CMA Fest 2024: Chat With Restless Road

1) Last Rodeo, your debut album had an incredible release this past fall. At this point, everyone has absolutely heard the album and has their favorite songs from it. Which song on the album is your personal favorite?

Colton Pack – We’re really proud of this whole album, but I keep going back to the song “Easy For You To Say.” It’s something that’s kind of completely different than anything else on the album. It’s a little bit like early 2000’s rock; a different vibe for us but it’s also some of the music that we loved growing up. So that one is a fun one for me.

Garrett Nichols – One of my favorites to not only listen to, but to perform live is “On My Way.” That was a song that we really poured our hearts into. It’s been really cool out on the road too; we’ve seen so many people getting tattoos of it, and it just seems like a song that people have really taken hold of and connected with. People tell us all the time how it changed their lives. Singing it, and even listening to it reminds me to not settle on things and always push forward because we’re not ever complete but we’re on our way.

Zach Beeken – Two different moods. If I’m looking to get amped up then I’d listen to “Last Rodeo” … no doubt! But on a more chill note, probably one of my favorite songs that I can’t get enough of is “Go Get Her.” I love that one on our album, and it’s been standout to play live. On social media a lot of people have really been getting into that song’s message. It splits some people down the middle though. Some really agree with the message and others are like “umm nope don’t come and get me cause I’m better off with you not in my life.” We understand both parts of that.

2) Your first official single to radio, the title track of the album hit with a bang…the most added of the week it impacted. Were you expecting that reaction to this song and why do you think it resonated so much?

Colton – I think that we were hoping. You never truly know what the reaction is going to be to any song. It really did just blow us away. I think it resonated with so many people because when we wrote it, we wanted to make it not just about a relationship. We wanted you to hear that chorus and go with it whether it’s a goal you’re setting for yourself, a dream your chasing, somebody standing in the way of something; it’s that motivational song to tell yourself that this isn’t the first time you’re going to see me, and this isn’t gonna be the last time either.

3) Your album wasn’t the only thing going on this year for you by any stretch. You also hit the road on your ‘Last Rodeo World Tour.’ We caught the amazing show back at the Brooklyn Bowl but take us into that tour from the backstage looking out. What were your personal highlights?

Zach – This was our second headlining tour. The first one, we didn’t have an album out yet and were still kind of new. It went great but having put out the album and doing the second headlining tour, we saw a ton of growth. The crowds doubled, tripled, and they were singing along with every word. Those were a lot of the pinch me moments for me. You’re just standing on stage like “Wow! This is real.”

Colton – I think a big one for me…we continued the “Last Rodeo Tour,” and are continuing it in the UK and Europe. We did three shows there at the end of March and we’re going to be doing a headlining tour there in December. But London…the pre-sale happened, and we had sold it out in the pre-sale and so we had to bump up the venue. And then we sold out the next venue that we bumped it up to. We were really excited and hyped that we could go all the way to London and sell out a show. Traditionally, the people in London are usually the type who really sit and listen to every word, so we weren’t expecting super hype. We knew it’d be a crowded room and that they’d really listen to our music, but they were so loud. They screamed the words to every song, and I remember when we walked off the stage…that was the moment when it set in that, “Holy cow! Our music isn’t just reaching people in the US, but all across the globe.

We always joked and said that we wanted to be worldwide selling artists, but then when you see people across the pond that are legitimately making those dreams come to life. That’s a surreal moment.

We put that new tour on sale a week and a half ago and it looks like the whole thing is going to sell out already, which is unbelievable. We’re doing 9 shows this time in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK…and to think that we have fans over there who are that eager to want to come out and watch us is mind blowing.

4) You’ve also spent some time on the road this year with Tim McGraw and are set to head out with Cole Swindell this summer. Playing off that last question about your headlining tour…in what ways do you approach your sets and performances differently between headlining and playing the support role?

Garrett – The big difference is the time. On a headline tour, you can give everyone the whole picture of who you are as a band. On an opening slot, when you’re meeting your music to these fans who might not have any idea who you are, you have to be really intentional on what songs you pick. When you only have 5 songs and nobody knows who you are, you really have to pick the right songs that say this is Restless Road in a limited amount of time. We want to give them some fun, some heartbreak, and some love songs.

Zach – To piggyback on that, when we’re the opener we want to get the crowd as amped up as possible. We try to pack the energy while at the same time showing them all the sides of Restless Road. Opening is really about getting them ready. If we’re headlining, that’s what we want from an opener; someone giving it their all and getting the crowd ready for the headliner.

5) We can’t let this chat slide by without a BIG congratulations on your ACM nomination this year for New Duo/Group of the Year. What does it mean to you to be recognized by your peers with an honor of this magnitude?

Colton – It is super super special. It’s something that we don’t ever take lightly. This town is full of people with dreams and every time you get the opportunity to have someone recognize you for your art that you’ve worked so hard for…it’s just really special. We’ve been a band for 11 years, so this was a really big moment for us to finally be recognized for our craft. It speaks volumes to everyone nominated. It says that you’re really crushing it and doing a great job.

We didn’t win the category which puts a fire in us to keep up what we did this year, and really elevate it so that next time we can win. But you know you don’t do it for the awards, but it’s a cherry on top to get nominated, recognized. We’re excited and hopeful for the future.

6) You mentioned the UK Tour coming up, and with the album out now and doing its thing, what’s next for Restless Road? New music? An EP? Album?

Garrett – We’ve been busy. As soon as we put out Last Rodeo, we immediately started writing again. That album taught us what works, what doesn’t work, and we got super inspired. We just started writing again ever since the album came out. We cut a couple new songs here recently and are hoping to make another album as fast as we can.

(Interview by: Jeffrey KurtisPhoto c/o Sony Music Nashville)