Cole Bradley Enlists NHL Friends For ‘Party Don’t Start’ Video
The shoot wasn't a party, but the video definitely is!
Rising country singer Cole Bradley enlists National Hockey League players for his “Party Don’t Start” music video, which Sounds Like Nashville premieres below. The Columbus Blue Jackets’ Jake Bean, Seattle Kraken’s Cale Fleury and Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Max Crozier are featured throughout the memorable four-minute clip.
The “Party Don’t Start” video was filmed over 11 hours in the midst of rainfall,
windstorms and heavy smoke from a nearby forest fire. Director and videographer Oliver Banyard brought a house party to life with an A-list cast despite the inclement weather.
“Oliver truly captured the essence of the song while shooting an incredibly entertaining
story,” Bradley, a Nashville-based artist and Canadian transplant, tells Sounds Like Nashville. “A lot of my close friends were extras and it felt like a real party by the end of it. This includes one of my best friends, Jake Bean, who plays in the NHL for the Columbus Blue Jackets. We grew up in the same neighborhood and have been great pals for a long time! Jake and I both took the ‘road less traveled’ in our careers and I feel like that has bonded us.”
Bean straps on an acoustic guitar and joins the band in the final party scene. The hockey player’s girlfriend and sister also make an appearance, as do his fellow NHL players.
“If I learned anything from this video, hockey players make great extras when it comes to filming country music videos,” Bradley adds.
Bradley wrote the feel-good anthem with Anthony Billups during their first-ever writing session. Billups suggested the song title “The Party Don’t Start Till I Show Up” and the pair got to work on the song.
“Eventually we softened it to ‘we show up’ and from there we just ran with it,” Bradley recalls. “My favorite lyric would have to be ‘when you wake up in the morning it might all be a haze, but I got a good feeling you’ll remember our names.’ A songwriting mentor of mine named Pat Alger once told me that the key to a good bridge is that it perfectly sums up the song. In my opinion, this line wraps up the song very nicely.”
“Party Don’t Start” follows the release of “Since College.” Bradley says both songs represent what is coming next for him musically, as well as offer an escape for listeners.
“After the year we’ve had, we could all use an escape whether it’s a night out with friends or a little vacation with a new party song,” he says. “As an artist, my goal since day one is for someone to hear a song, bring back a special memory and maybe help them take a break from reality. This song is a party anthem, and the goal is that the listener can kick-back, have a drink or two while letting the up-tempo groove and crazy lyrics put them in a good mood.”
Watch the video for “Party Don’t Start” below.
