After releasing her debut single “(You Had Me At) Double Wide” in November, Krystal King is back in a big way with her sophomore single “90 Proof.”
While “Double Wide” featured a more traditional country sound and a lyric that describes falling for someone, King is putting her rock and blues roots on display with her second single. With an powerful vocal that delivers a tale of overcoming odds in a relationship, King hit a home run sonically.
King says releasing the songs in that order was important, and that “90 Proof” is a song that is close to her heart.
“I absolutely love ‘(You Had Me At) Double Wide,’ but I have to say that ‘90 Proof’ is kind of my baby. It was a solo write that has been edited with the help of a few mentors and NSAI critiques. It not only tells my story of moving to Nashville with my husband in the lyrics, but also in the creation of the song,” says King. “I wrote it while finishing college and an internship and taking a job in Charlotte. It had some re-writes while living there and making the leap to move to Music City. Finally seeing it come to life in Nashville is just so special. I couldn’t wait to release it.”
King says that although her two singles are quite different sonically, they both draw from the same influences and came to life with the help of her producer.
“They are such different songs sonically, but I also love that despite the different sounds of the songs, they both feature real instrumentation and inspiration of either traditional country sounds or blues,” says King. “I grew up listening to solely country music, but have grown to enjoy other styles over the years while still keeping my roots in country. In college and over the past few years, many people have said that I have a voice for blues. I love being able to play with different influences as I discover my own sound, but also show different sides of myself. When playing ‘90 Proof’ with my band, it seemed to keep turning into more of a rock song. My producer, Mike Loudermilk, did such an amazing job of capturing my vision and creating a rocking blues drive, but also keeping the porch jam country feel.”
“90 Proof” comes from a real place for King, and discusses overcoming odds in both music and love, while also adding an additional storytelling element.
“I started writing the song after I finished my college internship and was deciding on my next steps. I had always wanted to move to Nashville, so the song is kind of about that dream and overcoming the odds both in music and in love! I wanted to write a ‘Livin’ on Love’ song, so parts of the song are true, and some parts are fabricated,” says King. “I was dating my now husband at the time and he is ‘the drummer in the band.’ I also have brown eyes and ‘dream of big city lights.’ We aren’t from Texas; Texas was just fewer syllables than North Carolina! We also actually met during high school band camp rather than a bar, but that is the beauty of songwriting.”
With her music career already off to a strong start, King says she is continuing to learn along the way and enjoy each stop along the way.
“I think that I’m just learning to enjoy the journey. There are so many levels of being an artist and songwriter. While I’ve worked on being more disciplined, I’m also learning that it doesn’t have to happen overnight,” says King. “I think overall, that has helped me lead a more balanced life. I’ve been playing more, writing more, releasing more, and living more so that I can have things to write about!”
King hopes to build on the momentum of her first two singles in 2020 by honing her songwriting craft and continuing to release music.
“I just want to continue to build momentum! I’m trying to do more shows and expand my fan base to different areas. I’m also trying to build my portfolio as a songwriter, both for myself and for other artists,” says King. “Lastly, I am trying to release material more often. We did the ‘Love Song Series’ in January, and we are releasing the single this month. We are hoping to work on music videos soon, identify the next single and plan for a possible EP!”
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