On July 10th, 2020, country crooner Brett Eldredge released his fourth studio album, filled with songs that reflect his past two years of growth and development as a songwriter, performer, and as a human. One week later, he released a documentary to coincide with the album and all the work that went into it.
Throughout the documentary Brett takes you through his hometown of Paris,Illinois, from visiting a local restaurant and chatting with the locals he grew up with, and visiting his uncle, Eldredge takes us through the small town he loves so much, and with that the process of creating the album. The album was recorded at SHIRK Studios in Chicago,IL, just three hours away from his hometown.
Brett Eldredge at RBC Bluesfest Music Festival in Ottawa, ON Photo: Rob Blanchette
In late 2018, Brett signed with Q Prime South management which, is led by artist manager John Peets, who also manages Eric Church, Brothers Osborne, and a handful more. Brett delves a bit further in conversations about the direction of the album, beginning with not only who you are as an artist but who you are as a person. Explaining how with the world being so big, and at times you can lose that sense of authenticity, it is beneficial to be able to go back and reconnect with your roots. John Peets expresses that what you have to do is show audiences why is this person unique or different from the rest of the pack and that you’re not competing from song to song but rather developing into a true artist with so much more to say and so much more to express.
In the documentary, Brett has noted that it was important to him that he expresses who he is and that he wants to show the authentic him in his music. Eldredge also had expressed his past anxieties when it came to performing because he believed he had to sound exactly like the records. He explains that he had to step away from the thought that he was more than a ‘brand’. Sunday Drive is a true reflection of Brett and his growth and we are able to see how vulnerable he became creating this record.
When John Peets discusses the recording of the album, he talks about how going into the recording sessions the catalog for them to choose from was quite vast. That narrowing it down to the amount for a record was determining which songs you would cut and keep was nerve-wracking. You put yourself as an artist at risk because you don’t want to lose fans, followers along the process. Finding an authentic sound and self while creating art is scary, but it is clear Brett had his work cut out for him by creating a record that could very well be his best yet.
You can watch the full documentary here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdJwhp-Fk4Q
You can stream Sunday Drive on Spotify here:
https://open.spotify.com/album/5am18BIdjp6lOvt9KjKbSd?si=RBxbw40YSBe5zK874hL60Q
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