
Even with only two songs being released, actress Hayley Orrantia is already marking herself as a future star in country music. She plays Erica in the ABC series The Goldbergs, and has had quite a bit of success in the acting world. Actresses turning to country music has become such a big fad recently, with Jana Kramer, Lucy Hale, Jamie Lynn Spears and Katie Stevens all turning to country music as a second career. Orrantia has some big names to live up to, but with this single, she achieves that goal.
But Orrantia isn't just like the other actresses-turned-singers. She was a singer/songwriter first, before she was ever an actress. She began songwriting at age 13, and began singing even before then. In 2011, Orrantia auditioned for the first season of X Factor USA, and was put into a country/pop group with three other women. The group was named Lakoda Rayne and they were the last group left in the competition. They continued making music together for a while before they split up to do different things, which for Orrantia, ended up being acting. For the last two years, she has been writing with Nashville songwriters, and this song, and two others ("Until Then," and a Spanish version titled "Hasta Verde,") are the result of that.
This song was written by Orrantia, Corey Crowder (Kenny Rogers, Eric Paslay) and Mark Bright (Carrie Underwood), and produced by Bright. It has a Carrie Underwood Carnival Ride era vibe, with the country pop sound and focus on vocals. However, the lyrics steal the show, with the most memorable one being: "You're playing love like a karaoke contest / you know the words but you never give your best."
Orrantia has the vocals of a pop star in the making. They're clear, powerful and pretty much accent free. But just like once-pop/rock-star Cassadee Pope, Orrantia chose country music. They both chose the genre that they don't completely belong in, but they both have succeeded. It's easy to see this song or Orrantia's other release "Until Then" becoming big "Wasting All These Tears" kind of hits. Orrantia has proved that she's unique, and not just an actress trying to become a singer to make more money. She's real, and this song shows that she has real talent. I'm excited to see what she does next.
Overall rating: 4 and a half crowns
This song was written by Orrantia, Corey Crowder (Kenny Rogers, Eric Paslay) and Mark Bright (Carrie Underwood), and produced by Bright. It has a Carrie Underwood Carnival Ride era vibe, with the country pop sound and focus on vocals. However, the lyrics steal the show, with the most memorable one being: "You're playing love like a karaoke contest / you know the words but you never give your best."
Orrantia has the vocals of a pop star in the making. They're clear, powerful and pretty much accent free. But just like once-pop/rock-star Cassadee Pope, Orrantia chose country music. They both chose the genre that they don't completely belong in, but they both have succeeded. It's easy to see this song or Orrantia's other release "Until Then" becoming big "Wasting All These Tears" kind of hits. Orrantia has proved that she's unique, and not just an actress trying to become a singer to make more money. She's real, and this song shows that she has real talent. I'm excited to see what she does next.
Overall rating: 4 and a half crowns