, music and writing have been a vehicle for her to make sense of it and find her way out. Each of her choices tell part of that story.

If ‘What the Stars See’ is any example, Cassadee Pope is surely set to find even more success, and the sort of creative fulfilment her heroes and friends Fairchild and Ell have established - each in their own unique way.