"We Had Nothing Except For A Lot of Love": Naomi Johnson Maps An Unconventional Upbringing in New Single 'Bricks Make Houses'

"Bricks make houses," Naomi Johnson sings against the compassionate strings of her new single, affirming shortly after that it's really the people within those walls that make a home. The artist understands, all too well, how true that is.

Released Friday (Mar. 21), the delicate tune, simply titled 'Bricks Make Houses', is an autobiographical one, its tender lyrics describing Johnson's unconventional upbringing.

As she tells Holler, “This song is a detailed description of what it was like for me growing up in a bus and old condemned farm houses with my 10 siblings. We were food bank, food stamp, unschooled kids who shared 1 bathroom, beds and shoes. We had nothing except for a lot of love and that armored us for life more than any purchased 'thing' ever could."

'Bricks Make Houses' arrives to kickstart a new musical era for Johnson, formerly of Runaway June fame, a fresh direction that was sparked after a dire experience bringing her daughter into the world.

“I had a near-death experience during childbirth," she explains, "and it made me wonder, if I didn't survive, would the music I left behind allow my daughter to get to know me? The music I had put out before didn't tell my story—not really.”

She's made every effort to remedy that, stepping back into the world of country music with the promise of many more vulnerable and revealing offerings on the way. “If my daughter ever listens to this upcoming project from start to finish, she'll really know me—not just as an artist, but as a woman, a mother, a wife, and a friend," she continues. "And that feels really good to me.”