by mariah estran
photo courtesy of tara kelly
Tara Kelly, the cosmic country/pop songstresses, took the rollercoaster emotions of a past relationship shattered by infidelity and created “The River." While described as a “stomp and holler break-up anthem," the lyrics depict a stormy night drive as Kelly’s powerful vocals reveal her journey with her new reality.
Earlier this month, the singer released the music video for the track. Collaborating with director Justin Keanu, they drew from southern imagery and found a way to make a storm in a rainless L.A.
The single might reveal one heavy story from her book, but she's still got more lessons to share.
We spoke with the singer to learn more about the creation of “The River,” her genre-bending style, truthful songwriting, and what we can expect from her next.
You’ve recently released your break-up anthem, “The River." What was the process like creating this song?
Tara: “I made this song with co-writers who are now two of my favorite collaborators in the world (Stefan PVDS and Alex Wilke.) We’d all never written together before, but I had a really rough break-up story about a guy I dated who was already married and the title ‘The River’ as a general concept. As soon as Stefan started playing this eerie E-minor riff, we knew we had something really special, and the song basically fell out of us. It only took about an hour to finish it. It was one of those rare, magical studio moments that you wish could happen every day, but then they wouldn’t be as precious.”
The visual for this track brings out the feelings of an up-and-down relationship. Tell us more about the inspiration for this music video.
T: “The song is filled with river and nature metaphors, but I didn’t want to take that too literally in the video. I came to the director, Justin Keanu, with the concept of sensual, southern imagery that you might find in an episode of True Detective or Vampire Diaries. I wanted to paint a world with the song, the camera, and the editing where the viewer could feel how quickly love rises and falls, and all of the memories that are so hard to get out of your mind when it ends.
Fun fact: the car shots in the rain were an idea from the director to mirror the thunder sounds at the end of the recording, but we were shooting in LA where it notoriously never rains. Our friend and YouTuber, Louis Cole, helped us by standing on an apple box and holding a garden hose over the car. It legitimately felt like a torrential downpour on the windows!”
photo courtesy of tara kelly
You have this sound that incorporates country/folk roots with a pop flare. How have you developed your sound over the years?
T: “I LOVE genre-bending, and I appreciate when my fans and friends recognize the nuances because it’s exactly the sound I’ve always wanted to create. I’m deeply inspired by and find myself listening to a lot of traditional folk, country, and blues – where the guitar can take your soul to another place. But as a ‘90s kid, the tenants of pop are in my DNA, and I’ve written a lot of it over the years. I’m a firm believer that all good music – music that really resonates – is pop music at its core. It just feels right when I bring those worlds together. I want my music to feel truly accessible, like you know it already, while at the same time transporting you to a place you’ve never been.”
Who are some of your musical inspirations?
T: “I’m a major Fleetwood Mac fan – I feel like Stevie Nicks in general inspires every move I make. I take a lot of inspiration from Brandi Carlile, Kacey Musgraves, James Bay, and Fleet Foxes – artists that have paved the way for accessible, resonant folk music to transcend it’s traditional fan base. I think the modern country music lover takes many forms and I’m so honored to be creating in this corner of the genre.”
Your singles such as “Ghost Town" and “The River” share raw emotions regarding relationships and life experiences. How has songwriting helped you express your stories to your listeners?
T: “Songwriting is the only path to true expression I’ve ever really known. I’ve become much more open online than I was as a teenager, but even that vulnerability has a bit of a silver lining to it – like ‘I’ll share my struggles with y’all once I’ve figured it all out and put a bow on it.’ I’m trying to get better about sharing more of myself as a work-in-progress, even to my closest friends, but songs are just plain raw. They are that feeling, or that emotion, or that intensity you were feeling at a given moment. Even when there’s a lesson in there, it feels like you’re re-learning it every time you play the record. That’s why I love music this much. It’s your life, encapsulated in time. I feel that when I listen to artists I love and I hope the fans feel it when they listen to my work.”
As for what is next, after these two tracks, will there be an EP or album in the works? If so, what can you tell us about it?
T: “New music is coming! The plan right now is to build on the musical world we created with ‘The River’ and take it even further. That may or may not mean a Joshua Tree themed EP… Stay tuned.”