Adam Sanders Follows His Own Voice on Self-Titled Debut EP
“I'm excited to sing songs that mean the most to me."
Though an up and comer in country music, Adam Sanders has the experience of a veteran songwriter. Sanders has spent the past nine years in Nashville penning hits for the likes of Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Dustin Lynch and Cole Swindell. But now he’s established his own voice, one he’s using to tell his story on Adam Sanders.
Sanders journey in Nashville started just after he graduated high school. He could have followed protocol and attended college like many of his friends, but instead, Sanders ran toward his dream. “That was just not the path for me and I knew it,” he reflects. That decision opened the door for Sanders to discover his talent for songwriting, one that a handful of country’s modern names recognized. He’s the writer behind such songs as “Out Like That” by Bryan, Swindell’s “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey” and scored a No. 1 hit for Lynch with “Hell of a Night.” Looking back on his assortment of hits, Sanders is steadfast in his approval of every artist’s interpretation. “A lot of these guys have been my friends, and so I trust them with my songs,” he says.
Sanders recalls the days when he used to sing Bentley’s tunes in talent competitions in his home region of north Florida, not realizing that is idol would one day record his song in the form of “Sounds of Summer” on his Riser album. “I wish that I could have 100 more because all of them would be special,” he says of having other artists cut his songs. “It’s been a slow process, but a process I wouldn’t change for anything. I’ve just enjoyed it.”
Sanders admits he’s found a niche for adapting his songwriting to match someone else’s style, but with his debut project, listeners get a well-rounded view of who he is when he steps out from behind the scenes. He points to the EP’s first single, “Over Did It,” citing it confidently as a song that could change the trajectory of his career.
But the most intriguing moment on the EP comes with “Prayed For Me.” Sanders tells the story of when he attended a prayer meeting and the preacher turned the focus on him, analyzing his life and foreshadowing what’s to come next. The singer had already written the song, but was so inspired by his words that he felt compelled to share them at the beginning of the song. “You had the fight to get here. Now you’re having to fight to stay here, but the fight is going to be over soon,” the preacher recites, explaining that Sanders life will soon move in a different direction. “That’s going to be unique to even you, it’s going to be a little challenging. It’s not going to be common, it’s not going to be set in order like somebody else has already done.”
“I knew that that needed to be in part of the song and every time we play it out now, people come up crying after and they’re like ‘I can’t tell you how much that means to me,’” Sanders describes of the personal song.
There are a handful of characteristics Sanders lives by, faith being one of them, along with family, fitness, the outdoors and music. These are all reflected in the six-song EP. “All of those pillars mean the most to me in my life and so it’s my job to tell my story as my own personal artist,” he shares. “I’m excited to sing songs that mean the most to me.”
Adam Sanders is available now.
