Brandon Heath
www.brandonheath.net
Brandon Heath is a songwriter's songwriter. Although his debut album, Don't Get Comfortable, hosts an arsenal of pop-rock tunes that are as smart as they are catchy, Heath wants more than mere pop-stardom. "Music, for me, has always been about the songwriting," Heath says. "When I listen to a song, I really want the lyrics to actually mean something," he says. "It takes more skill to write a song with a message or story, and I appreciate the skill of good songwriting."
Unlike most musicians living in "Music City," Heath was born and raised in Nashville, Tenn., using the city's rich musical history to influence him in a variety of ways. "This is a songwriter's town," he says. "There's something about this town that really creeps into your creativity-whether it's being influenced by other people or by being influenced by Southern culture."
Heath is set on contributing to the Southern hospitality. A few years ago, he and his roommates moved to a lower income neighborhood in Nashville, and they've made it a point to join a community very much unlike the one in which they were raised. Although Heath's heart for missions and those living in poverty has recently taken him around the world to places like India and Ecuador, he has realized that there is a mission field right outside his front door. "For most of my life, I've never had the perspective of a poor person," he says. "A couple of years ago, I noticed how often Jesus talked about the poor and being among the poor. It's forced me to lower my expectations of what I think I need."
Don't Get Comfortable is Heath's major label debut, and it is the culmination of all of his years studying the songwriting greats. Super-producer Dan Muckala (Backstreet Boys, Nick Lachey, The Afters) uses his pop music dexterity to mold earthy songwriting into the stellar sound that rises above the clutter of mindless radio pop without losing its larger than life hooks.
The most personal song on the album for Heath is "I'm Not Who I Was." "It's about forgiving someone in my past," he says. "I don't know where they are now, but I need to forgive them whether they want it or not." He says that this is the song that connects the most with his fans. "People have said that it gives them permission to forgive someone that they have been unable to forgive. For me, moving someone to think about their life is the biggest reward as a songwriter."
Songs by Brandon Heath:
I'M NOT WHO I WAS
DON'T GET COMFORTABLE
OUR GOD REIGNS
YOU DECIDE
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