There is nothing quite like a sibling bond… Brothers and sisters are always there to support each other through the highs and even the lows. The sibling trio Track45 – Jenna, Ben, and KK Johnson live by this motto, as they have an unbreakable bond that radiates both in the group and even their music.
The Mississippi-bred trio, known for their three-part harmony, moved to Nashville together to chase their dream in the music industry. Stoney Creek Records’ Track45 previously released an EP entitled Small Town, which describes their upbringing in a close-knit community as aspiring musicians. Now, that the family is currently putting their last name on the map, they decided to document their musical journey and rise to fame in a fresh five-track set titled Big Dreams.
“Our first EP called Small Town sort of told you where we are from, and then this EP called Big Dreams is really the story of when we got to Nashville and all the things about chasing the dream,” says Track45 in an exclusive Celeb Secrets Country interview during CRS 2021.
The full-package collection has something for all music enthusiasts to enjoy, as the dynamic trio pulled from their beloved country, rock, R&B, and even pop playlists to produce the well-rounded EP. Expect to hear several tunes from their Small Town soundtrack, one new original called a “Little Bit More,” and a Dolly Parton cover.
“’Little Bit More,’ is what I would say is the best song to listen to first. It’s one of our favorite songs we have ever written and it’s got an edge to it. It shows a side to us like no one’s ever seen before,” says Ben as he gives us the rundown on the hot EP.
Track45’s drive and passion for making music have landed them amongst the best in the industry. Just recently they were seen gracing the stage at the 4th Annual Amazon Music: Country Heat virtual concert at the 2021 Country Radio Seminar alongside legend Tim McGraw. However, before putting their best foot forward and stepping out under the spotlight to perform, they embarked on their very first radio tour to promote their music and new projects.
While Ben, Jenna, and KK make a powerful band, they have also ‘crushed it’ on their own before joining forces, as they all landed individual publishing deals and put their songwriting capabilities to the test for A-list musicians, including – Charlie Puth, Justin Timberlake, Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice, Lauren Alaina, and more.
Even with their long list of achievements, the breakthrough group remains hungry for more. Come Monday, March 1 anticipate to hear their successful debut single “Met Me Now” on Country radio.
Keep reading for our full Q&A with Track45 and let us know if you included their FIRE new EP Big Dreams to your playlist by leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sending us a tweet at @CS_Country.
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Credit: Spotify
Celeb Secrets Country: First off, who is Track45?
Track45: “We are a sibling band from Meridian, Mississippi. We’ve all moved up to Nashville together to chase the dream and pursue country music, and we’re still here. We all lived in a tiny apartment together for the first five years.”
Celeb Secrets Country: How did you guys get into country music?
Track45: “We have a musical family. Our granddad was our church choir director and our grandma taught us how to play the piano. We were six, I think when we all started taking piano. Then as we got older, we all wanted to play different instruments. So our mom said ‘if you want to play a different instrument, you have to save up your money and buy it yourself.’ So, that way she knew we would stick with it. So, as we got older, we all saved up money and we bought different instruments. We kind of naturally wanted to play the instruments with each other. So, I remember the first song we ever learned was a song called Jambalaya by Hank Williams and our first kind of show was at a nursing home near us.”
CSC: What was the inspiration behind the name, Track 45?
Track45: “The town where we are from in Mississippi is a railroad town. So, the “track” is from that and the “45” is from “45 South,” which is the highway that runs through our hometown. It just ok us to a lot of our favorite places growing up.”
CSC: How would you guys describe your sound?
Track45: Is very harmony-driven. We all loved harmony groups growing up and a big part of our sound is our three-part harmony. So, we love the Eagles, we love the chicks, you know, all the classic rock stuff too. That’s probably the core of our style. We have that kind of old-time harmony country, but then we kind of bring our new influences to it. We like to say, we’re the ‘new old school.’”
CSC: Track45 just released their second EP called Big Dreams, could you tell us more about this new exciting project?
Track45: We have been working so long and hard on this stuff. We put so much of who we are into this music and it’s just exciting to get to share it with people. It’s cool too because it’s part of an overall overarching story – our first EP called Small Town sort of told you where we are from, and then this EP called Big Dreams is really the story of when we got to Nashville and all the things about chasing the dream.”
CSC: There are a total of five songs on the new EP Big Dreams, which songs should us fans listen to first and why?
Track45: There are two new songs on this EP, So three of the songs were on Small Town. Now, the two new ones are called “A Little Bit More,” which is what I would say is the best song to listen to first. It’s one of our favorite songs we have ever written and it’s got an edge to it. It shows a side to us like no one’s ever seen before. Then a song called “Light of a Clear Blue Morning,” which is also super special to us because it’s our first cover song we have ever released. So, it’s actually an old deep-cut Dolly Parton song. We have always been huge Dolly Parton fans.”
CSC: Did Track45 have any co-writers on this EP or did you guys do everything yourself?
Track45: “So, obviously we did not write “Light of a Clear Blue Morning,” because that’s a cover. But, “A Little Bit More,” we wrote with Audra Mae, who is incredible and she’s even featured on a lot of Avicii songs from back in the day. And then “Met Me Now,” we wrote with Jay Hart and Jonny Price on actually an LA write and “Come On In,” we actually wrote with Gabby Mooney.”
CSC: How do you guys each play a role in the songwriting process?
Track45: “The main thing for us when we write music for ourselves is that it comes from a real place and real stuff going on in our lives. So we always kind of just start talking about, you know, things that we want to talk about or things that have happened that we want to put in the music and then it kind of just comes out in different ways every time.”
CSC: Could you tell us the inspiration behind your newest release “Met Me Now”?
Track 45: “As we said, songs come from a lot of different places, But this one actually came from a personal place,” says KK. “I was up really late one night. I was just all up in my feelings thinking back on a past relationship. I was just feeling very dramatic. And so I, I had this thought, If I could go back in time and he could meet me. I am now maybe things would have worked out or they would have been different. And so I just wrote down some lyrics and really think about it. We were on a riding trip about two weeks later in LA, like you said and we ended up writing a song about it. So now it’s like musical therapy. Every time we sing it, you know, it’s like reliving those emotions, but it’s great.”
CSC: How do you want us to feel when we sit down and listen to this single?
Track45: “If you have ever been in love, if you have ever made a mistake, it’s going to connect with you. It’s kind of nostalgic, but also very hopeful. You know, it’s like ‘Hey, I’m a different person and I’m still changing and becoming better.’ So, I think it’s going to connect with a lot of people.”
CSC: You recently performed at the Amazon Music “Country Heat” Livestream, Could you tell us about that experience?
Track45: “Oh man. It was, it was surreal. I mean, it’s cool. Especially in a year that live music is just, you know, it’s difficult and it’s hard to come by and get things to do something like that. So getting to be in there and playing it with our fans, I mean, playing on the lineup with Tim McGraw, who’s like the legend.”
CSC: How did you guys prepare for this big performance?
Track45: “Well, we’ve been on a virtual radio tour for the month of January. So, We’ve been doing five shows a day, five days a week, for five weeks. So, we had a lot of shows leading up to it. But, it’s a different vibe because those shows were very self-contained, you know? We were like in this little studio broadcasting out and this was like a full-on production, so it was a pretty big difference.
I don’t know if people know what a radio tour is, but normally when you’re kind of getting started and you have your first single released, you go and visit every radio station in the country. So for country radio stations in person, obviously. But, this year because of the pandemic it’s been virtual. So our team has created this incredible virtual experience where they have rented a studio for us on music row and we get to play our show. Then we hop on Zoom and we kind of get to talk to them afterward and, make that connection in that way… it’s definitely strange. We wish it could be in person.”
CSC: Since we are Celebs Secrets Country, do you guys have any secret projects in the pipeline right now?
Track45: “We have a children’s book we’re working on. We have a music education program that we’ve done for a long time because that’s something we’re very passionate about as we go into like elementary schools and different schools and we were digging our roots and it just talks about the musical heritage of America and it starts with the blues and it kind of tracks all the way to now. We are working on a book that accompanies that program and it kind of educates kids on musical instruments.”
LISTEN TO “BIG DREAMS” EP BELOW:
