Nashville’s Own The Darlins Welcome New Year with Bigger and Better Things on the Horizon

The Darlins
cover courtesy of The Darlins

It’s been some time since we spoke to Nashville’s rocking country duo The Darlins. In this exclusive interview we catch up on all the amazing things from 2016 and what 2017 has to offer. The sky is the limit for these two beautiful ladies. I always love our “Candid Conversations” segment. We can let our hair down, so to speak and just have fun.

They just recently released their video “Crush” and are currently working on the next video and single “Blackberry Whiskey” and more one of kind original music that will soon be shared with their fans around the world.

Jude Toy and Erinn Bates are The Darlins:

NMG:

For all the new fans, and we know you have a lot of new fans out there, could you give us a brief introduction to how long you’ve been playing music, how you met, and why
you chose country music as a career?

Jude:

I’ve played music for as long as I can remember. Erinn and I met at the mega store Sephora, she came to see me play at the Bluebird and not long after, I approached her to see if she would like to write and sing. We had such a great time and decided to play a few shows and little by little we started building a following in town. I’ve always loved country music. Even though I have played other styles of music, country has always been in my heart.

Erinn:

I started singing and playing the piano very young. I’ve always loved music. Jude and I met at a Sephora in Nashville and I saw her play at the Bluebird Cafe. When she asked to write and perform around town with me, it was an answer to a prayer. I was a solo artist, but really wanted to collaborate with someone. Country music has always been my first love in music. I am from Nashville originally and my Dad would play country music in the car taking me to school in the mornings. I knew right away that singing country music and writing songs was what I wanted to do some day.

The Darlins

NMG:

2016 took off like a rocket, could you give us a short recap of the main highlights that have propelled you to this point?

Jude:

We’ve had more press and radio this year then at any other time. The recent release of our video “Crush” has really increased our fan base and visibility. We were added to the Heartland Network and now The Country Network, which means we’ve been in over 150 million homes. It’s incredibly exciting. I would say it’s been such an amazing year, that pin pointing it to a specific event, would be difficult. We are very grateful.

Erinn:

I feel very blessed to have been given so many opportunities this year. We have been steadily building over the last few years and I definitely feel that we’ve broken out into a new level with the launch of our video.

NMG:

You recently released your breakout debut video “Crush”, could you
tell us how it feels to have it completed it and what your
plans are for the next installment?

Jude:

It feels great to have completed our video “Crush” and to have had such a successful release.  The Heartland Network and The Country Network were instrumental in the success of the project. Jonathan Barbee, the director, had everything to  do with how incredible the video turned out. We are in the process of filming our next video “Blackberry Whiskey”.  We hope to have it out by spring 2017.

Erinn:

“Crush” was so much fun to shoot with Jonathan Barbee. We wanted it to be different and I’m glad that it has gone over so well with country fans. It’s very exciting to have released it, now all over the world. I can’t wait to release the next one. As artists, we are constantly coming up with the next project. Sometimes, I have to remind myself to celebrate the victories because it’s easy to get focused looking at the next project down the road.

The Darlins

NMG:

The new year is coming fast, what are the Darlins planning for the new year and when do you think we might see a new CD?

The Darlins:

We are recording again in January 2017.  Our new single “Blackberry Whiskey” will be the first of many recordings for next year. We are also planning to do a lot of radio and more interviews. We are also looking forward to performing big shows with some major country artists this upcoming year.

NMG:

If you had it to do all over again, the ups, the downs, the loss of sleep and all the long nights of writing would you do it again and is there any thing you would change about the last year?

The Darlins:

We would definitely do it again. We are grateful for every opportunity and incredible people that came into our lives in 2016. As artists, we put pressure on ourselves to out perform the year before. We both feel we have done that this past year. We have a wonderful team and love this incredible career. We are optimists and we are always looking forward to the next season.

The Darlins

NMG:

I know you both are huge advocates for giving back in your local communities. Are there any charities that you will be supporting this coming year and if so would you like to mention them?

The Darlins:

We will be working a lot with Veterans and we had the privilege of performing at a benefit for them on this past Veteran’s Day. Anything we can do to help the men and women who have given everything to fight for this country is dear to our hearts. We are always looking for ways to help the community as well. Giving back is very important to us.

I would like to thank Jude and Erinn for taking time to give us some of the latest news on what’s happening with the Darlins and we look forward to catching up again later in the year when the next new single and video hits the airwaves. With so many changes occurring in the music industry there is one thing for certain. The Darlins are here to stay and if you’ll give yourself the chance to check out their website below….I’m sure you’ll have a big ole “Crush” of your own.

Thank you to the Darlins, Jude Toy and Erinn Bates, for giving us this opportunity to share the latest. It is always my pleasure.

www.thedarlins.com
Facebook.com/thedarlins
Twitter.com/thedarlinsmusic
Instagram.com/thedarlins

About Sherryl Craig 410 Articles
Sherryl is a Senior Writer and Assistant Editor with Nashville Music Guide and her blog, Lyrics N Legends has been featured since 2012. Her articles has graced the cover and have appeared as feature stories in the NMG print edition. She is also a member of WMMW, Women of Music Music of Women, a non-profit organization in support of women in the music industry. WMMW also appears here in Nashville Music Guide.

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