FOR KING + COUNTRY is one of the music industry’s most respected and decorated duos. Brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone have won four GRAMMY Awards, seven GMA Dove Awards, a Billboard Music Award, 13 K-LOVE Fan Awards, and their nine #1 songs have produced an astonishing 1.8 billion career streams. The RIAA Platinum-selling act’s live show has been hailed as a must-see concert event that continues to wow sold-out crowds whether in the U.S.A, Australia, Germany, Netherlands, or New Zealand.
To celebrate the release of their brand new fourth studio album, ‘WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?’ we spoke with Josh and Luke about the creative process, their upcoming tour, and lessons learned from success and failure.
1. Joel and Luke…. New music! It’s been three years! How was the writing and music making process different this go around than in times past before the pandemic?
Good question. It was very contrasted to every other project we’ve worked on, for the very fact that we were home the entirety of the recording process. Whereas in the past we’ve been in the back lounge of tour buses, in between shows, in dressing rooms. So this created a very different piece of music we feel like, very connected to itself and a specific time. Frankly, we loved it- I think it was a much more sustainable way to create a record and stay focused. To live, breath and experience it from beginning, middle, and end.
2. You can stream your new single “Relate" anywhere you get your music and you’ve already gotten more than 3 Million plays on this track alone. What is it about this song that you think so many of your fans can “relate” to? Did you know it was going to connect in this way when you were writing it?
There was a quote in the first studio I ever worked at, written on a chalkboard wall there was a sign that read “judgment and creativity are two functions that can’t occur simultaneously”, and I’ve never heard a truer statement when it comes to songwriting. That said, interestingly enough, with Relate there was something about the synergy of Josh Kerr, Tayla Park, Luke and myself that day. There was something about the writing process when we penned that song. There was something about the lyrical content, that we all walked away feeling as though we had written something, no pun intended, relatable. We turned the demo around incredibly fast, within a day, and we flipped the script on the whole record based on that song. We were going to release another record first, but we just felt that this was a song that needed to be spoken to during this time. So you try and set aside all of the conundrums you can get into of “how are people going to respond to it” and “is it going to be popular” and just go with the heart of things. And it hasn’t steered us wrong yet. And this song is proof that if you follow the heart of it, people will resonate.
3. The album “What Are We Waiting For?” drops on today. Give is three words to describe the album!
Family. World. 80’s.
4. You’ve got a big National tour coming up! How much have you missed that in person fan interaction over the course of the pandemic? Is there any particular city you see on the list that you always get excited to come back to?
Our American hometown, Nashville TN, and you only get the opportunity to play your hometown once every few years. The last time we played it, it was at the beginning of the burn the ships tour and unfortunately we didn’t have our ducks in a row the first night. But in this case, the finale of the “What Are We Waiting For” tour in Nashville, TN. We’re playing the brand new amphitheater in a rock quarry, and we’re just really excited to play our American hometown, but also to play it at the end instead of the beginning of a tour.
5. ONE BILLION STREAMS IS AN AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENT! Congrats on that milestone. According to our (average at best) math, that means one out of every seven people in the world has streamed one of your songs. Can you put into words on what that achievement means? Did you ever think that would be possible when you started this band?
I hate to date myself, but when we started this band a decade ago, the conversation of streaming was just beginning. And so, the short answer is no, we never thought you would be able to document the amount of ears that have heard a song in the way that we can now. And the continuation of that answer, is, yes it is a “brain fall out of your head” type stat that it has reached as far and as wide as it has. And the third answer to your question is, no, you always hoped that it would reach this far and wide but never thought in a million, or a billion, that it would be possible.
6. With all of the success you are now enjoying there is always failure somewhere along the way. What is one thing in your career that didn’t work out as planned and how did you learn and grow from that experience?
Two things come to mind. We were part of a feature length film a few years back that spoke to the reality of human trafficking. It’s a love story, a drama, it was circled around a true story. Our brother Ben directed it, I was one of the actors it in, Luke produced it, and we really saw that film from beginning, to middle, to end. And while so many eyes have seen it, and we’re very proud of it. Theatrically, in America its as not a success. And with music you’re dealing with hundreds of thousands of dollars, in film you’re dealing with millions, and so there was a very clear post mortem/ Monday morning quarterback that we all did after the theatrical release. And I personally recognized the importance of patience in a process. Waiting for the right time to release a film or an album. And it was one of the great learning experiences of my career, and have applied it numerous times since that film project in how and when we choose to release music and art in general. Good question.
7. You’ve worked with and collaborated with some amazing artists and music industry greats. When was the last time you had an “oh wow” moment where you had to pinch yourself that you were working with someone special?
Dolly Parton. No question. The amount of influence and impact that that woman has had over the music industry as a whole. Not only for women but for artists in general is staggering. And the way she not only showed up to sing on “God Only Knows”, but then leveraged her star power to put us in front of millions at the CMA awards or tens of millions with the music video. Or even win a Grammy Award together for that collaboration. It was one of the great pinch yourself moments of your career, and may always be.
8. When you are not writing, touring, working, or in the studio what are some of the things you do to relax, unwind, and find peace?
My wife and I live on a little bit of a compound with my in laws and my parents live a short distance away as well. It’s in the hills of Tennessee, and so the simplest activities of walking the dog, or watching a great film, or I love baths. I’ll have a couple baths a day. These are the things I love to do just to get away and unwind. Luke and I are two of five brothers, and I love spending a moment with them also.
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