In the blistering heat of July, South Florida-raised Ashley Briggs just dropped her new single "Summer Heat."
This is Briggs' first release since "Are You Listening Too?" in 2018. Dan Swank at Track Happy Studios produced "Are You Listening Too?" and Briggs brought him back for "Summer Heat."
"I had so much fun working with him and he really got my vision for ["Are You Listening Too?"] and the type of artist I want to be so, of course, I went back to him to record 'Summer Heat,'" Briggs said. "I’m so happy with the way it turned out!"
Briggs wrote "Summer Heat" with Brittany Ray, whom she met at a songwriters round in Franklin, Tennessee.
"I tend to write more ballads or mid tempo songs, so when Brittany and I scheduled our write, I really wanted to write something fun and upbeat," Briggs said. "It was springtime, getting warmer outside, and I had just started dating someone and couldn’t help but daydream about summer love."
Briggs came up with the initial idea for the song and shared it with Ray the night before they had planned to write together.
"She liked it and also wanted to write a fun, upbeat summer song so she got creative with it and had a couple killer lines by the time we met the following day," Briggs said. "We ended up writing the song in two hours and loving it!"
"I had so much fun working with him and he really got my vision for ["Are You Listening Too?"] and the type of artist I want to be so, of course, I went back to him to record 'Summer Heat,'" Briggs said. "I’m so happy with the way it turned out!"
Briggs wrote "Summer Heat" with Brittany Ray, whom she met at a songwriters round in Franklin, Tennessee.
"I tend to write more ballads or mid tempo songs, so when Brittany and I scheduled our write, I really wanted to write something fun and upbeat," Briggs said. "It was springtime, getting warmer outside, and I had just started dating someone and couldn’t help but daydream about summer love."
Briggs came up with the initial idea for the song and shared it with Ray the night before they had planned to write together.
"She liked it and also wanted to write a fun, upbeat summer song so she got creative with it and had a couple killer lines by the time we met the following day," Briggs said. "We ended up writing the song in two hours and loving it!"
Pop music and country music are both present in the sound of this song, and Briggs said that was a conscious decision.
"I definitely wanted to go more pop with this song than my others," Briggs said. "It was a little out of my comfort zone, but Dan produces a lot of pop music, so it was right in his wheelhouse. I sent the worktape to him and told him what I was imagining in my head and he took it from there."
Even though the song is fun and uplifting, releasing music isn't a stress-free endeavor, and Briggs hasn't been immune to that stress and worry.
"In the past I’ve found myself getting pretty caught up in the worry that comes along with releasing original music," Briggs said. "Are people going to listen? Is it going to get added to playlists? Will this be the song to catapult my career? All the questions that go through our creative heads."
But Briggs said that releasing "Summer Heat" has been a "new experience" for her.
"When I decided this was the next single I wanted to release, I told myself to enjoy the process and not be so worried about the outcome," Briggs said. "I’ve loved this song since the day Brittany and I wrote it and all I wanted to do was share it with the people I love.
"I’ve gotten a response far greater than anything I could’ve imagined and I’m so grateful that others are finding the same joy in ‘Summer Heat’ that I have since it was created."
Stream "Summer Heat" here.
"I definitely wanted to go more pop with this song than my others," Briggs said. "It was a little out of my comfort zone, but Dan produces a lot of pop music, so it was right in his wheelhouse. I sent the worktape to him and told him what I was imagining in my head and he took it from there."
Even though the song is fun and uplifting, releasing music isn't a stress-free endeavor, and Briggs hasn't been immune to that stress and worry.
"In the past I’ve found myself getting pretty caught up in the worry that comes along with releasing original music," Briggs said. "Are people going to listen? Is it going to get added to playlists? Will this be the song to catapult my career? All the questions that go through our creative heads."
But Briggs said that releasing "Summer Heat" has been a "new experience" for her.
"When I decided this was the next single I wanted to release, I told myself to enjoy the process and not be so worried about the outcome," Briggs said. "I’ve loved this song since the day Brittany and I wrote it and all I wanted to do was share it with the people I love.
"I’ve gotten a response far greater than anything I could’ve imagined and I’m so grateful that others are finding the same joy in ‘Summer Heat’ that I have since it was created."
Stream "Summer Heat" here.