Crowder Turns Childhood Hobby Into Lifelong Career
"I started writing songs, because it was very difficult to find music that fit the college environment and that myself and other college students would identify with," said Crowder.
When Christian artist Crowder (née David Wallace Crowder) was growing up, all he wanted to do was be outside with his friends. The Texas native was stuck inside taking piano lessons that his mom had signed him up for and he was not in the least bit thrilled about it.
“I grew up playing piano, and I hated it. My mom, when I was a little kid, we had a piano in the house,” the singer explained to Sounds Like Nashville over the phone. “Nobody was musical in my family really, but we had a piano, and I’m guessing like as a little kid, when you got something that makes noise, you bang on it. As soon as I could reach it, I’m banging and making a racket, and my mom at one point was like, ‘I recognize that melody. Maybe we should get the kid some lessons.’ Then she started making me go to lessons, which I, as I said, I hated, because I’d hear all my friends playing outside, and then my mom’d be making me play inside, and I’d be like I want to go play football, and they’d laugh at me through the sliding glass door and that kind of thing.”
The lessons eventually turned into a talent and Crowder enrolled himself in Baylor University, studying piano. It was at that time, however, that he also introduced himself to the guitar and learned how to play.
“I picked guitar up probably my sophomore or junior year and couldn’t put it down. It was like a drug, and so most of the time, mostly I play guitar now,” he said.
Eventually, his knack for music was called upon from a pastor in his church, who asked for him to play in the band.
“The church asked me to help facilitate the music side of things,” Crowder explained. “I was more like organizing players and picking some of the songs along with the pastor there and so forth, and then about a couple years in, I started writing songs, because it was very difficult to find music that fit the college environment and that myself and other college students would identify with and feel was authentically representing their insides, and it was just at the time.”
Finally, Crowder had found his niche. He loved writing fun, relatable songs for members of his church. The love and passion he had for his music eventually led him to a career in the industry and he has since an album, Neon Steeple, and EP, Neon Porch Extravaganza. Now, he is gearing up to release his second full-length album, American Prodigal, and is giving fans a taste of what to expect with the song, “Run Devil Run.”
“It was the first song to step out the door to give a good picture of what the sound of the record would be,” he said. “The single that they were going to put out to Christian radio, I felt like that’s a great idea choice, but it doesn’t really give the full picture of the record.”
“I’m calling it what sounds like to me is swamp pop. It’s like it’s pop music, but it’s got a pretty swampy… It’s got some swamp to it. Swamp pop is what I’m thinking it is, and this ‘Run Devil Run’ feels like it’s more of a swamp pop thing, and it lets everybody know what to expect with the rest of the record, so yeah, and then it gave me an excuse too to get to make the video.”
The video for “Run Devil Run” followed with that “swamp pop” feel of the song, while also allowing Crowder to live a lifelong fantasy.
“I grew up in Texarkana, Texas, and then I moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and my favorite movie ever is Smokey and the Bandit. I don’t think I understood it quite as a kid, but growing up, I watched it about a thousand times. It’s like the best movie ever [to me] because they’re going from Atlanta, Georgia, to Texarkana, my home, and they’re making a beer run. They’re trying to get beer in a certain amount of time, and it turns out, I hate to spoil it, but they do get the beer in time, but they go to Texarkana to get the beer. So I had to make a video where I got to do a car chase in a black Firebird. He did the Trans Am, but I thought that’d be too literal. I wanted to drive real fast and get to do a lot of donuts and spinouts, so I used this.”
Crowder’s new album American Prodigal is due out Sept. 23. Fans can purchase “Run Devil Run” HERE.
