Exclusive: Jordan Davis hits Billboard's Top 10 with Home State
March 23, 2018 was a day that MCA Nashville recording artist Jordan Davis won’t be forgetting anytime soon. At the same time, it was a day – and an event - that the Louisiana native had been looking forward to all his life. Davis, currently in the Billboard Top 10 on the Country charts with “Singles You Up,” released his debut album Home State. Just what is a first release day like? “If they are anything like me, they probably didn’t get a ton of sleep last night because you keep tossing and turning, but I woke up with a flood of text messages, and a lot of support,” he beams to Music Update Central. “I reached out to everybody that I needed to reached out to, and tried just to drink it in. In a couple of hours, I’m going to head to the store, go to the shelves – and buy my album. That’s something I never thought I would be doing. It’s a whirlwind, but it’s been a really good day.”
Though the business has changed over the years, and Davis did go to sites such as iTunes at midnight to see his disc listed among the new releases, you might have seen him at Walmart or Target looking in the music section just to make sure that Home State was there. “I have checked all the sites, and that’s great, but I grew up going to CD stores, and would get albums by all of my favorite bands and artists. So, fast forward about twenty years, and here I am about to do that for my own record. It’s a day that I never thought I would see.”
The continued success of “Singles” – currently No. 5 on the airplay char is something that he doesn’t take for granted. “I can’t describe it. Hearing my song on the radio gives me chill bumps. That’s why you move to Nashville – to hear your song get played on the radio. It’s a feeling unlike any other, and it still gets me every time that I hear it.”
Davis has been steadily making new fans week by week among both those in the audiences at shows as well as his fellow artists. “From being out on the road with Kip Moore, Drake White, and some of the artists that I’ve gone out and toured with, anytime you get a compliment from your peers, it’s such a cool thing. I was out playing a show recently with Devin Dawson, and both of us are new artists, sitting in the top ten. To be a fan of his stuff, and have him be a fan of mine is a really cool thing. You don’t get that a lot outside of Country Music, I think.”
Odds ae pretty good that Davis has plenty more to follow-up his debut hit with from the album. “Leaving New Orleans” has the sounds of a career-defining hit, as does the summertime groove of “Dreamed You Did,” a song that he says was a late addition to the project. “That was one of the last songs we recorded. I wrote it with Jonathan Singleton and Shane Minor. It was inspired by an old flame that was kind of tough to put out. The guitar in that song grabs you and really takes control of your attention throughout the entire song. I think it’s got such a great feel, and glad we were able to find a home for it on the album.”
Davis had a hand in writing each of the twelve cuts on the album, and says that one of his favorites is “Sundowners,” of which he said “I only had the title for that. One of my friends posted something on Facebook, and she had the word ‘Sundowners’ in it. It just kind of stood out with me, so I put it in my phone. I had a co-write with Matt and Josh Jenkins, who are two of my favorite writers in town. I threw the title out, and Josh had something going on the piano. It just fell into place. I was so lucky to have that title that day. It’s a track that shows who I am as an artist.”
Currently on the road with fellow newcomer Jillian Jacqueline, Davis will be a part of the Life's Whatcha Make It Tour 2018, with headliner Jake Owen and Chris Janson. Might Davis pull a prank and hide Janson’s prized cans of Mountain Dew – a beverage the Grand Ole Opry star cherishes – from him? Not on your life, he says!
“If I do that, he might kick me off the tour,” he says while also stating “I’m so excited to be out with these guys. I’m such fans of what they do, so to be able to go out with them is an honor. It’s going to be a wild tour. I’m looking forward to getting out and playing music with those guys.”
And, for Davis, getting to indulge in one of his other passions is something he is excited about, as well. “It’s an all minor-league baseball stadium tour, which is exciting. As weird as it sounds to say, I’m a huge minor-league baseball fan. I grew up in Shreveport, where we had the Captains. So, being able to play at the home of the Arkansas Travelers where I went as a kid in going to be really cool. What a better way to spend a summer tour than at a baseball stadium? It’s going to be great!”