Photo Credit: Krista Lee Photography
Jo Dee Messina has been building anticipation for her new album for roughly a year. All of that buildup has finally led to a long awaited announcement from the veteran country music artist.
Messina has announced that her new album Me will finally see the light of day. Me will be released Tuesday, March 18th. The Kickstarter funded album is the most successful of its kind to come out of Nashville to date and the fifteenth largest funded music campaign in the history of the Kickstarter.com website. Over the course of the album’s production, Messina’s fans helped her raise over $100,000 to cover the cost of its creation. It will be released via Messina’s own Dreambound Records and distributed by eOne Music.
As a thank you to her fans for helping her raise the money to bring Me to life, Messina gave her fans a voice. She gave them the chance to choose the album’s songs, album title, lead single, and even the logo for her label, Dreambound Records. The lead single chosen by fans is titled ‘Peace Sign.’ The lyric video for the song can be viewed online now at http://youtu.be/TqllF4aZkuo. Each was selected via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Stage-It collectively. ‘Not Dead Yet’ is another of the songs included on Messina’s new album. She explained the song was born after her departure from her now former record label. In a recent interview, she told reporters, “I had been listening to the naysayers around me and thought, ‘I have so much to offer now that I’m free of the restraints I had with my label.’ I then had a conversation with my friend and co-writer saying, ‘I have so much left to do, so much left to say. Goodness! I’m not dead yet!’ And that is how the song was born. It talks about how if I listened to the small thinkers and naysayers, I might as well throw in the towel. Music is my life, it’s a part of who I am. I’m not ready to give up that part of my life. Hell, I’m just getting started!”
Part of Messina’s push to support her new album meant hitting the road and testing her new material with audiences. It was that testing that led ‘Woman’s Rant’ to be included. It’s a song that every one of her female listeners will appreciate. Messina joked about the song in an interview. “This song had many more verses,” she said, laughing as she discussed the song. “It was written in a few minutes. My youngest baby wouldn’t sleep longer than two hours. One night I was sick and could barely move so I tried to wake up my husband to get the baby, but I couldn’t get him to budge. After feeding the baby, burping him, changing him, I was wide awake. That’s when I went downstairs and wrote ‘A Woman’s Rant.’ It’s literally a day in the life of me. Ha!” She performed the song on NBC’s The Today Show this past Summer. Audiences can check out the performance online now at http://www.today.com/video/today/52082917.
The title track from Messina’s new album is one her own favorites. She explained the importance of the song, stating that it allows her fans to see a side of her that they might not otherwise see. “The fans chose ME as the album title. I think it fits because this record explores many different sides of who I am. The song came about through a conversation with one of my co-writers, Kathie Baillie of Baillie & The Boys, who has a grown daughter. I was feeling the stress of trying to be everything to everyone and asked her how she did it. There is a part of me that thinks when I look in the mirror, I should see Wonder Woman. When I see me, it terrifies me. Can I really pull off all the things I have to be to so many? I don’t know. We’ll see. This song gives folks a peek at the vulnerable side of me which isn’t shown that often.”
Messina thanked her fans for their help bringing Me to life in closing. She said to her fans in a statement, “This album is truly for you, the people who appreciate the creative process, as well as my amazing fans,” she said. “There’s no question, I wouldn’t be where I am today without your love and support. You’ve been with me since the beginning. This album is a fresh start for me, and I want us to go on this exciting journey together.”
More information on Me, Messina’s tour schedule, and all of her latest news is available online at http://www.jodeemessina.com, http://facebook.com/jodeemessina, http://twitter.com/jodeemessina, and http://www.babble.com/contributor/jodeemessina. To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.
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