The Sit Down with Erin Kinsey
Being proficient playing no less than seven different instruments and heading straight to music city as soon as she finished high school, Erin Kinsey has had a desire to succeed in country music from a young age and continued to flourish in 2021 when she signed to RECORDS Nashville, a prominent joint venture with Sony Music. Since then, she has a pair of EP’s and her connection to her audience as both a songwriter and performer has resulted in over one hundred and ten million streams to cement her status as one of Nashville’s hottest emerging stars.
Following previous trips across the pond for C2C: Country to Country in both 2016 and 2022, the 24 year old is about to return to the UK for a run of shows with Restless Road on their nine date international “Last Rodeo Tour”.
Following previous trips across the pond for C2C: Country to Country in both 2016 and 2022, the 24 year old is about to return to the UK for a run of shows with Restless Road on their nine date international “Last Rodeo Tour”.
Before the tour made its way to Great Britain, there were European dates in the Netherlands and Germany, where ahead of the show in Munich, Erin jumped on Zoom to chat with Jamie and let us know how the run has been going so far.
Hey girl, how you doing?
“Hi, how are you? I'm doing good.”
I am too, thank you for taking time chat with today.
“Thank you for having me.”
How’s it all been going so far? Have you managed to see much of Berlin and Amsterdam the last couple of days?
“You know what, we got to walk around Berlin a little bit but we really got to walk around Amsterdam. I feel like the venue we played was more in the heart of the city, so we got to just like walk around and see everything. Then today actually this morning we already went to the Christmas market here in Munich.”
Well, if you like the Christmas markets, you get the real treat tomorrow in Cologne.
“That’s what I’ve heard. We got to go out a little bit this morning but tomorrow we are trying to give ourselves a big chunk of time.”
Oh definitely, if you can get two or three hours tomorrow, you have to make the most of it and explore because it’s such a pretty city and it’s where all the Brits go to if they are heading to the winter markets on the continent. It’s so cute there and there is a stunning cathedral right at the heart of the city which you can see from miles away.
“Oh, I can’t wait to see it, I’m even more excited now.”
I know that you've been on the road with Zach, Colton and Garrett before but how is it being able to tour around Europe with those Restless Road boys?
“You know what, it truly is an honour to get to come over here with them and it's so nice, I'm experiencing pretty much all of these cities and like parts of the world for the first time so, to know them and have like family over here is awesome.”
I know that you went to Oslo quite recently and we will come to Norway in a bit, but had you actually been to mainland Europe before that trip or had you only been to the UK in the past?
“I've come over to Europe for Country to Country festival twice but just in the UK. Once we just went to London and then the other time I played London and Glasgow. That's it and I mean, we barely spent, twelve hours in each city which was crazy.”
Hey girl, how you doing?
“Hi, how are you? I'm doing good.”
I am too, thank you for taking time chat with today.
“Thank you for having me.”
How’s it all been going so far? Have you managed to see much of Berlin and Amsterdam the last couple of days?
“You know what, we got to walk around Berlin a little bit but we really got to walk around Amsterdam. I feel like the venue we played was more in the heart of the city, so we got to just like walk around and see everything. Then today actually this morning we already went to the Christmas market here in Munich.”
Well, if you like the Christmas markets, you get the real treat tomorrow in Cologne.
“That’s what I’ve heard. We got to go out a little bit this morning but tomorrow we are trying to give ourselves a big chunk of time.”
Oh definitely, if you can get two or three hours tomorrow, you have to make the most of it and explore because it’s such a pretty city and it’s where all the Brits go to if they are heading to the winter markets on the continent. It’s so cute there and there is a stunning cathedral right at the heart of the city which you can see from miles away.
“Oh, I can’t wait to see it, I’m even more excited now.”
I know that you've been on the road with Zach, Colton and Garrett before but how is it being able to tour around Europe with those Restless Road boys?
“You know what, it truly is an honour to get to come over here with them and it's so nice, I'm experiencing pretty much all of these cities and like parts of the world for the first time so, to know them and have like family over here is awesome.”
I know that you went to Oslo quite recently and we will come to Norway in a bit, but had you actually been to mainland Europe before that trip or had you only been to the UK in the past?
“I've come over to Europe for Country to Country festival twice but just in the UK. Once we just went to London and then the other time I played London and Glasgow. That's it and I mean, we barely spent, twelve hours in each city which was crazy.”
Going back to when you came over before, obviously the first time you came over to do C2C you were very young but I guess before you'd been over, you would have heard from people back at home talk about these mythical beings in Europe who are very quiet throughout your performances, they've listened to songs you've only done like little snippets of on YouTube and know all the words to whatever you have put out, so did it live up to all your expectations and somewhere you really enjoyed playing?
“For sure, the second time we came over to C2C, it was crazy to see that when we played in the arena on the pop-up stage. Even in the arena, it felt like that you could hear a pin drop which was crazy. Last night in Berlin, it felt like the crowd was truly in for whatever I had in store for the show. Sometimes you feel like you're fighting, you know, people getting drinks, wanting to talk or other things going on but it felt like they were truly just there to see whatever we had to do. Me and my band are really proud of our show, so it was exciting to get to play it for people who seemed like they were really liking it.”
For the people that did see you on your previous trips to C2C and have followed your career since, what do you think that they will see in terms of the evolution of your music and as an artist but also what do you think you learned as an artist since you first came over eight years ago?
“I mean in eight years I've learned a tonne. More than anything, the biggest and most obvious difference is I have my whole band with me this time. I guess the first time I had a band, but it was one I hadn't like come up with a full show with and I was just starting to play with the band truly, then the second time I came over it was duo acoustic. Now I have songs that I'm prouder of, a band I'm so proud of and a show I'm proud of. Honestly people in the UK and over here have really hung on with me whilst I've tried to figure out exactly how I want to do this artist thing and my brand. I feel like I've kind of figured out something at least for now so, I'm excited to get to show them the whole package in my opinion of what we’ve got.”
“For sure, the second time we came over to C2C, it was crazy to see that when we played in the arena on the pop-up stage. Even in the arena, it felt like that you could hear a pin drop which was crazy. Last night in Berlin, it felt like the crowd was truly in for whatever I had in store for the show. Sometimes you feel like you're fighting, you know, people getting drinks, wanting to talk or other things going on but it felt like they were truly just there to see whatever we had to do. Me and my band are really proud of our show, so it was exciting to get to play it for people who seemed like they were really liking it.”
For the people that did see you on your previous trips to C2C and have followed your career since, what do you think that they will see in terms of the evolution of your music and as an artist but also what do you think you learned as an artist since you first came over eight years ago?
“I mean in eight years I've learned a tonne. More than anything, the biggest and most obvious difference is I have my whole band with me this time. I guess the first time I had a band, but it was one I hadn't like come up with a full show with and I was just starting to play with the band truly, then the second time I came over it was duo acoustic. Now I have songs that I'm prouder of, a band I'm so proud of and a show I'm proud of. Honestly people in the UK and over here have really hung on with me whilst I've tried to figure out exactly how I want to do this artist thing and my brand. I feel like I've kind of figured out something at least for now so, I'm excited to get to show them the whole package in my opinion of what we’ve got.”
You moved up to Nashville straight from high school but being from just outside DFW, I’m hoping you were raised right and still cheer on the Cowboys, Mavs, Stars and Rangers.
“Oh yes, of course!”
Excellent, that’s great to hear that you've not defected to those dirty Tennessee Titans which so many people seem to do when they move to town.
“No Way!”
Good girl, I’m proud of you and I know that we suck at the minute but there are far worse teams to be rooting for as I unfortunately am also plagued by the Cowboys ruining most of my weekends at the minute.
“I was walking around the Christmas markets in Munich this morning and saw a guy in a Dallas Cowboys jacket and I was like, yes, go Cowboys, not this season but we’ll be back. It’s cool and I heard they do an NFL game here in Munich.”
Yeah, it’s wild how it’s growing but coming back to growing up in north Texas, why did you decide to pursue country music in Nashville when you left high school rather than pushing the Texas system which has its own district and strong scene? What appealed to you more about moving to Nashville?
“You know, I think growing up closer to Dallas, I grew up on mainstream country music more than anything. I grew up on Miranda Lambert and Cody Johnson, but also Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley who they were all in Nashville. My family made a trip pretty early on up to Nashville, I was maybe 12 years old, but we went for a family vacation where we went to the Grand Old Opry, went to Dollywood and did all the touristy things then I just really fell in love with it. I started making connections super early on there and just felt welcomed into the community so, it felt like the next natural thing to do. There is a part of me that wonders how it would have played out if I would have hung around Texas a little longer but luckily I get to go home a lot and have gotten to play a lot of hometown shows so, it's I feel like I'm getting both sides of the coin.”
Let's talk about this cool little EP that you’ve recently put out so, firstly why did you decide that “Gettin' Away With It” was going to be the title track and the focus point to bring all of those tracks together?
“It is the focus track but more than anything it's kind of how I feel that phrase of getting away with it. It's just kind of how I feel about my music and my artistry right now. The first thing that comes to mind and my sister styles me, I now have opportunities to work on some of the best stylists in Nashville but I just like what my sister picks out and I feel like I'm just really getting to be myself on and off stage, in the music and in my real life where it feels like it should be harder than that. So, it feels like I'm just kind of getting away with it and people are liking it, it's working and they're allowing me to do it so, I just feel really lucky for that and that's how I ended up taking the title to be that.”
Of the eight tracks, you co-wrote seven of them, “Trouble” is the tracks that you didn't write and I see that was a Laura Veltz, Joybeth Taylor and Sam Ellis song. How did that track end up getting its way to you and what was it that you felt you really connected you with that track that you wanted to cut it?
“Well, when we were putting the project together, I communicated to my team that I would really love to find an outside cut. I had never done that before and you know, I've gotten to be a part of the Nashville writing community for so long and gotten to be in so many great writers' rooms and while I'm out playing shows, while I'm out filming videos, while I'm out doing God knows what, there's some people who are writing songs every single one of those days. It just kind of breaks my heart the idea of just because an artist didn't happen to be in the room, that day that the song never gets to see the light of day. I communicated to my publishers and my AR reps that I’d really wanna do that if we can find something that fits, I don't want to force anything, but if we find something, I'd really love to do that. Then I heard “Trouble” and I liked it, but my A&R rep was like you would sing this so good and I was like, you know what? I trust you. The second we started singing it in the studio, I couldn't believe that it wasn't a song I didn't write. I never knew I could connect with a song that I didn't write like that and it's been really fun to know that even though I didn't write it, it's mine and it is my story, it's something that I really relate to and other people are relating to. It's been really cool to see what it's done, to have that experience and kind of feel like I'm helping out the Nashville community a little bit by doing my role as an artist.”
“Oh yes, of course!”
Excellent, that’s great to hear that you've not defected to those dirty Tennessee Titans which so many people seem to do when they move to town.
“No Way!”
Good girl, I’m proud of you and I know that we suck at the minute but there are far worse teams to be rooting for as I unfortunately am also plagued by the Cowboys ruining most of my weekends at the minute.
“I was walking around the Christmas markets in Munich this morning and saw a guy in a Dallas Cowboys jacket and I was like, yes, go Cowboys, not this season but we’ll be back. It’s cool and I heard they do an NFL game here in Munich.”
Yeah, it’s wild how it’s growing but coming back to growing up in north Texas, why did you decide to pursue country music in Nashville when you left high school rather than pushing the Texas system which has its own district and strong scene? What appealed to you more about moving to Nashville?
“You know, I think growing up closer to Dallas, I grew up on mainstream country music more than anything. I grew up on Miranda Lambert and Cody Johnson, but also Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley who they were all in Nashville. My family made a trip pretty early on up to Nashville, I was maybe 12 years old, but we went for a family vacation where we went to the Grand Old Opry, went to Dollywood and did all the touristy things then I just really fell in love with it. I started making connections super early on there and just felt welcomed into the community so, it felt like the next natural thing to do. There is a part of me that wonders how it would have played out if I would have hung around Texas a little longer but luckily I get to go home a lot and have gotten to play a lot of hometown shows so, it's I feel like I'm getting both sides of the coin.”
Let's talk about this cool little EP that you’ve recently put out so, firstly why did you decide that “Gettin' Away With It” was going to be the title track and the focus point to bring all of those tracks together?
“It is the focus track but more than anything it's kind of how I feel that phrase of getting away with it. It's just kind of how I feel about my music and my artistry right now. The first thing that comes to mind and my sister styles me, I now have opportunities to work on some of the best stylists in Nashville but I just like what my sister picks out and I feel like I'm just really getting to be myself on and off stage, in the music and in my real life where it feels like it should be harder than that. So, it feels like I'm just kind of getting away with it and people are liking it, it's working and they're allowing me to do it so, I just feel really lucky for that and that's how I ended up taking the title to be that.”
Of the eight tracks, you co-wrote seven of them, “Trouble” is the tracks that you didn't write and I see that was a Laura Veltz, Joybeth Taylor and Sam Ellis song. How did that track end up getting its way to you and what was it that you felt you really connected you with that track that you wanted to cut it?
“Well, when we were putting the project together, I communicated to my team that I would really love to find an outside cut. I had never done that before and you know, I've gotten to be a part of the Nashville writing community for so long and gotten to be in so many great writers' rooms and while I'm out playing shows, while I'm out filming videos, while I'm out doing God knows what, there's some people who are writing songs every single one of those days. It just kind of breaks my heart the idea of just because an artist didn't happen to be in the room, that day that the song never gets to see the light of day. I communicated to my publishers and my AR reps that I’d really wanna do that if we can find something that fits, I don't want to force anything, but if we find something, I'd really love to do that. Then I heard “Trouble” and I liked it, but my A&R rep was like you would sing this so good and I was like, you know what? I trust you. The second we started singing it in the studio, I couldn't believe that it wasn't a song I didn't write. I never knew I could connect with a song that I didn't write like that and it's been really fun to know that even though I didn't write it, it's mine and it is my story, it's something that I really relate to and other people are relating to. It's been really cool to see what it's done, to have that experience and kind of feel like I'm helping out the Nashville community a little bit by doing my role as an artist.”
I'm guessing that of everything that you, your team and everyone around you had hoped to achieve when you put the EP out, that charting in Norway which is truly amazing but wasn't something that was very high on the on list of your initial targets?
“Ha-ha no but it has been incredible to see and it’s so wild to think that people from literally corners of the world that I have never been to or I never even thought my music would make it to, that they know every word, they know my story and they're connecting to it. We got to go to Oslo just last week and it was incredible to just be there and see people singing the songs and also to see like a whole Sony Norway team who have helped me find connections and get out there in that part of the world. It's been so cool to watch and definitely nothing I've put together but it’s cool to see how the Lord works in some very mysterious ways.”
Lastly in terms of the project, you put a lot of music videos out to accompany the tracks, so you’ve been able to give a visual element to these songs and show more to them. Do you feel really comfortable in terms of doing that acting side of things and also are you one of those sort of people that's very heavily involved with visualizing how you want things to look on a screen?
“I definitely have a vision. I definitely have strong vision and I also have some directors that I've gotten to work with multiple times who I really trust. You know, with the comfortable factor, I definitely feel comfortable with the performance videos because I love performing, so there's parts of the video shoots that are usually a lot easier for me than the others. Like for the “Gettin' Away With It” music video, we brought in this girl called Zoe who is an influencer in the Nashville area and she's just beautiful, so I was like, you know what, how about you to be the actor and I'll just play guitar and do what I do best then you can lead the storyline. You can kind of divide and conquer a little bit too, but with my platform being so much on the internet, it's cool to be able to put out extra visuals things like visualizers which just kind of complete the picture for people too.”
“Ha-ha no but it has been incredible to see and it’s so wild to think that people from literally corners of the world that I have never been to or I never even thought my music would make it to, that they know every word, they know my story and they're connecting to it. We got to go to Oslo just last week and it was incredible to just be there and see people singing the songs and also to see like a whole Sony Norway team who have helped me find connections and get out there in that part of the world. It's been so cool to watch and definitely nothing I've put together but it’s cool to see how the Lord works in some very mysterious ways.”
Lastly in terms of the project, you put a lot of music videos out to accompany the tracks, so you’ve been able to give a visual element to these songs and show more to them. Do you feel really comfortable in terms of doing that acting side of things and also are you one of those sort of people that's very heavily involved with visualizing how you want things to look on a screen?
“I definitely have a vision. I definitely have strong vision and I also have some directors that I've gotten to work with multiple times who I really trust. You know, with the comfortable factor, I definitely feel comfortable with the performance videos because I love performing, so there's parts of the video shoots that are usually a lot easier for me than the others. Like for the “Gettin' Away With It” music video, we brought in this girl called Zoe who is an influencer in the Nashville area and she's just beautiful, so I was like, you know what, how about you to be the actor and I'll just play guitar and do what I do best then you can lead the storyline. You can kind of divide and conquer a little bit too, but with my platform being so much on the internet, it's cool to be able to put out extra visuals things like visualizers which just kind of complete the picture for people too.”
Thank you so much for the chat but I will let you go so you can see you can see a little bit more of Munich and really hope you get to properly explore Cologne tomorrow, it is one of my favourite cities in Europe and it will be so pretty with those Christmas markets. Enjoy the rest of the shows and we can’t wait to see you next week in Camden!
Saturday 7th December – O2 Institute, Birmingham
Sunday 8th December – Club Academy, Manchester
Monday 9th December – Oran Mor, Glasgow
Wednesday 11th December – The Fleece, Bristol
Thursday 12th December – Electric Ballroom, London
The latest project “Gettin’ Away With It” from Erin Kinsey is out now and available HERE.
Erin is back in the UK this month as she joins Restless Road on their “Last Rodeo Tour”, with full dates listed above and whilst four of the shows are already sold out, the last remaining tickets for London are available HERE. For details of all of her future shows in 2025, you can check out her WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that Erin is up to socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK X or FACEBOOK.
Saturday 7th December – O2 Institute, Birmingham
Sunday 8th December – Club Academy, Manchester
Monday 9th December – Oran Mor, Glasgow
Wednesday 11th December – The Fleece, Bristol
Thursday 12th December – Electric Ballroom, London
The latest project “Gettin’ Away With It” from Erin Kinsey is out now and available HERE.
Erin is back in the UK this month as she joins Restless Road on their “Last Rodeo Tour”, with full dates listed above and whilst four of the shows are already sold out, the last remaining tickets for London are available HERE. For details of all of her future shows in 2025, you can check out her WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that Erin is up to socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK X or FACEBOOK.