She’s on her way to becoming television’s favorite voice between being an American Idol breakout star and being part of the golden soundtrack to Hallmark’s holiday season. She is HunterGirl.
HunterGirl is no stranger to the spotlight with Music City rendezvous and national singing competitions to her name, but that doesn’t mean that wearing her heart on her sleeve is easy. The upbeat nature of the singer-songwriter might make it seem so, but she’s just as vulnerable as the rest of us. It’s heard in her lyrics, seen in her eyes, and felt in the simple, but oh-so effective acoustic arrangements that carry her work from stage to screen and back again. Her voice twinkles with authentic twang, but nothing is overstated – not even the emotion that she is beautifully in touch with.
She’s not a pioneer of the Americana stylings and the country-pop world doesn’t have vacancy, but HunterGirl is an original with originals under her belt. The aspirational crooner with a sweet undertone is the first female country artist in over three decades to have written her debut single (“Ain’t About You”) all on her own. Her credits are hers as are her dreams. We had the best time chatting with this determined performer, too, who is humble and kind, a flawless narrator, and a one-in-a-lifetime performer. It makes sense that she goes far… surely further than the fun hometown honky-tonks that raised her.
Holiday songs, Christmas music… I would think it’s kind of a bucketlist moment for a singer-songwriter to create a song in that vein. Your song could become part of a timeless soundtrack for the season. How excited are you about these tracks coming out, written by you, and heard in Hallmark movies?
Oh my gosh, I am so excited. I’ve watched Hallmark movies since I was little, so just to have two songs on the Hallmark Channel and during Christmas and being in Haul Out the Holly’s sequel is crazy.
I’ll tell you a quick story. My nana called me after I told her that I have some Christmas songs on Hallmark, but that I wasn’t sure when it’s all coming out or anything. Well, she calls me one day and she’s like, “Hunter! Hunter!” And I’m all, “Nana, are you ok?” She’s like, “Baby, you’re on the commercial for Hallmark. You have made it! You have hit the top!” [Laughs] I was laughing so hard. She’s like, “I don’t know how you’re gonna beat this Hunter,” [Laughs]. She’s a huge Hallmark fan. I just remember laughing and it was so sweet. I’ll never forget that moment. Hallmark movies have been a big thing in my life and my childhood, so little Hunter would freak out knowing she has a song in a Hallmark movie.
I love that. That is so precious.
It was also my first time writing something for TV before, so that was a really, really cool experience.
That perfectly leads into my next question of how different it might be for you to write with a premise in mind rather than just thinking about your own life, your own heart. Was it hard?
Yeah, but I think it was really special, honestly. I was writing at the BMG office and they had decorated the whole office for this. There were sweaters out and Christmas trees everywhere just to kind of get the vibe going. It was really exciting getting to write something that was just a fun Christmas idea and about the holiday season, because I think everybody remembers that time of year of the holidays when you were little and you had that excitement of just wanting Christmas to be here already. Whenever I was thinking and writing about “Hurry Up Christmas,” I knew I just wanted it to be fun and to make me feel like a kid again. With “Christmas Again,” I was thinking about Christmas love and just being there in the moment – having a moment with somebody during the holidays and how sweet that could be.
Having these two songs both be in Hallmark this year and getting to write something I’ve never done before… and it’s my first Christmas songs I’ve ever written… it’s really special. And I think my family is just so excited right now!
That is special, especially to share this excitement with them. Do you think that you want to do more holiday music down the line? Maybe more on the HunterGirl side of things than Hallmark?
I would definitely write some more Christmas songs. I’m looking forward to getting to write some during this Christmas season and even next year – just having these two made me excited to maybe write some more Christmas songs in the future. And it’s kind of a step into a different zone, you know? I am singing country most of the time, so getting to do Christmas was a really cool step out of the box for me.
Not to mention that they are just such good songs! Switching gears into more of who you are at the end of the day – that country singer-songwriter – “Ain’t About You” is out. I know you were a little tentative about putting it into the world, though, and I was so shocked about that because it is such a dazzling, relatable piece. What about that song sort of held a heavier weight in terms of putting it out in the world and not just keeping it for yourself?
I think it was because this song is like my personal diary now out for the world. A couple of years ago, nothing was really going on for me in Nashville, but this has been my dream since I was a kid. A lot of my friends were getting record deals and publishing deals and I was honestly kind of the friend falling behind. I was worried about my life and worried how I was gonna make rent and if I was on the right path. I had played a show on Broadway that day and I’d written a song with some other people. I got back to my house and I was like, “I feel like I need to write another song and I don’t know why.” I grabbed my guitar and out came my 45 minute conversation with Jesus. It was supposed to be my “I’m leaving Nashville” song, but it ended up being my “Staying in Nashville” song. It was something I wrote by myself and it was probably the easiest song that I’ve ever written just because I didn’t think anybody would ever hear it. That is how and why it is so honest; this song changed the way that I write after people started hearing it, because being so honest really changed everything for me.
That’s so beautiful how you recognize that it was a goodbye, but became a welcoming of a new era of who you are as an artist, but also as a person trying to live your dream… and ultimately living it.
It was such a crazy thing because a week later I ended up auditioning for Idol. That saw a complete 180º in everything for me and just having that moment now to think of this song as just the proof to never give up because everything could change tomorrow…. You might not even know it yet and it might take some time, but there’s always a chance that things could change, so if you quit, it’s definitely not gonna work out. Although, if you stay, there’s always a chance that something is gonna happen.
You’re right. Thank you for releasing this song, because I think a lot of people will see their story in it and find their heart through it.
Oh, thank you. Definitely with this one, just taking an outside look at it, we don’t realize how many people we affect every single day just by being here. I’ve been working with veterans since I was about 17 – writing songs with them. Whenever I was writing this song, I was definitely thinking about them and the thought of like, “What if it isn’t about you and you’re supposed to be here to help people?” I believe there’s a reason there’s a bunch of us all here on Earth. It wasn’t just for us to hang out; we’re supposed to help each other and be there for each other. That’s why we’re all here together. I hope this song makes somebody that’s worried about their dream or their life not give up or give themselves a second chance.
I think you’re doing that. There’s a peacefulness in that purpose. I’m glad you brought up Idol, too, because I had a question as someone who has watched every season of American Idol. How did the experience on the show play into how you write? Because in the early days, originals weren’t as common or as honed in on, but your originals had quite a lot of time to shine.
I’ve been writing songs since I was about nine years old. I don’t know what I was writing about back then [Laughs], maybe my crayons broke or something, I’m not sure.
I think being on the show really gave me the confidence to let my original music be out there. I remember there was this one week where we were choosing songs for the next week coming up and I had just sent the producers one of my original songs. I was just asking for feedback because they knew somebody that was a songwriter, but they came back with “Hey, we listened to the song. Do you always wanna play this one next week instead?” I’m like, “Yeah! Let’s do it. Let’s go for it.” Playing that song with the American Idol band was absolutely incredible. Playing that song on TV in front of the world was something that I’ll always remember. That moment will be with me forever because it was kind of my first step of like, “Hey, like I write songs, this is my original music.” That was “Heartbreak Down,” which was the song that I played and it was just really special for me. Little Hunter was losing her mind right then thinking that so many people watching TV were getting to hear an original song for the first time!
That’s amazing. There’s so much more depth to the show when the contestants are singing originals that mean something to them, and I think you proved that really well.
Aw, thank you. Yeah, I definitely think something I learned while being there is just to be yourself authentically. Everybody says that, but until you’re in that situation where you’re around so many different kinds of artists and you’re like, “Wow, this person can sing really big,” or, “Wow, they can do this,” it becomes about taking that moment to remember, “Hey, this is what I do.” You need to hold onto what you do and not compare yourself just to be comparing yourself to people. That kind of goes back to the honesty in “Ain’t About You,” too. We all deal with that, but I think as an artist, just knowing that your craft is yours and there’s nobody else like you out there is important, and that stems from really staying true to yourself throughout that process.
For sure. I think about the time when you performed “Red Bird ” on LIVE With Kelly and Ryan after the finale aired and that was, to me, not about the show anymore – it was about you as an artist. It’s arguably my favorite song of yours, too, but in that moment it was actually about you spreading your wings.
Thank you so much. I feel like my songwriting shows there. I wrote “Ain’t About You” before I’d even written “Red Bird,” and I think being so honest in “Red Bird” was important, too, because that is my family song. I didn’t know if anybody else had heard that about cardinals, how if you see a cardinal then it’s somebody watching over you. I remember just thinking, “Who do I wanna be as an artist and what do I want people to know about me?” Then I sang that song and I wasn’t thinking about the show, I was thinking about all the people back home. I was like, “This is my family’s song. I really want to stay true to myself,” and so I went out performing “Red Bird” over all those songs that I’d written at that point.
It was special for fans, too, especially those who discovered you on Idol. There is one line in that song that says, “Let me know you’re still with me.” I feel like it really transcended not just family, not just connecting to people, in that moment, but it was how the fans that you gained on the show would still be with you after the show stops airing. That stuck out to me as your song choice and your original at that.
Oh, I love it. I never thought about it that way. Thank you for that.
You’re welcome! This has been an obviously amazing year for you in terms of writing and releasing and connecting with people on stage and online with your music. How do you hope to finish out the year? We’ve got two months left, Christmas music out, your own music out, shows underway, opening slots, all these different things and so much more. What do you hope to still do, if anything, and what do you hope to look back on as 2023 highlights?
I think at this moment… I’ve been on a radio tour this year and “Ain’t About You” is my debut single out on country radio right now. I’m so excited. I am finishing our radio tour the next few weeks and I have shows throughout the rest of the year, but I think in these next couple months I’m gonna nail down what is gonna be on my next project – write songs for that and choose songs. You can expect something coming around the bend; there’s always another surprise [Laughs]. Honestly, I think I’ll take a little bit of time at the end of the year also just to get to be with my family and see them. I’ve been on the road a lot this year and just kind of got back into my hometown. I enjoyed my time, though, just because I think in order to write songs, you have got to live life.
In the last month of this year, I’m definitely gonna get to spend time with my family and friends and really focus on what songs are gonna come up around the bend next year… and just take time to be thankful for everything I’ve been given. Honestly, if you’d have told me that this all was gonna happen a couple years ago, I would have told you that you’re crazy.
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