RALEIGH KEEGAN

                                                              "New To Nashville" 

                                                               Independent Release

Raleigh Keegan has shown us different layers of his songwriting and overall style with each album and song release; from his piano playing inspiration from Billy Joel on his outstanding cover of “Piano Man,” to a more rockabilly tilt on songs such as “Sure Like Lovin’ You.”

However, what Keegan has done to keep everyone on high alert and absolutely intrigued, is to always be so very careful to retain his signature feel, utilize his crisp voice in all the right ways so that it delivers proper emotions, and present songs that leave you digging deeper into his lyrics where you’ll discover that his true artistry lives.

With his newly released track, “New To Nashville,” Keegan not only gives us our first look at his seven city-themed forthcoming EP, A Tale of 7 Cities, but he also unravels a bit of a different feel with a purely singer/songwriter vibe.

Keegan has said of this song, “I wanted to start with ‘Nashville’ because it’s where I am now; A place where dreams are made, but no shortage of dreams don’t come true also. This song tells both sides of that story.”

Co-written by Keegan with Daniel Leathersich and Ryan Brisotti, the song masterfully places Raleigh’s voice in the forefront as the music is simply designed to be there only as a soft accompaniment which helps to give this a genuine feel much like you would find during a writer’s round here in Nashville.

We’re weaved through the life and mind of a hopeful musician who moves to Nashville with a guitar case full of dreams as he sings of having nothing much to his name except a cardboard kitchen table and a mattress on the floor, but how he’s also being mesmerized by all the neon lights of Lower Broadway.

Keegan does touch on several of the hard struggles that a songwriter/artist faces along the way, such as in the chorus when he sings of not being able to walk away from it even when it breaks your heart, while going deeper into the industry side of things in the second verse when he confesses the bold truth, “I shook all the right hands, but they don’t remember shaking mine.”

There’s always going to be some dejected negativity that’s wrapped within the honesty whenever you’re talking about the music industry. However, what I love about this lyric is that Keegan doesn’t stay in that place, but leaves us on a very positive, uplifting note when he declares: 

“That don’t mean that I’m not still holding on to hope

Like I used to when I was new

Cause some dreams do come true.”

This is certainly a songwriter’s type of song as any number of them can easily relate to it, but through his words and the soft delivery of these very raw and real lyrics, Keegan manages to sing about what he knows while also being able to connect it with anyone who has dared to dream big regardless of whether it was music related or not.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

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