Coloring outside the lines in the music world can be fun for an artist, or at other times, not so welcome by music critics, or even, an artists fan base. An artist either finds themself succeeding, or finds themself flat on your face in regret. Familiar artists like Taylor Swift & Shania Twain, who both got their start in Country, made venturing out into the Pop genre possible for other artists, letting them know from their risky venture that you can be successful in another genre despite of being confined to just one dimension or style of music. That’s how creativity is shaped. And that seems to, as well, be the case for another exceptional artist like Hunter Hayes. That’s why I like to consider Hunter Hayes as being heroic for stepping out to make his voice heard by music listeners, who may have not been familiar with his music beforehand.
That’s where we find ourselves diving into Hunter’s newest, full-length project Red Sky — 15 studio tracks, a breath of new work from the multi-talented artist. Hunter’s first real, raw material since before the pandemic with 2019’s Wild Blue, Part 1. Even though Hunter had success in Country Music with No. 1’s like “Wanted”, and as well becoming one of the youngest male Country acts to become a multi-platinum selling artist. He plays multiple instruments and is an amazing vocalist. But let’s focus on what this post is about: Red Sky.
Red Sky is Hunter’s fourth studio LP, but his first official material venturing his Country, soulful vocals into the Pop landscape. Vocally, this record packs a powerful punch against his fellow peers like Bruno Mars, or Harry Styles, among countless other male Pop acts, and allows his voice to really shine. The album Red Sky was released on April 21st, 2023 and was produced by James Thorpe at the legendary Red Squirrel Studios and has been said by music critics to be both a “musical victory lap and a person revelation”. Hunter quotes, “…The whole world should hear all of the things I enjoy doing — I’m a writer, producer, etc… I really wanted this [album] to be a fresh start for me”.
To Melodic Magazine article, Hayes quotes of the album process, “Fans will hear growth, they will hear more… I feel my goal, my job as an artist, and it’s a tough one, is to make music so unique that you are creating your own genre. As a singer/songwriter, you have the opportunity to create something that includes all of your influences but isn’t limited to any specific frame.” He goes onto add, “…I’m just constantly climbing a ladder to get to that point. To create a thing that I feel like is me as a genre.”
To go hand in hand with the new album, Hunter will embark a 21-city tour entitled for Red Sky Tour with Pop star and Tik-Tok phenom Loren Grey, starting May 3rd and runs until June 3rd. All in all, this album is amazing, y’all and I’ve already got some early song favorites — “Normal”, “Lonely Loves Me”, “Friend”, “Victory”, and “Someone Will”. You can download or purchase Red Sky by Hunter Hayes wherever music is sold today.
The Neiman Cruse Report 
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