Image from HannahMayAllison.com
Hannah May Allison has been in Nashville for six years. Six years consisting of attending classes at Belmont University where she earned her degree in songwriting and music business, and of writing countless songs for other people. But she's recently turned more of her focus onto being an artist in her own right.
“It wasn't until last year that I really decided to focus more on my artist career and ask myself those hard questions like, what songs I would record as an artist, my sound and who I wanted to be as an artist,” Allison said.
The sound she settled on was a fun, pop-country take on mainstream country, paired with her more traditional-leaning voice.
Even though she’s only recently put a conscious focus on releasing her own music, Allison has been releasing music since 2014. But there has been a marked shift in her sound. Early releases such as “Empty Hearted” and “Unhappy Hour” have a lot more in common with traditional country than mainstream country.
The sound she settled on was a fun, pop-country take on mainstream country, paired with her more traditional-leaning voice.
Even though she’s only recently put a conscious focus on releasing her own music, Allison has been releasing music since 2014. But there has been a marked shift in her sound. Early releases such as “Empty Hearted” and “Unhappy Hour” have a lot more in common with traditional country than mainstream country.
“I grew up listening to traditional country music. That's what my parents listened to,” Allison said.
Her mother was a country singer and sang with Garth Brooks when he was still Oklahoma before he became a country superstar. Allison said that a lot of her early music taste was shaped by what her mother listened to.
But she also said she listened to pop music: artists like Michelle Branch and Sheryl Crow.
Her new music has a “modern twist” and leans more heavily on those pop music trends, but Allison says she hasn’t left classic country behind.
“I actually love writing traditional country too, but I just feel like I have evolved,” Allison said. “I feel like I've started listening to contemporary pop, like what you hear on the radio. I definitely still like that aspect of traditional country in there like in my voice, but I definitely just grew into [this new sound].”
“I grew up listening to traditional country music. That's what my parents listened to,” Allison said.
Her mother was a country singer and sang with Garth Brooks when he was still Oklahoma before he became a country superstar. Allison said that a lot of her early music taste was shaped by what her mother listened to.
But she also said she listened to pop music: artists like Michelle Branch and Sheryl Crow.
Her new music has a “modern twist” and leans more heavily on those pop music trends, but Allison says she hasn’t left classic country behind.
“I actually love writing traditional country too, but I just feel like I have evolved,” Allison said. “I feel like I've started listening to contemporary pop, like what you hear on the radio. I definitely still like that aspect of traditional country in there like in my voice, but I definitely just grew into [this new sound].”
Her new single, “Summer Sucks” tells the story of a girl going through a breakup in the summer and now can’t enjoy the rest of her summer.
“You usually hear all these fun, summer songs this time of year and I love those,” Allison said. “But I thought it was such a fun twist to release a summer song that isn't necessarily like the happiest summer song because you don't hear that too often.”
Allison wrote the song with John Miller, Lauren McLamb, and Casey Cattie. McLamb and Cattie also helped Allison write her two previous singles, “Stand Corrected” and “Right Now."
“When you're in the writing community, you write with a lot of people but there are a few people [you] click with,” Allison said of McLamb and Cattie. “I feel like they really get me [and] the direction that I'm going. It's been really cool though to have those girls on my team.”
“You usually hear all these fun, summer songs this time of year and I love those,” Allison said. “But I thought it was such a fun twist to release a summer song that isn't necessarily like the happiest summer song because you don't hear that too often.”
Allison wrote the song with John Miller, Lauren McLamb, and Casey Cattie. McLamb and Cattie also helped Allison write her two previous singles, “Stand Corrected” and “Right Now."
“When you're in the writing community, you write with a lot of people but there are a few people [you] click with,” Allison said of McLamb and Cattie. “I feel like they really get me [and] the direction that I'm going. It's been really cool though to have those girls on my team.”
“Summer Sucks” is single release two of three this year, with the final single to be released sometime this fall.
“I definitely want to release an EP or a new album eventually,” Allison said. “But it's been a little bit more fun to keep releasing things. There's always something that's coming out. But I've definitely been thinking about for next year, because I definitely do want to release a bigger project eventually.”
Listen to "Summer Sucks" here.
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