Southern California-based Casey Ahern is a breath of fresh country air. Her brand new EP, “Where I Run,” was just released in August, and we can’t get enough of her gorgeous vocals and easy-on-the-ears music. With a solid base of country goodness, topped off with a bit of Laurel Canyon singer-songwriter-esque chops, and tiny bit of pop sparkle, Ahern’s tunes will appeal to those who love country, those who love folk-pop, and those who love the beauty of really impressive singer-songwriter lyrics. We sat down with Ahern recently to talk about her new EP and to learn more about her influences and favorite artist. Listen while you read!
This EP really amazing, start to finish, and the songs are such a cohesive whole. Can you tell us how you came to gather this collection of songs into the EP?
All the five songs off of “Where I Run” embody the same theme, which I realized after choosing them to record: the theme of running — whether it’s to or from a person, place or thing. “Bradley” is my heart always running to my family ranch on the Central Coast of California, “Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” is me running to other things in life, later realizing I’m leaving love behind, “Just a Dance” is subconsciously running from a relationship I wasn’t happy in, “Sunday Driver” is running, in the sense of driving, with no destination set and just enjoying wherever the day takes me, and “Heartbreak Radio” is my mind running to the radio to find comfort in country music.
Your music is full of country flavor, but there is an evident folk influence as well. For readers who don’t aready know your music, how do you describe your sound?
I grew up listening to not only country, but folk as well! Artists such as Joan Baez, Glen Campbell, and a lot of the ‘70s Laurel Canyon songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, Jackson Browne, and the Eagles. So I’d say my music is a mix of that classic California sound as well as the earlier 2010s country music, since I grew up on that, too. Like Sugarland, Keith Urban, Martina McBride, and Tim McGraw. My focus when writing is mainly on the storytelling aspect and using lyrics to do so. So all of my songs are more lyric-centric and have more of an Americana/country sound.
In a related vein, who are your musical inspirations? Who are some of your favorite artists and musicians? How has their music — their creative spark — impacted you as a songwriter, a musician, a creative individual?
An artist I just mentioned, Joni Mitchell, had an influence on my writing style. I learned a lot by listening to how she phrases her lyrics and chooses her melodies. Another big influence of mine is Rascal Flatts, because they’re the band that really made me fall in love with new country music. I’d sing along to all their songs growing up, and it taught me how to sing various vocal riffs. I love how their songs tell stories and even have certain morals taught in them.
Your lyrics are really rich and have a depth to them. Repeat listens are guaranteed to reveal new lyrical standouts to listeners. What is your writing process? Where do you get your best ideas from? How long do you usually work on individual songs? Do you write regularly?
For me, usually the lyrics and melody hit me at the same time, and it tends to be while I’m driving! I think because that’s when I can really clear my mind and start to let it wander. I’ll just be driving and start to think about things that have happened, things that are happening in my life, or just things I see while I’m cruising down the road. So when an idea comes to mind, I’ll record a voice memo that I can pull up later on when I sit down to write with my guitar. As far as time spent on an individual song, it really differs. There’s some that I’ll write in 30 minutes, start to finish, if I’m really feeling the song and inspired. But on the other hand, there have been ideas on my phone that are a couple years old that I come back to and finish.
Talk a little bit about your hometown and California in general and whether those places have had on you as an artist. What influence has SoCal had on your music? Have you ever considered moving somewhere else, or are you settled there?
I mostly write about what I know or experiences I’ve had, so my home state of California has definitely played a part. For example, “Bradley” was written about our ranch on the Central Coast, and “Sunday Driver” is all about taking drives through the California desert with my dad growing up. I love California as a state itself and all the memories it’s given me that have made me who I am today. For me, it’ll always be home base, especially having the ranch up north. However, I want to keep growing as an artist and person and never want to plateau in life. I’ve been back and forth from Nashville over the past few years and feel it’s time to make the big move there for the next chapter of my life.
Do you have anything else that you are working on right now? What is coming up next for you, Casey?
Now that live shows are back, a lot of the focus lately has been getting back out there playing and connecting with people. My favorite thing about what I do is performing live, so I have shows in California and Nashville that I’ve been preparing for by doing a lot of vocal and band practices. I’ll literally be riding in the car with a personal humidifier on my face to warm up my voice — you should see the looks I get from the cars next to me! Ha ha!
