Jordana Bryant – Guilty

By starrymag | July 25, 2022

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) I’d say my sound is a wholesome 2000’s style country-pop. That’s some of the music that I grew up listening to, and it’s the music I love making.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) There are so many to choose from but some of my biggest musical influences are Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran. I really find it inspiring how Dolly and Reba have paved the way for women in country music and I love the energy and attitude Shania and Taylor put into their music. And Ed Sheeran’s writing is really visual, just like country music, so I really love his style.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Guilty.”

A) “Guilty” is all about falling for someone and completely owning everything that comes with it. I really wanted to capture the experience of confessing those feelings for someone in a playful and lighthearted way that might encourage someone to take a chance and tell someone exactly how they feel. I feel like so many people my age are scared to come out and say how they feel, so I wrote this song for them!

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

A) I think the upbeat and fun energy of the song draws people to it. I also think people are connecting to this song because we’ve all experienced that feeling of being into someone and unsure if they feel the same and everyone needs a good crush anthem every once and a while!

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

A) The word “guilty” typically has negative meaning, but we flipped it to be something positive in this song, and I wanted the video to continue that pattern. We shot a lot of the video in a “jail” which represented the “love prison” we can all sometimes put ourselves into. I love how we took a jail, something that typically is dark and scary, and made it super fun and glammed up! The art team did such an incredible job with making the jail cell feel really young and fun and they even got a disco ball, which was so cool! I think the video found a way to keep things fun and give the fans the perfect visual to go alongside the song.

 

Q) You also recently did a cover of “If I Didn’t Love You,” which features Dawson Anderson from Temecula Road. How did you two connect for this duet?

A) Getting to work with Dawson was so fun! We got connected through a mutual friend about a year ago and when we met, we instantly hit it off! It’s always great to connect with another young artist in the industry who’s on a similar journey as you and we had so much fun working together.

 

Q) What is it about the song that made you want to make it your own?

A) “If I Didn’t Love You” is such an amazing and emotion-evoking song and it had been stuck in my head for weeks, so I finally decided that I had to do a cover of it. I started out posting covers on YouTube back in 2019, so it was really fun to get back to my roots and cover this song.

 

Q) What is your songwriting process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

A) My songwriting process varies but I usually start by playing around on the guitar and singing out a bunch of different melodies until I find one that I really love and then singing some gibberish words until I hear something that I think could be a cool story for the song. Other times, though, I’ll have a title or a lyric that I want to write and I’ll start from there instead.

 

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music?

A) I have a hand in every element of the music including the production. On the tracks we’ve been working on this past year, I’ve had the opportunity to work with Seth Mosley and Zach Kale and it’s been such a blast to work with them. They’re both super talented and I feel like I’m really learning a lot about production from them.

 

Q) Your debut single released through Riser House came out in April. Have you been thinking about or working on a new EP or album?

A) Yes! I’m getting ready to release another single this summer and there’s a ton more music in the works that I’ll be releasing in the next few months. I can’t say a ton about it, but I’m super excited for everyone to hear the songs! I tend to share with my fans through social media snippets of songs I’m working on, but there are a few surprises which I haven’t shared yet!

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

A) I love performing for my fans everywhere, even virtually, but when I get to perform for them in person, I feel like I get to connect with them in a whole other way, which is so cool! It’s really special for me when I get to perform live in Nashville and in Pennsylvania, where I’m from, but any live performance is so important to me.

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

A) My dream collaborators would be Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire because they’re such legends and they’ve inspired so many young girls, including me, to chase our dreams, which is something I really hope to do with my music as well.

 

Q) What album/band are you currently listening to and why do you dig them?

A) I listen to a ton of different artists but right now I’m super into Kelsea Ballerini, Tenille Arts, Luke Combs, and then, of course, Taylor Swift is a constant obsession!

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

A) I feel like in today’s world social media is the best way to connect with the fans. I spend a lot of time on Instagram because I can DM people directly to talk with them, which is so cool. I also love TikTok because I feel like it’s such a great platform to test new music and see what songs really resonate with people. And, of course, I love YouTube too because I got my start posting covers on there!

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

A) I am so very grateful for each and every supporter who has streamed a song, come to a show or liked a post! Nothing would be possible without the unbelievable love and support I get from my fans! Thank you all so much – I’m so grateful you’re on this journey with me. Stay tuned for more new music in 2022!