December 13th will mark the four year anniversary of Taylor Austin Dye’s introduction to country music fans with her debut single, “Mean.”
In the four years that have followed, Dye has established, built and grown a passionate fanbase, known as the Ride or Dyes, that have helped her earn iTunes chart success several times over, build a social media audience hundreds of thousands strong, and are showing up in droves as she brings her music around the country.
Most recently, those Ride or Dyes lifted her debut album, Out of These Hills, into the top ten on the iTunes chart, helping to make the years-long journey towards its release a massive success.
We chatted with Dye all about Out of These Hills, her journey towards its release, hitting the road, new music and more!
Pro Country: As we write this, your February single, “Rest in Peace,” is quickly approaching three million streams on Spotify alone, its music video is coming up on two million views and you’ve topped 140,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Can you put into words what 2023 has been like for you so far both personally and professionally ahead of the release of your debut album, Out of These Hills?
Taylor Austin Dye: 2023 has been quite a whirlwind year for me. It started off in January with “RIP” going viral several times over on social media, and we moved as quickly as possible to release it just a month later. From then, I have had so many incredible opportunities and lots of industry interest. I decided “Bible Belt” would be a good follow up to “RIP” and it also went viral on socials. From there, we acquired Billboard write-ups, top charting positions and radio play, which earned me a spot on the Music Row Breakout Chart. It has been surreal to watch my numbers not only online, but also seeing my shows grow. I have been writing so much this year, so it only made sense to follow up with an album! I put my heart and soul into these songs, and I can only hope they come across that way!
PC You first mentioned beginning writing for Out of These Hills to us in the middle of last year. With the album now released, what emotions do you feel with seeing the work you put into the album come to fruition?
TAD: I think the biggest emotion I’m feeling currently is pride. I have worked so hard on perfecting these songs and making sure they were authentically me, so when I sit back and analyze the album, I can honestly say I’m proud of what I’ve put out into the ears of my fans. I’m also just incredibly thankful that I have been surrounded by the best team, producers, engineers, players, and just good people throughout this whole process, which has made it truly enjoyable for me.
PC: Out of These Hills charted at number 10 on the iTunes pre-order chart on release week and also landed in the top 10 on release day as well. Leading up to release day, how important was it for you to see the support the album was already receiving and to follow it up with that same performance on release day?
TAD: If there’s one thing I know, it’s that my “Ride or Dyes” have my back. When I came to them and asked them to pre-save the album, the numbers started pouring in. I think the album initially charted at 7 on the iTunes country chart. We were on a plane heading to BeachLife Festival in California, and when we touched down, I was absolutely thrilled to see it up there among some of my favorite artists.
PC: The title for Out of These Hills comes from your June single, “Bible Belt.” What drew you to that title and why did you feel it encapsulated the album?
TAD: If you’ve talked to me for more than 30 seconds, I’m sure you’ll figure out that I’m from eastern Kentucky. Growing up in the hills of Appalachia has really impacted me not only as an artist, but as a person. In 2018, I got “out of these hills” and moved to Nashville, but those hills are still a huge part of my life and what has molded me into who I am today. The songs I included on this album are stories of my life: past and present. They are songs that came out of those hills and songs that came from me since I got out of those hills.
PC: You lost your father in April, and you’ve said that you wrote “The Green Truck” about a week later. What was the experience of writing the song so soon after his passing like? Was it difficult to get the words out of did it come together easily?
TAD: I wrote “The Green Truck” one week after my father passed. I walked into the studio to meet my co-writer, Richie Sessions, and we immediately hit it off. We started sharing stories of our lives and he started talking about his relationship with his dad and how he wanted to write a song about it. We both figured out that even though the situations were a bit different, we both had difficult relationships with our fathers and they both had green Fords at one point or another. From there, the song poured out with our shared experiences. We wrote and demoed the entire thing in 45 minutes. It was one of those songs that begged to be written, and the universe delivered that day.
PC: We share a mutual love for cheating ballads. That said, “I Don’t Wanna Understand” is one of our favorite songs on Out of These Hills, which you co-wrote with “Damage Inc.,” Nicole Croteau and Chris Utley. Can you take us in the room and talk about how the song came together?
TAD: We had written this song back in January while doing an in town “retreat” where we all basically holed up in the studio for three days and just wrote a ton of stuff. I remember going into the write that day and we were just sharing stories of our lives and we hit a sore subject in my life that I expanded on. See above “difficult relationship with dad.” I expanded on some things that had happened with my family over the last 15 years, and this song was born. Although it isn’t written from my perspective, this song is deeply personal for me.
PC: To that point, you co-wrote five of the nine songs on Out of These Hills with Nicole and Chris. How special and rare is the chemistry you have together in writing rooms?
TAD: It isn’t often you’re able to find chemistry like “Damage Inc.” has found over the last year. I consider Nicole and Chris some of my best friends, and it is truly just FUN to sit down with them and bring a song to life. To be honest, most of our time is spent catching up on each other’s lives and shooting the shit. The rest is when the magic happens.
PC: “She’s Superman” closes Out of These Hills with a touching, acoustic to single moms. How important was it for you to thematically include the song on Out of These Hills, but to also offer that side of your sound to close the album?
TAD: “She’s Superman” is another one of those story songs that are just so important to me. I have so much respect for single moms (and even moms that aren’t single that feel alone in raising their kids) so I knew I wanted to include this on the album. My mom is my best friend and biggest supporter. I couldn’t imagine life without her by my side. I drew the inspiration for this song from her unwavering love and hardworking mindset of never giving up and never letting anything get her down. I hope I am half the woman she is one day. I hope this song is closure for all the single moms out there. I hope when they hear it, they know they’re doing the best they can and their kids will appreciate them more than they know.
PC: What do you hope listeners take away from Out of These Hills after listening all the way through?
TAD: When I listen back to the album, top to bottom, I honestly think there is a song for everyone on it. From party songs, to grief, to struggle, to just fun, I wanted everyone to be able to relate to something on Out Of These Hills. I hope when listeners hear it, they’re offered a small glimpse into my life and they’re able to share in those emotions with me.
PC: You have a good handful of shows lined up for the rest of the year across seven states, including an opening slot for Eli Young Band. How much are you looking forward to bringing Out of These Hillson the road and making new fans on the way?
TAD: The boys and I have spent a lot of time really honing in on our new material, and we are more than excited to play these songs for new audiences around the nation. We’ve been giving sneak peeks at several shows over the last month, and they have been received incredibly well! We can’t wait to see the response from the Ride or Dyes moving forward.
PC: With Out of These Hills now released, what do you have planned to close the year and going into 2024?
TAD: As we close the year out, we’re still playing a ton of shows across the US, and I’m still focusing on writing new songs! I already have so much I want to share; it’s hard to not throw everything all out at once! You can definitely expect new music from me soon.
*Taylor’s music is featured on The Best of Pro Country playlist!*
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