Eric Church (feat. Rhiannon Giddens) - "Kill A Word"

[sabre14]

Artist: Eric Church (feat. Rhiannon Giddens)
Single: "Kill A Word"
Writers: Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Luke Dick
Album: Mr. Misunderstood
Label: EMI Nashville
Impact Date: August 29th, 2016
Source: Billboard



Confirmed in Billboard tonight.



Yay!!!!!! :)

Hits radio on August 15th.

[zjames]

Eric is 3/3 for me this album era. All 3 singles have been among the best of his career.

I think this will end up being the biggest hit from the album. It feels important and seems like it will make a big impact on listeners. I can't wait to hear him perform this. I think this also solidifies his status as the favorite to win the CMA Award for Album of the Year.

[someguy]

Really good choice. This and "Round Here Buzz" we're the best single choices left on the album. I think this will do very well for him.

[tim]

YES! Love this song.

[phil1996]

Great to see. I think this will be another smash.

[Kentucky25]

Great, give us "Round Here Buzz" to close out the album era, and then I'm ready for some new music. It feels like forever since this album came out.

This is a song that actually does have a message and I could easily see blowing up and being one of the biggest songs of this year (maybe 2017 depending on how long it takes to move up the charts)

[sabre14]

Aug 1, 2016 22:17:50 GMT -5 Kentucky25 said:

Great, give us "Round Here Buzz" to close out the album era, and then I'm ready for some new music. It feels like forever since this album came out.

I agree about "Round Here Buzz" being fourth. That would be an outstanding and spot on single choices from Mr. Misunderstood...but I don't feel this album's been out forever, lol. It was only released last November (about 9 months ago).

Eric said on The Highway a couple months back that he will likely surprise release another album again but didn't give any specific details of when or if it would be the next album. If "Kill A Word" and the next single do well enough I could see EMI Nashville going for another just for the heck of it. Eric's at the point where he's clearly carved out his own unique niche at radio and as an artist in this format...I could see something like "Three Year Old" or "Knives Of New Orleans" hitting radio and maybe only peaking in the 20's or even 30's and they come back right away with another surprise lead soon after. You never know with someone like Eric. We'll see I guess, haha.

Here's the portion of Billboard confirming "Kill A Word" to radio:



I absolutely love this song. It was instant too. It has a very unique and clever subject and delivery of that subject that immediately makes the listener pay attention to its content. The song was Luke Dick's idea at first and after he and Jeff Hyde started the verse, Eric came in with the chorus.

This song can relate to so many and it can be a voice for many different situations. Political mudslinging. Racism. Verbal abuse. Bullying. Hate speech. Parents fighting, and so on. When I hear this song it harbors back memories of my parents on again off again verbal spats...it's a bit personal but that sort of stuff never leaves you, even as I grew older. We hear the old saying "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me"...I never bought that. Words can hurt. Words do hurt. We're all humans and no matter what people say, words do stick with us throughout our lives. Once something is said, there's no undoing it. You can forgive but forgetting is another thing all together. That's what I think of when I hear this song and why I personally love it so much. You obviously can't "kill" a word and it's futile to think we can get rid of hate all together in this world but this song brings light to the subject and boy, do we need it right now.

[dm2081]

I'm fine with this as long as "Round Here Buzz" is next. This is a great song though as well, and i hope it catches on radio. I hope it's not too "smart" for today's programmers. They should finish off the era with "Round Here Buzz" 4th and then release "Three Year Old" last. I could see "Three Year Old" being a huge digital seller much like "Like A Wrecking Ball". It's so original and appealing to many.

[Kanenrá:ke]

This was my choice for next single.

I have to say I've been waiting for years for Eric to meet the level of praise he was always showered with but this album finally met that praise and then some. 3 killer singles in a row with really no bad choices on the album, I'm glad I never completely wrote him off.

[robenglund]

As I said in the "Record Year" thread, this is an absolute smash. Couldn't be happier with this choice. The female voiced "ohs" after Eric says "Kill A Word" sounds so good. It sounds just like another Jay Joyce produced song we all know and love "21 Summer". In general, the production of this song is very similar to "21 Summer". It's got that "chill" vibe just like "21 Summer" and also "Springsteen". Interestingly enough, "Kill A Word", "21 Summer", and "Springsteen" are all songs in the key of D major. Can't wait to hear this song on the radio, especially during the nighttime hours :) .

[Deleted]

I hope the fact that Billboard tipped this as the next single doesn't cause stations to move on from "Record Year". Typically, if a label is going for a 2nd week at #1 (and EMI is doing exactly that with "Record Year"), it's best to not announce the next single. Basically, you don't want the next single to be officially announced while the current single is still increasing in airplay.

I just really don't want to see Chris Lane at #1, lol.

Anyway, I totally called this being next. It just makes too much sense given several current and recent events. This is another incredible song from Eric, and I truly think this will be another huge hit for him.

[phil1996]

He writes all these songs. Literally all of them. Crazy how talented this guy is, hope he wins big at the CMA's in November. Shelton/Bryan/Aldean cannot be compared to him.

What are the odds he gets Record Year and Kill a Word nominated for SOTY at the ACMs in April 2017? Or even the CMA's with Mr Misunderstood and Record Year nominated?

[Kentucky25]

Aug 1, 2016 22:56:01 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

Aug 1, 2016 22:17:50 GMT -5 Kentucky25 said:

Great, give us "Round Here Buzz" to close out the album era, and then I'm ready for some new music. It feels like forever since this album came out.

I agree about "Round Here Buzz" being fourth. That would be an outstanding and spot on single choices from Mr. Misunderstood...but I don't feel this album's been out forever, lol. It was only released last November (about 9 months ago).

Eric said on The Highway a couple months back that he will likely surprise release another album again but didn't give any specific details of when or if it would be the next album. If "Kill A Word" and the next single do well enough I could see EMI Nashville going for another just for the heck of it. Eric's at the point where he's clearly carved out his own unique niche at radio and as an artist in this format...I could see something like "Three Year Old" or "Knives Of New Orleans" hitting radio and maybe only peaking in the 20's or even 30's and they come back right away with another surprise lead soon after. You never know with someone like Eric. We'll see I guess, haha.

Here's the portion of Billboard confirming "Kill A Word" to radio:



I absolutely love this song. It was instant too. It has a very unique and clever subject and delivery of that subject that immediately makes the listener pay attention to its content. The song was Luke Dick's idea at first and after he and Jeff Hyde started the verse, Eric came in with the chorus.

This song can relate to so many and it can be a voice for many different situations. Political mudslinging. Racism. Verbal abuse. Bullying. Hate speech. Parents fighting, and so on. When I hear this song it harbors back memories of my parents on again off again verbal spats...it's a bit personal but that sort of stuff never leaves you, even as I grew older. We hear the old saying "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me"...I never bought that. Words can hurt. Words do hurt. We're all humans and no matter what people say, words do stick with us throughout our lives. Once something is said, there's no undoing it. You can forgive but forgetting is another thing all together. That's what I think of when I hear this song and why I personally love it so much. You obviously can't "kill" a word and it's futile to think we can get rid of hate all together in this world but this song brings light to the subject and boy, do we need it right now.

Not to derail the thread too much, apart from the singles and "Round Here Buzz"/"Mixed Drinks..." I didn't really care for this album. So an album that was cut down to just 5 songs by my own taste causes it's burn rate to be a lot quicker than past albums from Eric Church.  I found that the highlights of this album (especially "Record Year" which is one of the best popular country songs in a long time imo) are so high that it outweighed the indifference I had for the rest of the album.

Seeing as how Church appears to have such a special place for this song, I could see the live performances of it (at the award shows) really being "events". 

[straitouttanashville]

"Kill A Word" is a great song and the perfect 3rd single choice off Mr. Misunderstood. For me "Record Year" was the top single from Church's 4th studio album. I hope he can maybe get back to back #1 singles, even if for Eric it doesn't seem to matter. One of these days Eric Church needs to be strongly considered for Entertainer of the Year by the ACM. Church released Mr. Misunderstood without one bit of lead up or media even advertising it, and its going to be a Gold Album soon and I wouldnt be surprised if its platinum one day. Eric Church is a powerhouse A-List superstar artist and should get way more awards than he does. "Kill A Word" should get a ACM nomination as should "Record Year".

[zaclord 🌈]

Wow, this is stellar. I've really gotta check out this album again. "Record Year" is my all-time favorite Church song, but this one may come to be a close second. Incredible message that needs to be heard now. I just hope radio plays this to the level it should be.

[straitouttanashville]

Is the female backup vocal on "Kill A Word" Joanna Cotton?

[sabre14]

Aug 6, 2016 11:50:30 GMT -5 straitouttanashville said:

Is the female backup vocal on "Kill A Word" Joanna Cotton?

The woman you hear is Rhiannon Giddens.

Joanna Cotten sings backup on "Chattanooga Lucy."

[straitouttanashville]

Aug 6, 2016 11:56:46 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

Aug 6, 2016 11:50:30 GMT -5 straitouttanashville said:

Is the female backup vocal on "Kill A Word" Joanna Cotton?

The woman you hear is Rhiannon Giddens.

Joanna Cotten sings backup on "Chattanooga Lucy."

Thanks!

[mus1cr0w]

This is such a great song and idea. Eric really is keeping it fresh and original. I would dare say hes one of the only singers who deserve the term "artist" attached to their name.

Hope it does well!

MR

Ps - just saw hes starting a furniture line. Makes sense since his parents are millionaire furniture tycoons. Smart guy!

[phil1996]

Aug 6, 2016 16:21:15 GMT -5 mus1cr0w said:

. Eric really is keeping it fresh and original. I would dare say hes one of the only singers who deserve the term "artist" attached to their name.

My thoughts exactly.

[sabre14]

Impact date is August 29th according to Country Aircheck.

At least something good to look forward to on that day (Fall semester begins). :(

[robenglund]

Aug 8, 2016 20:08:25 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

At least something good to look forward to on that day (Fall semester begins). :(

Same. Graduate school.

[sabre14]

Eric Church announced the Holdin' My Own Tour for the first half of 2017. The tour will include no opening acts; instead, Eric will play two separate sets with an intermission in between.

Tour dates are in the link from Rolling Stone.

[someguy]

Aug 8, 2016 20:08:25 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

Impact date is August 29th according to Country Aircheck.

At least something good to look forward to on that day (Fall semester begins). :(

I don't go back until September 6th, but I feel you. At least something good is coming out of the end of August.

[phil1996]

Aug 9, 2016 23:21:03 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

Eric Church announced the Holdin' My Own Tour for the first half of 2017. The tour will include no opening acts; instead, Eric will play two separate sets with an intermission in between.

Tour dates are in the link from Rolling Stone.

Double sets. If I see Luke Bryan or Jason Aldean ever win Entertainer of the Year over this man again I will lose it.

[sabre14]

What a great interview Eric gave with Entertainment Weekly.

After a season of botched surprise releases, Eric Church did what no other star could in 2015: he dropped an album without even the slightest of hints. Mr. Misunderstood, one of EW’s best country records of the year, arrived the morning of the CMA awards broadcast when members of his fan club, the Church Choir, woke up to physical copies in their mailboxes. Everyone else had to wait until the award show ended, when the set appeared on iTunes.

In the months since release, Church has avoided press and is only playing a handful of dates this summer. Instead, he’s letting fans be the mouthpiece of the album. “We think about our main core of fans first,” the 39-year-old tells EW. “It’s been invaluable, letting them have that sense of ownership — they had more ownership than anyone in this process.” A major tour in support of the record won’t launch until 2017.

Now that the set’s second single, “Record Year,” just earned Church his fifth No. 1 country single, he’s giving one of his first interviews since the album dropped. Here, the superstar looks back on his decade long career and chats recording in secret, what he thinks is most “ass backwards” about the music industry, how even his kids are itching to hit the road.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: “Record Year” just became your fifth No. 1 on the country charts. Can you take us back to writing the song?
ERIC CHURCH: My co-writer Jeff Hyde had the idea. I could not believe that the idea had not been written that way. I was shocked to find out that it hadn’t been done. And then we just started talking about about those records that have kind of help me get over things and it just appealed to me. We sat down and started writing and it just fell out.

There’s a wonderful duality to the track in that you are paying homage to some of the records that shaped you — Stevie Wonder, James Brown, New Grass Revival, Hank Williams — but you’re also providing a road map to fans for music that has been out of the mainstream music news cycle for a while.
New Grass Revival was one of my favorite bands growing up, but I’m not sure a lot of people or kids even know who that is. [Laughs] They’re definitely somebody to check out.

You seem to buoy between songs that go No. 1 and songs that hover around the back half of the chart when it comes to singles. Are you just taking turns between appeasing radio and highlighting favorite deep cuts or is there an alternate guiding force?
I don’t make a lot of decisions based on radio. When we look at an album, I just look at the songs that are important to me, that I want to shed some light on. A great example is “Mr. Misunderstood” [which peaked at No. 15 on the country airplay charts]. It came in at about five minutes long, and I knew it was going to be a bit of a challenge with what radio uses and what works within the confines of programming. But it was important to me, it was an important statement. So we went and did it.

We’ve done that with a number of songs. And what’s funny is that some of them have been our biggest songs. “Smoke A Little Smoke” [off 2009’s Carolina] was a big song for us and didn’t do great at radio. “Two Pink Lines” [off 2006’s Sinners Like Me] was interesting at radio. “Homeboy” is still very important to our career and it was like Top 20. [Off 2011’s Chief, the song peaked at No. 13.] So I don’t look at it in terms of radio. It’s a personal thing for me. So I’m generally the one you can blame or congratulate. [Laughs]

A lot of money gets thrown into promoting singles. Is your label fine letting you have final say?
You know, here’s what I think about that: The label, at least with Capitol [Records Nashville, under the Universal Music Group umbrella] and Mike Dungan, they trusted me early on and it paid off. They know that I know my fans better than they do and they let me make the decisions.

Those songs you mentioned that were maybe lukewarm at radio, like “Smoke A Little Smoke” and “Homeboy,” are enormously important in your live set.
We’ve got probably 10 songs that if we don’t play, people will kill us—and out of those, two of them are No.1’s. I can drop a couple No.1’s in a set, but if I don’t play “These Boots” they’re mad.

Mr. Misunderstood arrived last November with absolutely no warning. Why was it done in such secrecy?
I wrote the record in 18-20 days, but I wasn’t real sure what I had. I wanted to do it with just myself and the band. I wanted to see if we could cut it the way I saw it in my head. So I called my producer and said, “I want to come in for a day, I want to cut this song.” We got to the end of day one and he looked at me and said, “You got anything else?” [Laughs] So we went from “Mr. Misunderstood” to “Kill A Word” and then to “Knives of New Orleans.” Ten days later the album was done. It just fell out. I even knew the sequencing of the damn thing. For whatever reason, the cosmic portal opened up and there it was.

You’ve become a poster boy in Nashville for doing things your own way. Does that seem fair?
We tried the Nashville game. And the two songs in my career that I’d like to have back are “Love Your Love the Most” and “Hell On The Heart.” [Both off Carolina.] Those were both Top 10 radio songs — they were what the label said we needed — and they did nothing for my career. It was “Smoke A Little Smoke,” which was my call, when things started changing. So I’ve just learned to trust my gut and trust that it’s going to be okay.

It’s playing the long game, in many ways.
When you say playing the long game people laugh, but honestly we shot a video for “Sinners Like Me” 10 years ago and it just came out. [Laughs] I remember when we shot it we had no traction with that song and everybody wanted us to move on. I remember saying to my manager, “You know what we’re going to do? On the 10-year anniversary, we’re going to put this out.” And it was kind of a joke, but we put it in the vault and to the day, 10 years later we put it out. We thought that far down the line.

Once you decided to release Mr. Misunderstood as a surprise, you had to purchase a record plant in Germany to pull it off. How did that scheme develop?
We wanted to give away 80,000 copies away, CD and vinyl. Vinyl is hard to re-produce, there are only so many plants and we were in the fourth quarter. So my manager had a line on one in Germany that was up for sale and we said, okay we’ll get everything done there—plus we get to the front of the line if we own it. [Laughs] That’s why it stayed such a secret.

What was the most rewarding part of this release style?
If you want to know where the music industry is broken it’s this: When we’re going to put out an album, the people we’re trying to get it in the hands of are the fans’, but the fans are also the last people have a chance at it. It goes to a label, then the press, then radio and critics — all these people weigh in and get a copy and then its the fans. I think that’s so ass backwards. So we went to the fans first.

I remember when I was younger and I had a song or a record that turned me on and you had to drive around to every store to try and find who had a copy of it! I can remember pulling up and it not being at one or it not being at two — and when you finally get your hands on it, you couldn’t get to the car fast enough. That’s the feeling we were trying to simulate.

You’re not touring until 2017, which means fans will have had the music for almost a year and a half before they get to see it.
Well, we just didn’t have a tour planned. So we’re just playing the long game, this record is going to go seven or eight singes. We’re on two.

So fans shouldn’t expect more new music before that trek launches?
No. And I can tell you, I didn’t plan this one. I’m normally a guy that has to go looking for an album, I have to write 100 songs to find it. I wouldn’t anticipate anything like this happening again. I think that’s why, when its all said and done, this will be such an important record for us; the bridge between the first part of our career and wherever we go from here.

Tons of great stuff there. Eric basically said he regretted "Love Your Love The Most" and "Hell On The Heart" -- two singles his label said "needed to be released." Eric said in return since those songs did nothing for him despite being top 10 singles...he gets to release "Smoke A Little Smoke"...that song is the one from Carolina I still hear the most on the radio.

And this part:

Well, we just didn’t have a tour planned. So we’re just playing the long game, this record is going to go seven or eight singes. We’re on two.

Seven or eight singles?! lol That's almost the whole record. I think we can safely say, there will be at least two more releases after "Kill A Word" -- I don't think we'll see eight when it's all said and done but I definitely see "Knives Of New Orleans" getting released at some point.

[phil1996]

7-8 singles? That means we can probably give everything except Mistress Named Music a chance at getting released from here on out. Although I doubt they'll actually go *that* long. I would say definitely 2 more and then in late 2017/early 2018 new music.

*** Could definitely see either A.) a deluxe edition of the album with a few new songs or B.) a "Caught In The Act" part 2.

[sabre14]

Eric talked with Rolling Stone about his upcoming 2017 solo tour and "Kill A Word's" timely release:

I quoted the parts on "Kill A Word". You have to click the link to read the whole article. :)

He's also just releaed his most timely single yet: the anti-hate ballad "Kill a Word," off his surprise 2015 release Mr. Misunderstood. With a country consumed by violence and a bitter presidential election on the horizon, Church says it's the right time for the track. "I've never had a song that felt more meaningful and relevant than this one."

Do you think surprise-releasing Mr. Misunderstood minimized it as an album? Was it viewed as a "real" record or a stopover by the industry and even fans?

I don't know. The honest answer is I think they'll see that it's going to be a real record because of the commitment that we have to it. I think when we started this, we knew that would be a challenge. It started with the retail challenge. When you surprise people, the people you don't want to surprise are probably retail. [Laughs] But we did. There was no other way to do this thing. I think we went through a period there where people were wondering, "Is this a side project? Is this a creative whim?" Maybe even people at the label. But "Record Year" is a Number One song now. The record is continuing to gain legs. It's becoming a bigger thing. To date, I still say, it's the most important, because it connects what we did to what we're going to do. It's the bridge to where we're headed.

When you wrote "Kill a Word" with Luke Dick and your guitarist Jeff Hyde, the country wasn't as fractured as it is now. It feels prescient in hindsight.

That's it. If you would have asked me two months ago, I don't know that I would have said that's the next single. But there are times that the single gets chosen for you. And by that I mean what's happening in the world. I would feel disingenuous after writing the song, being a part of the song, to not put the song out at this time, with all the stuff that is going on: socially, police, politically. I mean, God almighty hell, the whole world. I've never had a song that felt more meaningful and relevant than this one. It's something that people need to hear.

It's a song that some country fans might be taken aback by. It's not a political song, but it does make you think.

Sure. Absolutely. But for me, it goes beyond the political. It is something that is so basic, and there's just something so common sense about it, about the way you treat people and the way you talk to people and the things you say. There's a line in the chorus, maybe my favorite part of the song, about [the saying] "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," which to me is not true. With bullying and all the stuff going on, words are very important. Words can be more hurtful than anything physically. I got little kids, and it's common sense when you're raising them that the main thing is how you talk to people, and how you treat people. Sometimes I think the world forgets that as we get older.

And Eric said almost EXACTLY what I said earlier in this thread about "Kill A Word."

There's a line in the chorus, maybe my favorite part of the song, about [the saying] "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," which to me is not true. With bullying and all the stuff going on, words are very important. Words can be more hurtful than anything physically.

Totally agree!

[someguy]

The more I hear this, the more I'm glad it's the next single. It's perfect for the way the world is right now. I expect it to really resonate with people over the coming months.

It's great to hear Eric say that he wants 7 or 8 singles from this album. I don't expect that to happen, as is usually the case when artists say that, but it makes me optimistic that we'll at least get 5. I'd love to see "Round Here Buzz" and "Three Year Old" make it to radio.

[dm2081]

When the album first came out, I only thought a couple of songs could work at radio. But unlike The Outsiders, after listening to this more, I think a lot of these songs could possibly work. Not all of them could go Top 10 obviously, but I think most could crack the Top 20 rather easily. I'd say the trio of "Round Here Buzz", "Three Year Old" and "Knives Of New Orleans" have the most potential, with "Mixed Drinks About Feelings" and "Holdin' My Own" close as well.