Brandon Lay Remembers Past Love in ‘Wilder Horses’

"In a lot of ways, I think it sums me up," Lay shares of the song. 

Written by Lauren Laffer
Brandon Lay Remembers Past Love in ‘Wilder Horses’
Brandon Lay; Photo courtesy Morris Higham Management

Country newcomer Brandon Lay is gearing up for what’s likely to be one of the biggest years in his budding career. Following the multiple releases of his 2-pack song collections, Lay will spend part of his year performing in an opening spot on one of 2018’s most anticipated country tours… Kenny Chesney’s Trip Around the Sun Tour.

As he gears up to open for one of country music’s biggest acts, Lay continus to introduce himself and his music to fans, releasing two songs at a time to digital platforms. His latest 2-pack includes the song “Wilder Horses,” which the singer/songwriter feels is one that represents him as an artist the best.

“I wrote that song in 2015 and that was kind of the song that we compare the others to when it came time to see if it should go on the record or not. It was a question of whether it would make sense with ‘Wilder Horses,’” Lay explained to Sounds Like Nashville of the song he wrote with Ross Copperman and Jon Nite. “It’s been an important song for me. I feel like sonically and stylistically, it’s a blend between a Memphis sound and a Nashville sound. I grew up right in between the two in Jackson. In a lot of ways, I think it sums me up.”

Like his debut single, “Speakers, Bleachers and Preachers,” “Wilder Horses” encapsulates Lay’s upbringing, featuring imagery and details from his life in Jackson, TN. Lyrics like “Baby looks good in a delta sky, woah I wish I was down in Dixie tonight,” stand out to the singer as his favorites as they recall memories of days past.

“I grew up where it was pretty flat. There’s something about the mood of that line…That rolling up two lane road around Jackson growing up where all those memories were made, that one just hits home for me,” he shared.

When it came time to release a lyric video to accompany the song, Lay decided to get creative with it. Teaming up with a group from Los Angeles and his video editor, Matt, Lay was able to create a custom look to accurately portray the message of the song.

“I [did] not want to be over literal. That’s why we kind of picked a few [shots] we felt like were key images to kind of captivate the heart of the song and kind of just went with those.”

Lay will take “Wilder Horses” and “Speakers, Bleachers and Preachers” out on the road in 2018 as he opens for Chesney. He also has plans to hit the road with Old Dominion for a number of dates on the band’s Happy Endings World Tour.