How country music will turn you into a masterful writer

It's all about what lies between the lines

Jul 23, 2024

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/422281210639621/ — Image from Pinterest (source in alt text)

Growing up, I was always a rock-and-roller.

Sounds of AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses and Led Zeppelin regularly paraded through the hallways of my family home. Then when I was 15, I discovered the blues and fell in love. There was something about putting your darkest times into lyrics and allowing instruments to “cry” that encapsulated me like little else. I began writing my own tunes, but kept them to myself.

Around the age of 18, I came across a song that made me pause.

It was ‘Teach Your Children’ by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.

The ethereal steel guitar work and 4-part harmonies made me feel like my bedroom was a sort of church. But the lyrics were what hit me hardest:

Teach Your Children

You, who are on the road
Must have a code that you can live by
And so become yourself
Because the past is just a goodbye
Teach your children well
Your father's hell did slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they picks, the one you'll know by

To me, these lyrics are stunning.

Not only do they follow a clear pattern with the metering, but the words…

The words…

They just ring so damn true.

I’ve spent over 3 years writing online now. I’ve come across the downright drab and the tedious templating of so much digital real estate.

But the posts that make me stop, pause and read further are the ones where I can sense truth being put across immediately. Not just truth in terms of 10 ways to grow online, but fundamental truths and stories about life.

I like to call these truths and stories Human Messages — and country music is chock full of them.

It makes me sad that the utter, turgid nonsense getting pushed by the mainstream music industry has such a grasp on our culture in recent years (funnily enough — we’re starting to see a resurgance of country influence in the pop scene.)

Just take a second with me to compare the two following verses in songs.

The first is ‘Monster’ by Nicki Minaj.

The second is ‘One Horse Town’ by Blackberry Smoke.

Monster

Uh, the best livin' or dead hands down, huh
Less talk, more head right now, huh
And my eyes more red than the devil is
And I'm 'bout to take it to another level, bitch

It’s just mindless. It doesn’t offer any insight into a genuine, authentic side. All it tells us about is her out-of-control libido and her need to inflate an already out of control ego.

Now, Option 2…

One Horse Town

In the tiny town where I come from
You grew up doing what your daddy does
And you don't ask questions, you do it just because
You don't climb too high or dream too much
With a whole lot of work and a little bit of luck
You can wind up right back where your daddy was

One reason this song hit me so hard is it describes the tiny town of 5000 I grew up in the UK perfectly. But even if you didn’t grow up in such a place, does a story not just explode into your head as you hear these words?

You don’t ask questions, you do it just because…

With a little bit of luck, you can continue the cycle…

The emotion and raw honesty displayed here is breathtaking. When you tell stories online, THIS is what we want to read as an audience. We don’t want tired gimmicks and hacks. We want to learn authentically through experiences and wisdom.

Maybe you grew up in a town where no one dreamed.
Maybe you lost something important to you due to a bad habit.
Maybe you learned about humility through an experience with your grandfather.

It is, quite literally, built into us as humans. We have communicated the lessons we learn in life through stories since we were first around. Not numbers, not stats — stories.

One final example I simply must share with you is the recent work of a breakthrough artist called Zach Bryan.

Zach shot to fame while serving in the military after he posted a few of his songs online. He went from serving his country to playing sold-out stadiums in a couple of years. The main reason for his meteoric rise and the reason his songs are resonating on such a deep level with people?

His story-based, visual lyrics.

Just check out this example of his hit record ‘I Remember Everything’ with Kacey Musgraves:

I Remember Everything

Rotgut whiskey's gonna ease my mind
Beach towel rests on the dryin' line
Do I remind you of your daddy in his '88 Ford?
Labrador hangin' out the passenger door

The sand from your hair is blowin' in my eyes
Blame it on the beach, grown men don't cry
Do you remember that beat down basement couch?
I'd sing you my love songs and you'd tell me about
How your mama ran off and pawned her ring

I remember, I remember everything

So, what makes these words so spectacular?

Description

He’s inducing us to create a visual in our heads by describing a scene unfolding like a movie. Rotgut whiskey, beach towels, labrador hanging out of a car window. When you provide these tiny details, you’re guiding your reader (or listener) towards your universe, like an artist guides your eyes with each brushstroke.
Sentiment

Describing a scene with no emotion might not add much. But when you start to understand the sadness behind the context, it makes that scene all so more vivid. The line ‘Blame it on the beach, grown men don’t cry’ showcases his vulnerability effortlessly.
Reflection

While he doesn’t directly state he is reflecting, he sums it up in the line ‘I remember everything’. There’s so much emotion in those words. It was such a vivid time in his life that all the details, down to the labrador and the beat down basement couch, stayed with him.

There’s a lot of people who aren’t fans of country music. I get it. Sometimes, you might not be able to relate to herding through the Back 40 or getting your Chevy truck serviced. Sometimes, the overly twangy guitars can distract.

But when you listen to the lyrics of country songs, they are covered in Human Messages.

They cut straight to the point about heartbreak, lost, love, desire, dreams. And they do so by using incredible metaphor and imagery. When you listen to these songs, you either find yourself inside a rich, new universe or you find yourself nodding along as the Truth that comes out the speakers is undeniable.

Don’t be scared to be honest. Be it glory or grief, stories are the only way to connect to other people in a way that builds true connection.

Country music and the words it offers give you the roadmap required to telling those stories in a way only you can.

Thanks so much for reading another edition of Turning the Page.

I’m going to be making a few, exciting changes to this newsletter over the coming weeks.

This will range from:

New types of content (perhaps even some audio/video based stuff)
A new FREE guide containing some of my best writing advice when you subscribe
Expanded, exclusive behind-the-scenes content when you subscribe to a paid tier of this newsletter

Keep your eyes posted, and I can’t wait to share what I have cooking for you. It’s always been my goal to help you become a better writer and storyteller so we may continue to decorate the Internet in a way that we all need right now.

Until next time, gang.