NOW STREAMING: “Brave Girl”
Callista Clark will release her debut album, Real to Me: The Way I Feel, this Friday, October 14, featuring the four songs originally released on her debut EP, including “It’s Cause I Am,” and six new songs, including her latest release, “Brave Girl.” For Callista, her new album represents the experiences she has lived over the last five years and writing about them in a way that she hopes other people, both young and old, will be able to relate to.
Callista Clark – RTMTWIF album mean :27
“This whole album is all about things that I went through the last few years as an artist, but especially as a person. Sort of just validating the things that I went through even though I’m young. It’s about, oh, your hearts broken? That’s okay. And it is real, and you can say that you’re sad today and go get done what you need to get done, and go to work and put a smile on your face and feel better the next day. And I hope that it’s something that other people can relate to.“
Callista, who turned 19 last month, began writing the songs for her debut album when she was 14, and in between that first song and the last one she wrote for the album, you can hear a lot of growth not only as a person but also as a songwriter.
Callista Clark – growth first to last 1:05
“The first song that I wrote for this album was actually ‘Real to Me’. It was in my first co-write ever in Nashville with Laura Veltz and Casey Brown, who are two incredible songwriters. And it was back when I didn’t even know what a co-write was. I’d only written by myself and with my mom. And so, I just went into the room and I said, ‘You know, I’m 14, I don’t drive, I obviously don’t drink, so I don’t know what to write a country song about.’ And Laura just kind of looked at me and she said, ‘We’re gonna write about that today.’ And even still, it’s been my favorite song that I’ve ever written because I do feel like it’s relatable to any age. And the newest song that I wrote for this album, I think, is ‘Sad’. And I wrote it with Jimmy Robbins and Sarah Buxton, two songwriters that I love so much. And it was my first in person co-write that I had since quarantine, and it was a whole new energy for me. I just went in and I was like, I’m gonna have fun today, and I’m gonna do what I’ve missed doing with my favorite people, and we wrote a super fun song.”
Get Real to Me: The Way I Feel by Callista Clark this Friday, October 14, and don’t miss Callista performing “Brave Girl” on NBC’s TODAY, during the 10am hour with Hoda and Jenna.