Their fourth studio album comes more than a decade after the brothers signed their first record deal and eight years after their first big hit with “Stay A Little Longer.” Since then, there’s been much success, multiple awards (including last year’s GRAMMY win for their single “Younger Me”), and a lot of personal growth.
All of that’s reflected in this new album they describe as their most “musically diverse” so far. And while they did a little branching it, it’s still, fully, “all Brothers Osborne.”
“So many things changed around us (on this album) from the producer to the musicians to the different song varieties,” TJ says. “From a song that’s like a piano ballad to one that’s almost like disco, and yet there are similarities in John’s playing and my singing that pulls everything back to us.”
Under the guidance of producer Mike Elizondo (who has worked with Sheryl Crow, Dr. Dre, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and others), all 11 tracks highlight the brothers’ greatest strengths with John on guitar, TJ on vocals, and their blend of exceptional songwriting. John and TJ co-wrote every song. The album showcases their signature blend of classic southern rock and modern country, but also, as TJ mentions, reflects a willingness to challenge themselves and their music.
The two originally wanted to create a theme album of sorts, but the songs took on a life and direction of their own.
“We initially wanted to narrow the scope a bit creatively and lyrically,” says John, “but ended up writing quite broad on this album. I feel like this record is more about life than it is about maybe one or two things.”
“Yeah, we wanted to come in with a sonic theme, which we haven’t done before,” adds TJ, “but we ended up with all of these songs we really loved. They were different from each other, but we felt like, this is us, that one’s us, I love this song, how can we not record that song, this song’s fun, and so on.”
The list includes their chart-climbing “Nobody’s Nobody,” their rousing “Might As Well Be Me,” “We Ain’t Good At Breaking Up” featuring Miranda Lambert, and their hauntingly beautiful “Rollercoaster (Forever and a Day).”
“Rollercoaster” is a love song (that piano ballad TJ referred to) with some truth and depth that makes it both special and meaningful.
“Everybody has songs about how great love is and I’ll love you forever and it’s always sunshine and roses. And as nice as it is to sing that, it’s not really true,” says John. “It’s hard sometimes. True love is how you feel when you stick through the hard stuff and we wanted to write about that. Just accepting I’ll be with you for better or worse is what “Rollercoaster” is all about.”
If there “is” an overriding theme or continuous threadon the album, perhaps it’s the brothers’ new-found sense of freedom and confidence that comes from overcoming personal challenges in recent years.
“Since our last record, we’ve been very forthcoming about who we are,” John says. “By acknowledging TJ’s personal life and my mental-health struggles, we are more ourselves creatively and publicly than we’ve ever been.”
“We’ve always had fun making music, but there are times when things get tough,” TJ says. “And with this album I felt like a lot of things fell into place. We’re in a different, more secure position in our lives and we kind of got back to realizing why we started playing music in the first place. We thought it was fun, we loved it, and we weren’t trying to fit into any box. It was simply – let’s do what we enjoy.”
They are clearly enjoying the music more than ever before.
There have been other positive changes, as well. John, along with wife, British singer/songwriter Lucie Silvas, welcomed twins this past March.
“It’s what everyone says it is,” John explains. “It’s the most incredible thing you’ll ever do, and the hardest thing you’ll ever do. That’s absolutely true. I’ve never loved anything so much in my life, but there are moments when I’m like, hey, okay, will you please go to sleep now?”
Here, he stops and laughs.
They named the little girl Maybelle in honor of the great Mother Maybelle Carter, and the little boy Arthur, as a nod to Lucie’s English heritage (as in King Arthur).
John has been having to leave the little ones behind as he and TJ maintain a somewhat busy tour schedule. And in-between their regular shows across the country, they are gearing up for some special shows next month in four major cities.
“These will be big record release shows that are their own separate thing,” says TJ. “They’ll be at Ascend Amphitheatre in Nashville, the Anthem in Washington, DC, The Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York, and the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. They’re all in October and those are going to be fun ones to catch.”
Tickets are on sale now.
As they celebrate the new album, the brothers say life is good. They’re grateful for all they’ve accomplished, the life lessons on the journey that got them where they are today, and the “incredible people” that surround them on a daily basis. Perhaps they can sum it up best with one of their new songs.
“If you listen to ‘Who Says You Can’t Have Everything,’” John says, “it’s about the things you learn as you grow older and as you attain all the things you dreamed of, you realize you had everything all along.”
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