Country singer-songwriter Casey Ahern sat down recently with @skopemag to talk about her music around the release of her new EP, “Where I Run” (out now).
@skopemag: Your new EP is amazing. We really love one of the singles, “Heartbreak Radio.” What is the story behind it?
Casey: Thank you so much! You know when you change the dial to the country station, it’s, “My dog died, my wife left me, and my truck broke down” — those country songs we all grew up loving? That’s what inspired “Heartbreak Radio”— my love for country music and how it has “taught me to love, to hurt” and find comfort in its melodies.
@skopemag: Was the song easy to write?
Casey: “Heartbreak Radio” was actually one of my first songs I’ve ever written back when I was about 12 years old or so. I would always write down notes when a lyric idea would come to me, and I remember being in the car when the radio turned to static. I didn’t know it at the time, but the lyric, “So I drive to wherever, wherever I hear no static,” would later be used for “Heartbreak Radio.” When really shaping the song, the chorus came to me first. Then over the years, the lyrics and melody were refined by just playing it at my live shows and taking it into the studio to record.
@skopemag: How would you describe your music? Who are your biggest influences?
Casey: I would say my music is a blend of the ’70s Laurel Canyon/California singer-songwriters and the early 2010-era of country music. Primarily, I focus on the lyrics and the story my songs tell. I grew up listening to a lot of Joni Mitchell, the Eagles, and Glen Campbell, as well as Rascal Flatts, Sugarland, and Keith Urban. Joni Mitchell and Rascal Flatts influenced my writing the most. I really love how Joni phrases lyrics and the melodies she wrote, and I love how Rascal Flatts songs always tell stories — they also really taught me a lot of the vocal riffs I choose to sing now.
