The Breakfast Club - INTERVIEW: Brittney Spencer Talks Debut Album 'My Stupid Life,' 'Cowboy Carter' Album Feature More

Episode Date: April 19, 2024

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It's DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha Guy. We are The Breakfast Club. We got a special guest in the building. Yes, indeed. We have Brittany Spencer. Welcome. What up, baby? Baltimore's own.

Yes. What's up, y'all? How are you, Brittany? I am good. I'm so happy to be here. I'm a little nervous because I've just been watching y'all for years. And so, like, you know, this is fire. Thanks for having me. That's amazing. You're from Baltimore. Y'all don't get nervous about nothing. That's a lie. Do you get nervous?

I get nervous. Girl, I get nervous when I'm there. I get nervous when I'm here. I get nervous everywhere. I get nervous when I breathe. Yeah. I am a nervous wreck. For real?

Yeah. I'm just not very reactive. I just be like chilling and doing my therapy. What part of Baltimore are you from? I've lived everywhere. To give context, I went to four elementary schools. Okay. Yeah.

So I've lived, gosh, my family live like Randallstown and Locker and um east and west that's two different yeah I know yeah yeah I went to a school in Towson I could sing and so it let me go to like magnet schools all through middle and high school and so I could sing opera and so that kind of like I didn't have to go to my zone school and so I we moved around like a bit quite a bit sometimes and uh but I just didn't have to change schools. But I've been everywhere. What made you, how did you end up in Nashville from Baltimore, Baltimore girl, all around Baltimore to Nashville?

People always ask me that. I mean, I found out about country music because of the radio. My friend Keisha at church was like, you need to listen to the Chicks. Back then they were Dixie Chicks. Dixie Chicks. Yeah. They were the gateway.

I feel like they always the gateway. Everybody they're just the gateway that's how me raina roberts connected the first time because we were like just loving dixie chicks and um but uh my friends they told me to listen to them and i did and i just fell in love i feel like baltimore was like very like um it's very musical you know like you can you can go and you can sing in church but also you can go and listen to music down at Peabody you got a lot of art schools there you got like Carver and Baltimore School for the Arts um but also country radio is consistently the highest ranked in Maryland and so you got a lot of everything and I feel like people kind of appreciate it you know it's a lot of different

sides of Baltimore um and so that was kind of my introduction to it I kind of just fell in love and kept going and finally decided years later to make the move and at least give it a try. I had no idea if this thing was actually going to work. But I was like, it's worth a try. Might as well fail at something that I actually really like as opposed to like succeeding at doing something I don't want to do. Were you nervous to do country? Because you said Baltimore and Baltimore teeters on everything, right? Because you got club music in Baltimore.

Of course, hip hop and R&B. You do. You get like a touch of go-go because D.C. is right there. And you went country. I did. You totally went against everything that people were listening to. So how did that happen? What made you say, this is what I want to do as a profession,

and I'm going to take the jump and go to, like she said, Nashville? I mean, it was a lot. I felt like I really loved country music and I have like I've like sat and like thought for a long time like back in the day I would be like why do I love this like everything around me was was church was gospel was I mean my family upbringing like R&B hip-hop like that was that's like it's my family my father's a DJ you know it's so like he spent hip-hop and R&B all the time and I'm like what is this thing and I couldn't ever point my finger on it but i decided that it was it was just what it was

supposed to be for me and um i don't know i got the nerve it was something about taylor swift you know like i mean y'all know like in new york y'all are real close to baltimore so like the northeast is like it's mad close in proximity and she's from pennsylvania she didn't have a twang like she was really poetic it was just something about her that just made me feel like maybe I could do this and then Reba I love Reba we all like her yeah what did your dad say being a DJ especially a hip-hop and R&B DJ when you said dad I want to do country like that ain't in Maserato yeah he was like nah you need to move to Atlanta oh okay I know he was nervous and my whole family was kind of nervous actually but um but he got it you know and, and especially like now, like my family, like honestly, sometimes they be just as shocked as I am.

Like, oh, my God, this is actually like happening and working. I'm like, I never knew if it would actually really work. I just kind of decided I wanted to try and just give it a real shot. Like I was prepared to to or to not work, I guess, in a sense. But also, I mean, preparing for it to work is a whole other conversation but you know they just they're on board they love it they love what i'm doing and i mean i think what i do is kind of much bigger than myself you know um and uh and i kind of take that responsibility seriously and but like it's been very real for me for a long time like you just didn't know why everybody from baltimore daddy a dj yo your daddy a dj yes i'm sure kevin loud

yeah yo that's why i'm so musically i love music but i don't but like you you know i don't only listen to hip-hop rap and you know r&B I have I delve in rock heavy metal everything like country pop everything it's every genre of music I do except opera I ain't gonna hold you I will be sleep if I had to do that you want no high seas in the morning you don't want to hear that no I mean of course if you if you make it interesting because girl I just be yawning that's it with the eyebrow but but but that's it but yeah my dad is a dj yeah so yeah yeah was it tough being accepted in the country community as a black female country artist um i think i mean for a lot of us i think is is challenging like trying to get people to understand sometimes what we're doing but i feel like there are a lot of creatives that are really open um to kind of this this reformation happening in nashville um i mean

in addition to like just what we look like we're bringing our culture too like just like how you say you listen to everything like i do too and that you can hear that in my music you heard that i heard that dude too that's my sis it come out especially when I get close to the home it's just like it's like pulled out of me I've been in Nashville for 11 years so like sometimes it's a little twangy like just cuz I've been there for so long but um but yeah I mean I just I feel like we're bringing a lot of the styles and influences that we've kind of like had around us you know our family at a cook-off we listen to music where we see ourselves when we see ourselves reflected and so we're coming into country but we're bringing R&B and we're bringing rock and

we're bringing opera there is actually a country record that starts off with opera like people are just you know and it's probably it's cute I think of opera I just think of sitting in the symphony and ages down down there, you know, doing a, it's different. I'm pretty sure it's different types of opera, but that's the only thing my mind goes to is the regular symphony one where you sitting in the big symphony hall and they just screaming from wall to wall. And a lot of it be in like other languages. And so you don't always know what's going on.

You got to kind of read and stuff. I get it. I don't know. I get it. Why do people have to go to Nashville? Because it reminds me of when hip hop washop was big in new york and everybody had they felt like they had to move to new york to get that sound like why why do you have to go to nashville or why artists have to go to nashville to kind of get it started in country yeah i mean

i don't know probably because of the resources that's where the industry is like nashville is built like with an infrastructure that's where the labels are that's where the pros is. Like Nashville is built like with an infrastructure. That's where the labels are. That's where the BROs are. A lot of the publishing companies are there. A lot of the producers are there. I mean, there are plenty of places like in Texas, like there are plenty of Texas artists that are like they're not moving to Nashville or they'll come to Nashville and record, but they'll stay in Texas. So there are some places. It's just, I don't know.

Nashville is just kind of built. Like the hub for I don't know, Nashville's just kind of built. Like the hub for country. Yeah, like it's just kind of built for that. And I mean, the radios are there. So it's just, I don't know, I feel like it's just, if you want to do it outside of Nashville, I feel like you can,

especially now, you know, with like the internet. But ultimately, I feel like a lot of people end up feeling like they got to move to Nashville. I felt like I had to move to Nashville. I remember watching like documentaries with like Reba and taylor back when i was a kid and just being like oh they both said they had to get to nashville and i'm like well then my ass need to get nashville and so like you know it took me a few years to kind of get the nerve to do it but

i don't know i i feel like i feel like i meet more and more artists that are not in nashville but they always end up having to come back to Nashville a lot. You know, like you have to kind of just get there. Everybody is kind of there. Is country music more racist or sexist? Gosh. I think radio right now,

like 10% of their airplay is women right now. But I don't think they're playing black women right now much. So I don't know. Both of them is just a struggle, I guess. I don't know. And I feel like the industry is kind of pushing for change in that department. But, yeah, I don't know. It's kind of in need of a little overhaul in a lot of departments.

And I'm in the middle of that. Like, I feel, I i mean i don't know i feel like even as i make music like that sits on my brain sometimes but i i try to i don't know you can't really get away from it comes out even in the creative process like you know this i will say i feel like i feel like people speak probably more about race right now or people who are experiencing it like people who are black are talking about it more than than probably women are sometimes yeah and so i don't know i i mean i have a lot of questions i don't have a lot of answers though i mean i'd be i'd be trying but i don't

know i'm i'm just hoping to see that something changes but yeah in the meantime my black woman ass is right here that's right i got a little album and you know whatever yeah how heavily do you go into it on your in your album um like you know the the speaking about race what you were talking about like do you speak about it heavily in your album not so much um i mean i feel like it's not that i don't want to because i feel like i talk about this stuff all the time like i don't shy away from the conversation at all i feel like it's not that I don't want to because I feel like I talk about this stuff all the time. Like I don't shy away from the conversation at all. I feel like I just try to put my lived experience, my life experience in the song. And hopefully that attracts, you know, people who kind of have that experience as well.

Yeah, I just I really do try to I just show up as myself and try to show up as black and as authentic and as woman and as Baltimore as I am, you know, and as country as I am. And so I kind of leave that sometimes for the conversation because I feel like I don't know if I write a song about it. Like. I don't know. I don't over saturation is like, yeah, like this is about my story. Yeah. Which country it really plays off is about the experience in your stories. So why is it called my stupid life? I want out. And is it stupid? Like, or, you know, why are you calling it? It's called my stupid life, probably because in part because I'm from Baltimore. Like we greet each other like what's up, dummy? Yeah. Probably like that.

We say respect with each other. It's up dummy yeah probably like that we stay respectful to each other that's crazy it's love endearment and it's love thank you and if you from somewhere else you can't say it i tell him that every day girl so your stupid life it's because i feel like life is uh you know it's wonderful it's highs it's lows it's up and downs it's like it's um it's a lot of things and and ultimately when i'm thinking about just the things that make me feel most present i'm just i don't know like the best and worst things happen at the same time sometimes and for me that's kind of how i think about my stupid life and and with the album it's just no one song sounds like the other and uh that was on purpose like and so it's just i don't know it just felt like a conglomerate but also i mean really i

wasn't trying to name the album there i was really just kind of figuring out like which song title off of the album was the most appealing to me and when i was writing the song my stupid life i just kind of i was like oh this is actually kind of cool i would listen to an album called my stupid life right but also i mean i come from that era of like my so-called life and like stuff like that and so it was i don't know it just felt like nostalgic to me in a way. I saw you say that the album cracked you wide open and it allowed you to open up emotionally in a way that you really hadn't before. And you said, I really don't like feelings.

Yeah. I don't, I don't. Therapy has helped me a whole lot with that. And I have a lot of feelings. I love therapy too. And I love what you'd be saying about a whole lot with that. And I have a lot of feelings. I love therapy too. And I love what you be saying about therapy. I love that. Like,

I feel like you've been like at the helm of making it almost normalized a lot more. So thank you for that. I feel like, I don't know when you have feelings, knowing what to do with them is just hard and it takes a certain level of emotional intelligence and also just guidance and knowing how to navigate what you're thinking, what you're feeling and how how to what to do with it. You know, like I'm not a very reactive person. I'm very sensitive and I feel a lot of things.

And I've learned that if you don't let yourself feel what you're feeling and go through the process, it just comes out in other ways. You know, you wake up one day, you realize you're detached from everything you feel you feel numb you feel like like why do I feel so distant from people why why don't I know this about myself like there were moments where I was just like just almost oblivious to parts of myself and I think that played a part and why when I started having momentum in my career and I started touring a lot I started having momentum in my career and I started touring a lot, I started having like panic attacks and anxiety attacks. And I'm like on the road and I'm like, what is going on?

Like your body remembers, you know, and your mind remembers even the stuff that you thought you forgot. And so it's, I don't know, I just think it's important to at least start the journey of, you know, understanding your feelings, you know, and figuring out the origin of it, you know, figuring out why you do something, figuring out why does this thing trigger you. It's a much deeper thing. You thought you forgot about it because you were eight years old, but your body remembers and it developed a habit, a coping mechanism. And the thing that I've learned from me in my career is that it really does not do well if you are just living in survival mode. Like my survival tactics like crumbled. They crumbled like when I started touring and just slowly.

And it's like just the faintest thing like can kind of like set you off a little bit and you don't know what's going on internally you don't realize you're still dealing with stuff from childhood you're still dealing with all kinds of stuff like you're still dealing with rejection issues that really i mean you get rejected a lot in this industry you know but my rejection industry uh issues didn't start with this industry you know it just exacerbates everything and it's a it's a lot of highs and a lot of lows i mean y'all know this in your career like you know you can be on the mountaintop in your mind or in your career and your psyche one day and and uh and be in the valley the next and um like i just feel

like a lot of real life don't doesn't really prepare you for that and if you already got stuff you know what you it just brings it all to the forefront and that's what happened to me how did that good for you in that point because you didn't create imposter syndrome oh gosh when you get the imposter syndrome you start feeling like you shouldn't even be here and that affects everything especially for you because you're a performer oh gosh it was so bad remember one time i was just having this anxiety attack i didn't even know it was an anxiety attack during the show all i knew is that i was so excited to open up for Shania Twain. But I like ran off stage. I ran off stage before I could even bow out because I literally just started. This is gonna be so gross, but I just started literally having anxiety vomit.

Like I in front of dozens of people backstage. I don't know. I'm running off stage. My band is still playing. Thankfully, I made it to the last song. But I'm just like, what is going on? And I'm like, I'm having a whole anxiety attack right now and I and I started noticing when I got off stage I did the thing my body was doing the

thing when I'm having a panic or or really bad anxiety attack and I'm just like this is crazy and it wasn't the first time it happened I was just like this is insane and so I'm in and I was in therapy at that point and so I went back to therapy and we talked about it more. And I'm like, holy crap, I still have some more stuff to work out. And it's true. Like, you have to. I feel like this life is very fast-paced. Things change at the drop of a dime.

And that's what I try to put in my songs. That's what I try to put in my talking, in my speech, in the way that I articulate what I'm feeling. That's my lived experience. I try to put that out there. Saying I hate feelings is like, you know, that sounds like the oddest thing I think for an artist to say. We live in our feelings.

And I do feel them, and I'm learning how to navigate them better. But feelings are, gosh, man, they are, sometimes they feel like a rock in a hard place. Absolutely. But if you can learn how to navigate it, it's freedom. Now you spoke about the industry. He asked you if it was more racist or sexist. How do you deal with performing for people that's not necessarily majority looking like you right

like i look at it like if i have all the white people in nashville because i mean most of the people that she's performing shania twain i'm sure is when you're looking at crowd you don't see too many people that look like you yeah um you know when jess does a show she sees more people that look like it makes you feel comfortable makes you feel warm you're gonna see aunties you're gonna see grandmas you're gonna see cousins so how is it dealing with with you're not seeing an auntie or cousin of people that look like you you're not necessarily getting that warm feeling at first I just said the majority. No way, Brittany, because these people think they know me so much. They can't discredit your fans.

They can't discount me like that. I got some whites in there. They can't. You sound just like my sister. This is so wild. Shout out, Bria. Shout out, Bria. I feel like, I don't know.

I feel like, gosh, what's the best way to describe it like like i don't feel a way about it i just feel like um i feel like i just it pushes me to show up as myself even more like i really just don't be hot and nothing like i remember like there was a very distinct moment where i remember being on stage and being like i'm gonna start running as much as i want to because that's what that's what i like to do i don't know if i can cuss on this yeah you can I can do the thing okay that's what the fuck I want to do so I just remember like I just I don't know I'm just more myself and I just I feel like in my head I am building something you know in in this moment with this with with particularly with black country music I feel like like the people that are

for us are finding us you know our our people our crowd are they're finding us and the people who want to celebrate all of who we are they're finding us and so when i'm singing to crowds that in a majority of them don't look like me to me in my head i'm like it's okay because i'm open to act right now you know like i'm excited i love opening up for the people that I'm opening up for. That's the part of my career where I'm at right now. And in my head, I'm just like, you're going to be a part of this thing when I'm headlining the show. You're going to be part of the demographic,

because I really want to make music for everybody. I really want to make universal country music. I want something for everybody, and everything ain't going to be for everybody. But maybe there's a song or two that's down your row, you know. And I feel like more. I mean, I can't say more than ever. I hate people say that. Like we weren't here, you know, before our time.

But it feels like right now more than ever, people enjoy authenticity. Like whoever you are is enough. Like whatever your story is, it doesn't need to be mine. It just needs to be real. And that's what drew me to country music. I love that people put themselves in their songs, and I love that people tell the truth or at least try to. And if you can't tell the truth because it ain't yours,

you at least have a high level of empathy to be able to put yourself in somebody else's shoes well enough to articulate that story. And for me, that's what draws me even to performing. And so I kind of keep that at the forefront of my brain and, uh, and it comes with challenges of, of course. Um, it definitely comes with challenges. Like, I mean, even in the creating process, like having people that understand a black girl from Baltimore city who want to do country music, you know, that's, that's interesting. You know, what does a right like that look like? You know, what does a session like,

like that look like? And it's a, it can be, it's, it's a lot of exploring and it's a lot of open mindedness. And, uh, like I said, I feel like in addition to bringing my complexion, I'm bringing my culture, you know, and I feel like right now in country music, it's a great time to be able to explore what that sounds like. Not just what it looks like, but and that's important, too. But also, what does it sound like? You know, like I'm not coming in assimilating. I'm bringing, you know, the chicks as a kid and listening to Nina Simone and listening to Beyonce and listening to Sade and listening to the Clark sisters. Like I'm bringing all of that.

Like, what does that sound like? Because I come from a place where we listen to everything. And it's so nice to be able to talk to a Baltimore person who's just like that, too, because that's not a me thing. And I'll be trying to explain it to people in Nashville. Like, yo, that's not a me thing and I be trying to explain that to people in Nashville like yo that is not a me thing I come from a very musically eclectic place

where there isn't one genre associated with us we got Hairspray the Musical Billie Holiday and Toni Braxton like that's that's very

those are very different things and Tupac lived there for like a little while when I was listening to him yesterday oh my god girl I'm Tim Trees girl you remember bank rose

you think you're getting half of my dough you ain't though please no i don't but i wish i did she gonna send it to you now i'm a girl i'm gonna send it to you girl you got to crazy i wish i knew i'm sorry i wish i did no no no don't wish because i'm gonna let you know right after this this is older right yeah this was oh yeah okay but yeah. But honestly, Britt, that's what drew me to you. I have a best friend who likes country music as well, but I delve in country music, but it's not like something that I'll play every day. But her telling me, like,

yo, it's this girl from Baltimore who do country. And she sent me your stuff, you and Raina, because she's into country more than I am. And so she sent me Raina, she sent me you, she sent me your stuff, you and Raina, because she's into country more than I am. And so she sent me Raina, she sent me you, she sent me a couple other girls. And I was like, dang, like, shorty, you can really sing. You know, and your voice is very soothing as well. And you mentioned Beyonce.

Like, something like that is just interesting, coming from where I'm from, because you don't see country singers coming out of our city. You know what I mean? Every day. Or even every year this is not this is something that you see every once in a honestly I think you're probably the only one so like you know that I know to be honest and so I know even a Beyonce would take a liking to that like hold up like you know so how did that even happen like how did that link up happen because you're on Blackbird on the Cowboy Carter album. Yeah.

How did that happen? I don't actually know. Like, all I know is that I'm there and it's wild and it's insane. Like, being on that record, I feel like, one, it's just breaking a lot of musical boundaries. Like, for what kind of music people can make. It's kind of disrupting, I think, a lot of the lot of the industry and also disrupting like just even the creative process. I think like I feel like creatives might take the boxes off a little bit, you know, and not, you know, be as, you know, I don't think we've been rigid, but like we'll be even more explorative and also not feel like in order to be marketable,

you have to be this one thing. Yeah. You know, that's always a huge thing. Like, I mean, like, am I marketable? Am I commercial? Will people like this? You know, especially if you want to be a commercial artist. And it's, I don't know, I feel like it's taking the limits off of that. And being a part of that record, like, I was just telling Kevin the other day. Kevin Louse.

Kevin Louse over here. I was just telling him, I was like, yo, I just realized my album, I put it out, put my album out in January and it opens up with birds chirping.

And it opens up with this, I know, right? Wow. And it opens up with this song called New to this Town and it's in the same key as Blackbird,

almost the same tempo. And like, I'm just like, this is, this is wow, this is beautiful. It's, it's uh it's it's like you can't orchestrate stuff like that i mean i talk about beyonce on my album like anna raven

is a blackbird baltimore ravens i don't know hey no it is just made it is but how did it happen did she call you did somebody call you was the record like how did the record come together i didn't really talk about that yet. I ain't gonna lie. I feel like as an artist, I want to respect her creative process. And I feel like whenever she's ready to talk about this, she will. And I want to leave that for her. I love her. I admire her.

And also, she's Beyonce. Hey, guys. I'm Kate Max. You might know me from my popular online series, The Running Interview Show, where I run with celebrities, athletes, entrepreneurs, and more. After those runs, the conversations keep going. That's what my podcast, Post Run High, is all about. It's a chance to sit down with my guests and dive even deeper into their stories, their journeys, and the thoughts that arise once we've hit the pavement together. You know that rush of endorphins you feel after a great workout? Well, that's when the real magic happens. So if you love hearing real, inspiring stories from the people you know, follow, and admire, join me every week for Post Run High. It's where we take the conversation

beyond the run and get into the heart of it all. It's lighthearted, pretty crazy, and very fun. Listen to Post Run High on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Is your country falling apart? Feeling tired? Depressed? A little bit revolutionary? Consider this. Start your own country. I planted the flag. I just kind of looked out of like, this is mine. I own this.

It's surprisingly easy. There are 55 gallons of water for 500 pounds of concrete. Everybody's doing it. I am King Ernest Emmanuel. I am the Queen of Laudonia. I'm Jackson I, King of Kaperburg. I am the Supreme Leader of the Grand Republic of Mentonia. Be part of a great colonial tradition.

The Waikana tried my country. My forefathers did that themselves. What could go wrong? No country willingly gives up their territory. I was making a rocket with a black powder, you know, with explosive warhead. Oh my God. What is that?

Bullets. Bullets. We need help! We still have the off-road portion to go. Listen to Escape from Zakistan. And we're losing daylight fast. That's Escape from Z-A-Q-istan on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. As a kid, I really do remember having these dreams and visions, but you just don't know what is going to come for you. Alicia Keys opens up about conquering doubt,

learning to trust herself and leaning into her dreams. I think a lot of times we are built to doubt the possibilities for ourselves, for self-preservation and protection, it was literally that step by step. And so I discovered that that is how we get where we're going. This increment of small, determined moments. Alicia shares her wisdom on growth, gratitude, and the power of love. I forgive myself. It's okay. Like grace. Have grace with yourself. You're trying your best.

And you're going to figure out the rhythm of this thing. Alicia Keys, like you've never heard her before. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, y'all? This is Questlove, and I'm here to tell you about a new podcast I've been working on with the Story Pirates and John Glickman called Historical

Records. It's a family-friendly podcast. Yeah, you heard that right. A podcast for all ages. One you can listen to and enjoy with your kids starting on September 27th. I'm going to toss it over to the host of Historical Records, Nimany, to tell you all about it

Make sure you check it out Hey y'all, Nimany here I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know? I wouldn't give up my seat.

Nine months before Rosa, it was called a moment. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Dani Shapiro, host of the hit podcast, Family Secrets. How would you feel if when you met your biological father for the first time,

he didn't even say hello? And how would you feel if your doctor advised you to keep your life-altering medical procedure a secret from everyone? And what if your past itself was a secret and the time had suddenly come to share that past with your child? These are just a few of the powerful and profound questions we'll be asking on our 11th season of Family Secrets. Some of you have been with us since season one, and others are just tuning in. Whatever the case, and wherever you are, thank you for being part of our Family Secrets family,

where every week we explore the secrets that are kept from us, the secrets we keep from others, and the secrets we keep from ourselves. Listen to season 11 of Family Secrets on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. She'll tell the story. You won't fuck it up either, though. Yeah. I mean, but also, for real, on a very heart level,

I mean, I don't know. People have plans for how they want to reveal stuff. That's true. And I just want to wait. Makes sense. Yeah. And plus how they want to like reveal stuff that's true yeah and I just want to wait like I just make sense yeah like I want to and plus I want to cherish this like I'm also the same person who like will hold on to something for a long time and like not share with nobody and like I don't know even with my album I had like a little leather keychain I had the title of it on there I've been I had it around people have my keys I lose my keys all kinds of stuff and go back to the store to get it I've had my stupid life written on all kinds of things for a year.

I had it engraved on one of my shirts. Nobody saw it. Nobody knew. But it was just like my little thing. And so I respect the creative process. And even just for you, because you're young. You know what I'm saying? Even just for you, later on, maybe you'll write a book or maybe you'll do a memoir

or a documentary with it. Yeah. That will will be something for later you get what i'm saying like for you to do yeah you know i feel like everything is so instant right now with like social media and i'm like yo have a like having a thought out plan and i get it i understand urgency i understand like or at least i'm starting to understand uh just immediacy I I struggle with social media that is not my forte like I'll be talking about I'll be online I'll be online talking to people about how I don't want to be online I'm like this is like what am I doing like I made a whole song the other day and was like I tiktok someone please tell my team my label I tiktok I did the thing like please like just know that I'm trying today like I can't

account for tomorrow but this week I'm bored so i'm actually doing an experiment okay where i'm posting like two or three tiktoks a day because i'm kind of just bored i just want to try something out i don't know what i'm looking for right but i'm just having fun talking to people but i forgot what i was talking about just now that's how this works in my brain well basically he was asking you like trying to get your business about how to be linked up and you said you're going to talk about it later but maybe later yeah but the urgency is not for thank you all to get into your business about how to be on the show. But you said you're going to talk about it later. Maybe later, yeah. For the urgency. It's not for all that.

Like, I got a story about how, you know, when me and Michael Jackson was cool. I'm going to tell that later. You know what I mean? Because that's a story for later. That went to the same document. You know that, right? You know, I was just going with it. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm here for it. Best thing to do when you're talking to somebody from Baltimore. Just go with whatever they're saying. Get out of safe. I'm just playing listen the other black female country artists you mentioned Raina

but then there's Tana Adele Tiara Kennedy were y'all all familiar with each other and cool with each other before y'all yeah

so in a sense me and Raina have been really good friends for a few years me and Raina we met back in 2020 2021 and Tanner we met I want to say

we met like last year for the first time I've I've I've literally only been around her a handful of times but we've like been just really friendly we have like a common interest in edible glitter um edible glitter yeah yeah put it in your drinks you don't put it in it but oh yeah but that's this no I don't have THC and I just I put the thing you know that do the thing okay yeah but no it's just regular just Amazon okay edible glitter and so that was something that we just put glitter in your drink yeah you know it makes the drink really pretty yes still edible exactly I got you like a little a little gold dust on your rosé or something.

I mean, anyway. But then we connected with that online. And so, like, it's just been, I don't know, it's just been mutual respect and just, like, little things like that. I've known Tierra for a few years. We worked together back in 2021. And so, yeah, I mean, I feel like we all kind of like started meeting each other when life got busy like around 2020 when the conversation around black country really

kind of started ramping up and so I don't know I feel like artists are just kind of like passing ships through the night and so it was it's really cool to be able to kind of like have a moment with an artist because I mean the beautiful and also sad part is that like you really gotta live in that moment when you're with somebody that is in the same field as you because once this moment is over like you might not see each other for a really long time like I have friends that I've connected with so deeply like over tour or something and it was two months and I haven't seen him in two years now so I know I'll be going through withdrawals I'm like oh my god my friend we share such a beautiful moment and also now we only see each other anymore right now just because life is just yeah it's kind of hard

yeah i know y'all know about that more than me was there a country music before beyonce and after beyonce yeah okay like how did things change yeah um oh in that sense um like how have you benefited from her being in the country music space now oh gosh i mean even just some of the stuff that i was saying like with uh kind of breaking those musical barriers and and kind of like who gets to represent the south or like or or just the stories that get to be told or the way that is told like even just sonically i feel like people might even be a little more explorative on their albums. Like my personal favorite album is Lemonade, like of all time.

That's my album. When I heard that album, it, like no one song sounded like another. And it was, it was really like, it shook up my head a lot. And I feel like if people listen to my album, My Stupid Life, like you can hear that. You can hear where I just wanted to have storytelling and country music at its core just be the thread through each song. But sonically, it's going to be a little rock and country. It's going to be a little R&B and country.

It's going to be a little pop and country. It's like I feel like I have that thread. And I feel like, gosh, I feel like we're going to hear more albums like that you know but my a lot is inspired by an album that she made you know years ago and so I feel like right now people just gonna be more explorative like creatively but also I feel like she's also bringing a really interesting fan base to country music and uh and the talent is there and uh and it's our job to keep them here you know i have no idea what her next record is going to be but hopefully you know

the people that are here and interested in in what this whole moment is because of beyonce hopefully they you know want to stick around because there's some incredible talent here and i think she's done an incredible and generous uh thing in spotlighting a lot of it on Calvert-Carter. I was going to ask you you know a lot of artists are doing country now right we heard I think Keisha Cole says she's doing a country album. Beyonce's doing a country album. Okay Michelle been doing it yeah. So do you think it might take away from like it might be some of these artists might be doing it as a quote-unquote fatty type of thing and can it hurt or help country music? Because people are not you know a lot of people will go because they feel like it's a check right and not not do it because they feel

it in their soul yeah i mean honestly i don't think i care like and i know that people that are care i don't think i do because i feel like people just do that across genres all the time like they just do it people go and and they make a pop record or they make a rock album or they make you know they make a gospel record like people do that all the time even country artists they make gospel records or a christian record or something like we're about to do a rap album shut up he's tortured poets no no rap album he is album but I like your perspective on I've never heard nobody say that's right girl no he'll be serious face serious baby you know that's why I'm like I'm so glad that he advocates for therapy because he does need it you know it's true yeah absolutely

but i love your um your take on how um you broke down why you like lemonade a lot of people they like it for the surface reason oh she that's what she was venting about being cheated on all that i like it because the same reason is so many different genres of music. Yeah. And like she did rock, you know, then she did, she had her ballad. Then the country, she had her country song. What was her name? She was talking about her dad, right? Daddy Lessons. That was on Lemonade.

Yes. I never heard nobody say that, but that's why I like, that's why Lemonade is my favorite album of hers because of, it's a no skip because it sounds like so many different genres that's real i just wanted to say that because i you know i be in my little music bag a little bit you do yeah you know just a little bit you do i'm like okay b she want me over with that i mean i feel like the average listener like listens to a little bit of everything you know i feel like country is first of all it's a way of of life. You know, it's a lifestyle. It's kind of how, in this case, I'm a transplant.

Like, I'm from Baltimore. Like, I'm from Randallstown. Like, I'm from over by Morgan State. Like, that's where I grew up. That's where I lived. And so I feel like I just fell in love with it. My family, we went down south every summer to something South Carolina. Hey.

Oh, you all from South Carolina. My mother's husband is from there and every year somebody die every summer jesus every i could like it was almost like clockwork like i just knew i mean god rest all of their souls and also it was a nice time driving in south carolina that was my introduction to the south it wasn't the music at all like it wasn't country music it was going nice time driving in South Carolina. That was my introduction to the South. It wasn't the music at all. Like it wasn't country music. It was going down South and just getting acclimated to everything down there and watching people fight over whether to put cheese or salt and pepper in your grits. Like that was my introduction. And so, you know, and so I feel like it is a way of life.

And, you know, it's not just sonically like what you hear it's not just instrumentation it's the way you tell a story and it's the stories that you tell and it's your ability to be honest about it you know it's the ability to connect with people through the lyrics nashville is a song town you know and i think it was hank williams that said something i'm gonna paraphrase he said something like uh you ain't got to be from the south to do country you just got to be real and that do country, you just got to be real. And that's true. Like, you just got to be real with your shit.

You just, you have to be honest and that's what I try to do, you know? And I feel like when I listen to a lot of these albums, like a lot of these pop stars that are doing country albums, I'm like, go for it. Tell your truth. Speak your shit, you know, talk, do your thing. Also disrupt the industry because all of it needs an overhaul anyway.

So I'm interested. Whenever legal execs are like, no, no, no. I'm like, yep, that's the one. That's what we need. That thing right there. Go for it. I think that's what's making people gravitate towards country. Because like you said, country music is all about the storytelling.

Like it's the great stories. I don't know if they feel like they can necessarily tell those stories and whatever they're doing. Because it's a lot of glitz and glam and a lot of polished. Especially in pop. Yeah. But the thing that's, like, connecting with people, like, is people just being honest about how they feel

and the stuff that they've been through. Like, I was reading something a few weeks ago that was talking about how we've been in a loneliness epidemic for, like, a few years now, especially since like the pandemic. I'm like, that's why people love introspective music right now where people were just like, just spilling their guts and just telling the truth about how they feel the

dark, the ugly, they're not trying to be perfect. They're not just trying to give you like a, like a cliche love song. They're trying to like, they're trying to be honest. And I feel like that's happening a lot across a lot of genres

but it's beautiful when i i hear in country music especially paired with like the instrumentation that i love give me like some heartbreaking lyric with like a steel man and growing up in church i didn't have like we didn't hear steel guitar i equated to like an organ there was a friend of mine who like told me he was like the steel guitar to country music is the organ to gospel. And I was like, oh man, that's so true. It's a long, sad, extended note. You just hold it down and you just, I don't know, it's a little shaky, you know?

And I just, I feel it. I feel that. I feel that lyric and when you pair it with the right instrument and the right production, I mean, I just feel like that could unlock a soul. I love what you said about the loneliness, and it's like my last question, because it made me think of this quote I saw you say where you said, if I could go back when you first moved to Nashville, if I could go back,

I would tell myself to use that time to find more of myself. If you're not finding your people, at least find yourself. Expand on that a little bit. Yeah. Finding yourself is hard. Knowing who you are is hard. And I think half of the battle is figuring out what you're not. And that's a little easier.

At least that came a little easier for me. But just figuring out who you are, it'll help attract the right people. I feel like sometimes I've spent so much time in life not knowing who I am or what I want to do or knowing my worth. And I attracted people who weren't interested in finding that out either. And that's, I feel like, how I got a lot of my heart broken sometimes. I feel like that's where I got let down. And just opening up to people who can only meet you as far as they've met themselves too. You just have two broken people just trying to figure out why you keep crashing.

And I just, I feel like know who you are. It'll save you and a lot of people a whole lot of time. Like, it's okay. Everybody ain't for everybody. And you don't need to do everything, you know? Like, people pleasing and just all that stuff. It's just a lot of that is just not knowing who you are and um I don't know I wish I could go back in time I mean I don't I won't say

I have regrets I don't really have regrets I just have like if I could have a little do-over you know I do that but like I just I don't know I would I would go back and just try to figure out who I am a lot sooner yeah because also the other part of it is if you don't know who you are, there's somebody who probably knows that and they will use that against you. That's right. Like that is a weapon. Like whatever you are ignorant to, you feel me,

whatever you are ignorant to about yourself, like you don't see yourself, you know, I don't see what I look like right now, but you can tell if there's a twitch in my eye or something, if I'm uncomfortable, you can see probably more about me sometimes than I can. And I feel like somebody look at you long enough, they'll learn. They'll learn.

And if you're around the wrong people, that becomes their weapon. Absolutely. You know, and so I feel, I don't know. I just, I want to, I would like to protect. I mean, like I said, I don't have no regrets, you know, but if I could go back in time, I would have protected myself a lot more. But then again, I wouldn't be who I am right now. I was going to say, everything happens for a reason.

We wouldn't have this conversation. I probably wouldn't be as empathetic. I probably wouldn't be as vocal as I am. Like even as I talk about the things that i feel need to change in country music like i'm not i'm not talking about it from like a place of like like you know like y'all doing this y'all like it ain't like that i'm actually saying like this is an invitation hey there is a much bigger story happening here and history will be told you know which side of it are you going to fall on? Because we're going to talk about like this is a movement that we're seeing like sonically, like even musically, racially, musically.

This is a movement like we're watching a shift like, you know, when we talk about in 10 years, were you forward thinking or were you trying to gatekeep, you know, a, a, a future that could actually, that could actually be really dope, you know? Makes the whole genre bigger. Yeah. It makes the whole genre bigger. And, uh, and that's a really hard thing. I mean, you from the South, you know, like the idea of something becoming bigger and have more people like that can be really scary, you know, if you're from a small town or if you're like, cause Nashville feels like a big, small town, it can feel really scary, you know, like, you know, getting, uh, getting a bigger infrastructure that can feel really scary, you know, like getting a bigger infrastructure. It can feel really scary

feeling like you're losing your bearings. But it's actually just an invitation to explore something else, you know, and to let something else in. There could be something really sweet happening right now. And I feel like we watch it so often in a lot of genres where there's shifts, you know know musical shifts

where something happens and a whole new genre is made honestly for me the biggest uh like like cultural um difference for me even in country music is black music is by nature very innovative like we abandon genres and create a whole new and we've done that like consistently and so that's that's a that's a that's a cultural thing for me like if i'm honest but um i feel like i feel like the industry is going to continue to shift and i hope that people feel this invitation from me and all anybody else speaking out about this to just be like hey something new is gonna happen let these pop artists come and do their thing you know i want to hear what what they got to say i want to hear their country album why not because i want to hear your gospel album and i want to hear the song that

you do with that pop artist that you're featured on and when you go to that pop festival like i want to hear i want to hear it and so and i think a lot of people do and i think the fans want to hear that as well and so why not give it to them give them a show you're on the stage this is my last question speaking of when you were talking about sweet things happening, you're going on tour with Willie and Bob. Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan, girl. I've been on the road with Willie for three years. And it just, it never ceases to amaze me that, like, I get to do this.

Like, the amount of people, like, I'm excited to be on the road with Willie. I've never toured with Bob before, Bob Dylan. And I think, I don't know, like know smoking willie though no but i have had uh some of his weed he got this uh this company called willie's reserves yeah and they like they just be pulling up on you in your dressing room they just like knock on the door you know and they just be like i got you something they got they got the canister the cancer is fire i keep the canister yeah i got i mean i've ran out of that weed but i you know pre-rolls yeah pre-rolls yeah you know so you ain't like falling asleep you know and so yeah and so i i love willie i did meet him i sang with him like he always invites

like everybody that's like that's been on the stage before him to come and sing with him at the end of the night and he's just like he'sest. Like, he blew me a kiss one time in the middle of the song. He was like, and I was like, Willie, I love you so much. And so it's just, it's an honor. Like, especially when an artist is 90 years old. Yeah, wow. Like, to be able to do this in their lifetime. Like, that's how I feel.

Like, and I've gotten to do this a few times. Like, three years with Willie. I've toured with, I mean, she's not at his age yet, but Reba, I've toured with her. I opened up for Bruce Springsteen last year. I'm excited about Bob Dylan this year. Gosh, like I just, I don't know. I get excited.

I get excited. But I also get excited about the younger ones too. Opened up for Megan Thee Stallion. That was fun. First of all, yes, for real. I was fired. That's what's up. In Baltimore.

In Baltimore. Yeah, I did. That was fun first of all yes for real that was fire that's what's up in Baltimore yeah I did that was fun um I love touring I really do I love touring and I you love it now yeah I loved it before too that was the hard part I was like yo why am I zapping out no more vomit none of that no because Bob and Willie don't want to we not all right I go up to sing on the last song and I'm just you know just projectile and then he didn't blow a kiss he's a little like don't don't do that you know Sarah J Robbins she said that whenever you are doing something new mm-hmm you're gonna have some form of anxiety yeah because you've never been in that space before yes so it's just like you kind of got to just

embrace it you know of course we of got to just embrace it. Of course, we all got our techniques, the breathing exercises, the meditation, things like that. But you're going to feel something. Yeah, you are. Feelings, they're so hard. New things are hard. That's right. But I love touring.

I'm having a great time. And like I said, I'm the opening act right now. And I'm having a great time because people have been very kind and embracing me and it's cool to like even just watch the stages that have let me on like just as a country artist being able to say like in the same year you opened up for for Reba and Megan Thee Stallion and and Maren Morris and a Sheryl Crow like that's that's an eclectic like of people. But I like being the kind of artist that has songs for all those stages. And I'm going to keep

doing it. I'm so proud of you. Brittany, we appreciate you for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen, My Stupid Life is out right now. Pick it up. Brittany Spencer. Listen to Blackbird on Beyonce's Cowboy Carter. That's right. And it's The Breakfast Club. Good morning. Thank you. Wake that ass up in the morning. The Breakfast Club. entrepreneurs, and more. After those runs, the conversations keep going. That's what my podcast Post Run High is all about. It's a chance to sit down with my guests and dive even deeper into

their stories, their journeys, and the thoughts that arise once we've hit the pavement together. Listen to Post Run High on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Had enough of this country? Ever dreamt about starting your own? I planted the flag. This is mine. I own this. It's surprisingly easy. 55 gallons of water, 500 pounds of concrete.

Or maybe not. No country willingly gives up their territory. Oh my God. What is that? Bullets. Listen to Escape from Zaka-stan. That's Escape from Z-A-Q-a-stan on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. As a kid, I really do remember having these dreams and visions,

but you just don't know what is going to come for you. Alicia shares her wisdom on growth, gratitude, and the power of love. I forgive myself. It's okay. Have grace with yourself. You're trying your best and you're going to figure out the rhythm of this thing. Alicia Keys, like you've never heard her before. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's up? This is Ramses Jha. And I go by the name Q Ward.

And we'd like you to join us each week for our show Civic Cipher. That's right. We discuss social issues, especially those that affect black and brown people, but in a way that informs and empowers all people. We discuss everything from prejudice to politics to police violence. And we try to give you the tools to create positive change in your home, workplace, and social circle. We're going to learn how to become better allies to each other. So join us each Saturday for Civic Cipher on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, y'all. Nimany here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records.

Executive produced by Questlove, The Story Pirates, and John Glickman, Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know? I wouldn't give up my seat.

Nine months before Rosa It was called a woman Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.