WRIF Virtual Rock Room with Chris Daughtry
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00:00Thank you so much for watching Riff TV. Now this interview is obviously with video, but I don't
00:05interview everybody on Zoom. That's why I put it on my Talkin' Rock with Meltdown podcast. We talk
00:10to rock artists from all over the genre. So check out Talkin' Rock with Meltdown wherever you get
00:15your podcasts. And now to today's video interview. And there we go. Better late than never. My first
00:23interview from 2023 is with Chris Daughtry. How you doing, my friend? I'm great, Meltdown. Good
00:27to see you again. Yeah, good to see you. Last time I saw you, you were on stage. I didn't
00:31get to see you, but I saw the show, the Dearly Beloved show. I want to say that was back in
00:35maybe in the spring here in Detroit. Is that right? Yeah, that sounds about right. So we
00:40probably had Pat Dahlheimer from Live on bass, huh? I believe so. Yeah, that's right. Yes,
00:47that's right. I forgot about that. Yeah, so that was a great show. How'd that tour go for
00:52you? It was great, man. Honestly, we were just happy to be back on stage. And honestly,
01:01we were shocked at the turnout. You know, we figured that people were still going to be
01:06a little reluctant to come out. But I mean, the response was incredible. So we were very
01:13happy with how it turned out. Yeah, it seems like people were caged up for a little bit
01:17and they wanted to get out. But did you notice on this last tour that people were reluctant
01:22to buy tickets until closer to the dates or no? Yes. There was definitely some dates where
01:31we were like, oh, this is going to look rough tonight. And then we'd walk out on stage, we're
01:36like, holy shit, it looks great. So yeah, I think a lot of people were, you know, A, worried
01:42that the show was going to get canceled. Or, or, you know, they'd have to show a vax card
01:48or they'd have to, you know, there were so many, you know, variables that people were rightfully
01:56concerned about that, you know, probably they were scared to spend the money too soon and
02:03then have to go through all the pain in the ass to get refunded and stuff like that. But
02:08yeah, I mean, it, it, it worked out great. Now, if I'm not mistaken, weren't you maybe
02:15supposed to go on tour, maybe in the middle of a seven dust tour or something, or when
02:18the whole thing stopped? Is that, is that true? Or I can't remember where you were in
02:21the, uh, we were on tour when everything shut down, but we did go out with, we'd started
02:31the tour with seven dust and Tremonti and then, uh, my daughter passed and we had to cancel the
02:37tour. And, um, and so when, when we, when we geared back up to, you know, uh, make up all the
02:46dates, Tremonti was still available to do it, but seven dust had already booked their, uh,
02:52anniversary animosity tour. So it was a bummer that we only got to do like five shows with them,
02:58but, uh, I love those guys to death, man. Yeah. Yeah. You've really, uh, you've really
03:02cultivated some pretty cool, uh, connections in the, in the, in the rock role with some of
03:06these bands, haven't you? Yeah. Um, it's crazy. A lot of these guys, I go way back, you know,
03:12when our first record came out, uh, we got to do shows with so many bands that we probably,
03:19you know, shouldn't have been on the bill. You know, when we looked at it, we're like, how,
03:24how is this working out? But, um, it was crazy to, to find out the fan base that we kind of shared
03:31through rock and, and, um, that a lot of the fans crossed over and I've kept in contact with so many
03:39of those guys over the years and they've become like family to me. So, uh, we've been very fortunate
03:44to play with some incredible bands that we respect and, and, uh, and that have shown us,
03:51you know, mutual respect as well. So it's a good feeling, you know, being embraced back in that
03:56community, um, after being away for so long. Now, how long have you been in Nashville?
04:02We in July, it'll be seven years, I think. Okay. So not that long. And there's a lot of people
04:08obviously that have been in Nashville and that leads me to my next point. You know, you're talking
04:12about these connections and stuff and you and Lindsay Hale did this a separate ways, the journey
04:15song. I mean, obviously, you know, she's down there and stuff and you're down there and you kind of
04:20know her. And, uh, and so I heard the story about, you know, you're watching stranger things
04:25and whatnot. And I was doing the same thing. My first thought is why didn't you cover a master
04:28of puppets, but we can talk. But, uh, somehow, somehow we would have, uh, got raked over the
04:36coals on that one. But, uh, but I have heard some versions of that Kate Bush song, which is funny
04:41because I think I'm, I'm 10 years older than you. And I don't remember that song when it first came
04:46out and apparently it made this big, I mean, that, that song was like, you know, just woven
04:49throughout the whole series. So you're sitting at home watching this with your wife and, uh,
04:54and you hear separate ways and you're just like, I got to cover that song and I know exactly how to
04:59do it. Or did the stick in your head for a little while or what happened? It's stuck in, it's stuck
05:03in my head. That, that whole scene was so impactful that I think, uh, I knew the song obviously, but it
05:11was kind of like a reminder that how great this song is and the way they chopped it up and, and,
05:16and combined it with the cinematic aspect that I was just, I was like, man, this, because we, we,
05:22me and the guys were in, uh, back on the tour, we were talking about, we wanted to, we need to come
05:28out, we need to do a cool cover. Like we always do covers live, but we need to record something that,
05:33that, that would really, you know, hopefully, you know, leave a mark or, or, you know,
05:39uh, be unexpected. And we had kind of kicked around, we wanted to do something kind of from
05:46the eighties, something that was iconic. And, and, um, I remember, uh, we were in the dressing
05:52room one day and final countdown came on and we were like, Ooh, that'd be kind of a cool thing to
05:57tackle. But then the more I thought about it, the more I realized, I don't know if we could get past
06:02the cheese factor of it, you know, um, and make it, you know, serious. So, um, you, we kind of put
06:10it on the back burner. And then when I, when I saw that episode of stranger things, we were like,
06:14I was like, that's it. It's got the cool scent thing. It's, you know, the, the melodies are just
06:19infectious and, um, it's already got a heavy vibe to it, even from the original back in the eighties.
06:25So I was like, man, if we can do this in a modern way and, and, and make it really cool,
06:29that'd be awesome. And then one thing led to another. And, um, the idea came up of what if
06:34we did it as a duet? And I immediately thought of Lizzie and, um, I called her up and I was like,
06:41Hey, we're cause we had talked about Lizzie and I had been talking about doing a song,
06:46whether it be an original or a cover for a long time. And when we did that acoustic tour,
06:51she came out on one of the dates and we did, um, uh, an acoustic cover of man in the box. And
06:57I was thinking maybe we should record that. And then when this idea came up, I was like, Hey,
07:02would you be interested in doing separate ways? She goes, that's my go-to karaoke song. Absolutely.
07:07Um, so it just kind of worked out and it turned out incredible. But, uh, Lizzie and I, we met
07:14years and years ago when I was working on, I think she was working on her first record with Howard
07:21Benson and I was on my second one and I ran into her at the studio and they were this up and coming,
07:27you know, band. And I just thought she was so cool. And then we've done shows together ever since,
07:33you know, we toured together back in 2013 and we've been talking about doing something forever.
07:39And this just happened to, to be the right time. Now, uh, have you heard anything from the journey camp?
07:44Yeah. Um, Neil Schoen, uh, responded, um, he, to a tweet or something that was posted saying,
07:55sounds strong or, or something like that. But, uh, I haven't heard anything from anybody else. So,
08:01and I don't, I have a feeling that I'm not going to hear anything from Steve Perry.
08:04Why not? I don't know. I don't know. I, I, I feel like there's some, there's probably some, uh,
08:13there's some political stuff going on in that camp that, that he probably doesn't, uh, get involved
08:18in, but yeah. So you mentioned a man in the box. So was it just this last week you jumped up on stage
08:24at a Nashville bar with, with Lizzie and did that with an Alison Chains cover song. Is that right?
08:27Yeah. We, uh, it was grunge night and we were both booked to do, we both had, had agreed to do that,
08:37but we didn't know each other were doing it. And when they posted about it, who was all going to be
08:42there, I was like, Oh my God, you're going to be there too. And, uh, she, she was already going to
08:47do an Alison Chains song. And I was doing an Alison Chains song and a couple other, um, from the nineties.
08:52So what was your song you were supposed to do?
08:54Um, I did Lachini's juice from live and I did, and I did creep from radio head. And then I did,
09:00um, sunshine, which is one of my favorite Alison Chains songs. And she did rain when I die. I was
09:06like, this is just weird. You're doing rain. I'm doing sunshine. And, and then we just kind of like,
09:13do you guys, are y'all prepared to play man in the box? And they were like, dude, we, we, we know it
09:18backwards and forwards. I was like, what if we ended the show and we jumped up on and did it together?
09:22So that was kind of like a, a surprise thing that was unplanned, unrehearsed. And, and, uh, it was a
09:28lot of fun. And where was that at? Which bar was that in? Uh, the basement East. Oh, okay. I haven't
09:32been in that place yet. I got to get down there. Um, I've been there a bunch of times. Yeah. It's a
09:36cool spot. Um, I don't really get out much in Nashville. So it's one of the few bars that I've,
09:42I've visited. Um, and you know, then it got hit by a tornado a couple of years ago. So they just rebuilt
09:48it. Um, that was the first time I've been there since they rebuilt it, but it was cool. We had a
09:52great time. Yeah. Um, I remember seeing Alice in Chains for the first time on the Clash of the
09:57Titans tour. Did you ever hear that tour? No, no. I missed out on that. Yeah. Well, you were young
10:03Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, and a brand new band called Alice in Chains. Can you imagine going up on
10:08stage in front of those guys? Uh, that's how I felt when I had to, when I had to open for
10:14seven dust and hell. Yeah. I was like, one of these things is not like the other guys. Come on.
10:21But you know what? I'm knowing those guys like I do. And I don't know him very well. I knew
10:25Vinny pretty well and Lejean. I know a little bit, but it's like, they probably brought you
10:29into open arms, didn't they? This was what I remember. I remember being on stage, um, terrified
10:37that we were going to get booed. And I look over and I see Vinny Paul and Morgan Rose and, uh,
10:44Chad Gray and, and, uh, Lejean all over there, like just feeling it. And I was like, we're
10:51good. We're good. Even if the crowd thinks we suck, we've got their, their approval right
10:56now. And that's all that matters. What's, what's some of your favorite memories from VP?
11:01Um, that was my only time meeting him. Oh, is that right? Okay. And so we, we, you know,
11:07we spoke briefly and he was super nice, just the sweetest guy and, uh, had nothing but,
11:13but compliments to give us. And, uh, I just remember that being something that was completely
11:19unexpected and, uh, it definitely made us feel good and welcome. Yeah. So, uh, dearly beloved
11:26came out a couple of years back. So, uh, what's going on in your camp right now?
11:29Well, we're about to, uh, we're about to get back in the studio and, and get creative
11:36again. Um, I've been, uh, you know, the last couple of years, I've, I've been kind of just
11:41singing a bunch of gibberish in my phone. I've got a bunch of voice memos that are song
11:47starts and, uh, and we're ready to get back in and create some new stuff again.
11:52Now, um, uh, will separate ways be on the next record? Uh, it's a big possibility. Yeah. Uh,
11:59we, we, we felt, we felt like with the response, we're like, man, this, this feels like kind of
12:05like the catalyst for our next chapter. So, um, it, it might have to go on there, you know?
12:11Yeah. What kind of stuff has been a influence? You know, I'm sure there, uh, I'm just, I don't
12:16know. I've got some kind of speaking a little bit out of school, but we'll, we'll something
12:20beyond the record, uh, about your daughter. Oh, I don't think there's going to be a way
12:24that I can avoid that. Yeah. I think, I think, um, you know, at this point, I think I'm on
12:29this, you know, being on the other side of it, I'm able to maybe approach it in a way
12:35that's probably more hopeful and less, uh, depressing, you know? Um, uh, so that is, that
12:42is certainly going to be, um, a big inspiration for the lyrics of this record, I think. Um, but
12:49as far as bands that I've been listening to, um, I mean, it's stuff that there's nothing
12:54like us that, that I'm just heavily inspired by lately. The, the new record from nothing
13:00more is, is in my opinion, top to bottom, the best rock record of the year.
13:05No, I don't digged into that one. I haven't, I haven't had a chance.
13:07I mean, I love every song and I've listened to it ad nauseum and, uh, Johnny is a good friend
13:14of mine and I have so much respect for that guy as a, as a vocalist. There's, there's
13:19few people out there that, uh, you know, I respect, uh, I've, I've always been drawn to
13:26singers and there's a few singers out there that make me really jealous of what they're
13:31able to do with their voice. Lizzy Hale is one of them and Johnny Hawkins is, is another.
13:37Um, they've just got so much control of every aspect of their voice. And, uh, it's really
13:44inspiring and, and I love, I love what those guys do. And I got to see them live. We, we
13:48did, um, we did, uh, what was it? Um, Blue Ridge rock fest with them.
13:56I was going to say one of the festivals. Yeah. Yeah. And I got to see them live for the first
14:01time and I was just blown away. Yeah. I'm really jealous that Johnny goes up on stage and takes
14:05his shirt off, you know, screw that guy. I just hate that. He's such a, he's such an animal
14:10on stage, man, covered in war paint and barefoot and just killing it. No, he's, he's a good guy.
14:16Um, yeah, you know, so, so with, with this, uh, with this, this year coming up, so you haven't
14:21even started recording anything. You're just going to go out on tour and then you're going
14:24to kind of start, try to record in between like stops or, you know, yeah, we're going
14:28to be, we're going to be, we're going to start the writing process probably in February and,
14:33um, and then we're going to hit the road and we're, we're headed to the UK in March, getting
14:38to do Royal Albert Hall for the first time. So that's pretty cool. That's exciting. Um,
14:42and intimidating at the same time. Uh, so we got a few shows in the UK and then, uh, I think
14:47we got some Canadian dates lined up cause we didn't get a chance to do it last year. Um, for
14:51whatever reason, it just didn't work out, um, financially for us to get over there.
14:55But, uh, we're looking forward to doing that cause we haven't been in Canada in years.
15:00So, and then, uh, and then the primary focus is, is, uh, getting some new stuff out, whether
15:05it be a single or, or a whole record, we're definitely going to have something to release.
15:11Um, hopefully within the spring, you know, of this year.
15:15Yeah. And you're doing it, uh, wise. If you decide to go to Canada during the summertime,
15:20I'm not sure why bands tour there in the wintertime, but, um, I don't know why we tour
15:24at all in the winter, unless it's like Hawaii or, or somewhere tropical. It, it just feels
15:31like, uh, for us singers, it, it just feels like we're shooting ourselves in the foot every
15:37time. Cause it's always like, Oh, we're such a, you know, a slave to the elements, you know,
15:42and, and some days are great. And some days we're fighting a head cold and it's like, why
15:47don't we keep doing this to ourselves? Yeah. You know, you're talking about singers and
15:51having control and stuff. Uh, one of the guys I watch and I think he just seems so effortless
15:55as miles. I mean, that dude is, um, that's an anomaly. I don't even know. I don't even
16:01know how he does any of the stuff. I don't even ask. It's like you, you, you're obviously
16:07an alien. Yeah, no kidding. And, and, and what's funny is, uh, Mark was like, it's crazy.
16:16Me and slash always, I'm, I'm speaking for Mark. He's like, me and slash are always saying
16:22miles is the best guitar player in both of our bands.
16:28That is funny. And you know, uh, speaking of, uh, Mark, his Sinatra thing is pretty cool
16:33as well. I was kind of shocked by that whole thing. It's, it's crazy how much he sounds
16:38like Frank. Yeah. Yeah. I love Frank. I don't know. I have an old friend of mine that used
16:42to, we used to drink beers and just listen to Frank Sinatra at night. And it's like, you
16:45know, it kind of brings back a lot of memories, but, uh, he wrote some pretty timeless songs.
16:49Yeah. I'd say. Yeah. Um, I remember, uh, Mark sent me, um, luck be a lady before anybody
16:57knew about the, he's like, keep this top secret, but I want you to see, you know, hear what
17:01I'm working on. And I was like, holy, what the hell is this? Is this you? I was blown
17:07away. Cause I was like, this sounds like I'm listening to a modern recording of Frank Sinatra.
17:12Yeah. And it's crazy. He was like talking about how much he studied every nuance of how
17:19he's saying things and how he took different beats and breaths. I mean, he, he's one of those
17:24guys that he's, he's a very studious person. Yeah. And not only is the record cool, but it's
17:29also, he did it for his charity. Yeah. Which is fantastic. So, you know, he's such a great
17:34guy. Yeah. Really good dude. He's from here, you know, from Detroit. Yeah. I didn't know
17:40he was from Detroit. I always thought he was from Florida. Yeah. Right. So altar bridge
17:44was actually a bridge here in Detroit, which is no longer around. I had no idea. Then you
17:49learn something new every day. I mean, seriously, he's been holding back. So I got a couple of
17:55listener questions. Uh, uh, a girl, a girl I went to school with, she's like, uh, um, he's
17:59so hot. I'm like, that's not a question. She's like, okay, well, how does he stay so hot? I'm
18:03like, that is, uh, that is not a question that I can even answer. Cause, uh, you know, one,
18:12I would have to, I would have to think that I'm hot to even answer that, which is a weird
18:16thing for anybody to think. Um, I will just say that I, um, try my best to take, uh, care
18:26of myself and, and, and my life decisions. Um, you know, some, some days are better than
18:34others. And, uh, I just try to live a pretty decent, healthy lifestyle for the most part.
18:40Yeah. There you go. Like the rest of us. Uh, one of my, uh, one of my listeners want to
18:44know, uh, um, does he want to get on, uh, some rock festival lineups associated as band more with
18:48the genre? You just talked about the blue Ridge thing. And of course, Danny Wimmer festivals are
18:52always around. Have you, have you ever been at any of these, these festivals? Yeah, we got to do,
18:56um, incarceration for the first time last year as well. So Danny Wimmer has, has, has, uh,
19:02embraced us as well, uh, with open arms. And, and so I would imagine that we're going to end up
19:07doing more of those coming up. Um, that is the hopes. Uh, I love doing festivals. Uh,
19:14we did a few in, in the UK last year for download and, uh, rock and marine park. And those, that was
19:21our kind of our first, uh, you know, dipping our toes in the rock festival world. And, and the,
19:26the response was so overwhelmingly positive. We were like, well, this is clearly what we need to
19:32be doing more of. I think the rock fans are really open to, uh, you know, bringing new people
19:37and accepting people and like, kind of, you know, checking out some different things, especially at
19:41that kind of setting. Yeah. And I think a lot of those fans were like, I think the, the unanimous
19:49response that we noticed was finally, finally, they're, they're, they're doing what we hoped
19:55they would do years ago. And so, um, you know, it feels good to, to be on the right track.
20:00Well, you always flew the rock flag. I don't really remember your season and, and, uh, American,
20:04I was a little bit out of my wheelhouse, but, uh, you always flew the rock flag. So it's not like
20:08this is some phony thing that you're just trying to cash in or, or do whatever. So that's like,
20:12it's really kind of in you. Yeah. It's always been, um, it's, it's been my roots ever since I've
20:20started, you know, getting in front of a microphone or, or picking up a guitar. So to me, there was a
20:27phase of my career when I look back on that, that didn't feel like me, you know, and, and that felt,
20:33you know, like it was, you know, that felt like trying to do something or trying to reach for
20:39something based on, you know, what people were doing on, on popular radio and, and stuff like
20:47that. And it was, uh, and, and being on a major label that didn't really know what to do with us
20:51because, you know, they wanted to keep us in that, that hot AC wheelhouse. And, and, uh, so once,
20:58once I broke away from, from that and I was able to, to really go, what do I want to do? What,
21:05where is my heart? And, and what inspired me to even do this in the first place? And that was
21:11when the light went off. I'm like, duh. I mean, why am I not doing a record like that?
21:17You know? Yeah. Were you, did you grow up basically on a nineties, uh, rock grunge?
21:22Oh yeah. Yeah. Oh yeah. That was okay. Yeah. I mean, before that was guns and roses and,
21:27and Metallica, you know, uh, that was my, that was kind of like my introduction to,
21:32to rock or metal, um, at a, at the tender age of nine or 10. Um, and, uh, and I just remember,
21:42uh, and skid row, I was, I was big into skid row, you know, when I was, when I was a kid,
21:48I just always been drawn to, uh, melodies that would stick in your head and, and powerful vocalists
21:56and, and so, and then when the nineties hit, you know, it was all over. I was, I was all in.
22:02Yeah. Everything changed. The new skid row record, by the way, is really good with, uh,
22:06Eric there, Gronwell. Oh, I got to check it out. Yeah. I really like it a lot. And it does have a
22:11lot of elements from, you know, Nick, uh, Rascal and it's did that record. Okay. And so he kind of
22:16told the guys, put yourself back where you were. Yeah. Yeah. But I mean, you know, slave to the grind.
22:22That's, you know, my favorite, but, uh, uh, unless you want to know, um, who would be your,
22:26uh, dream, uh, collaboration? Oh, I have so many. Um, you know, I, obviously, uh, Lizzie was,
22:34was, was up there and we got to do that. So that's, uh, I got to cross that off my, my bucket list. Um,
22:41uh, you know, going back to Johnny, I think, I think it would be cool to do something with him.
22:47Um, we've, we've kind of toyed around with the idea to, to figure something out. Um,
22:54but who knows? We'll see. Maybe you can do something with, uh, with Mark and he can do the
22:58Frank part. Yeah, there you go. Well, listen, man, I'll, I'll cut you loose here. Uh, of course,
23:05uh, I was going to say new records coming up, but nothing yet. Just, uh, working on some stuff,
23:09recording separate releases out with Lizzie Hale, no master of puppets, no, um, running up the hill.
23:14Hey, by the way, speaking of that kind of stuff on national popcorn day, what's the last movie you
23:19saw? I just, I just went to see, uh, the way of water avatar. Oh, what'd you think? I haven't seen
23:25that one yet. Oh man. Have you seen the first one? Yeah. I'm not a huge avatar guy, but I did see it.
23:31Yeah. So I wasn't either. So I went back and rewatched the first one to, to refresh my memory
23:36because it was, God, it was so long ago when that, that first one came out. This, the sequel is
23:43phenomenal. Like I was, I went, I hate seeing movies in 3d, but I went and did it because I
23:50was told that like, it's that good. And I was, I was just floored. Uh, the, what James Cameron was
23:56able to do in this film, uh, visually is just, I've never seen anything like it. It's incredible.
24:02Well, maybe I'll have to go check it out. I did see Top Gun Maverick in the theater twice because
24:07I went with like my kids or something. I think I want my, some of my neighbors, but that was something
24:11you got to see in this, in the theater. Yeah. I missed it. I totally missed out on that one.
24:16Yeah. It's pretty cool. Find, find one of your, your rockstar buddies down there in Nashville
24:19at a big screen, you know, and check it out. But, uh, but no, that was pretty cool. But I saw
24:25Skin of, uh, Skin of Maverick over the weekend. Oh my God. It's just unbearable. I'm a horror
24:31movie guy and it was supposed to be really scary and it was just beyond. I saw, I saw you posted
24:36something terrible. It was awful. It was like so bad. I was off on Monday. I had to write a review
24:44on it on Monday cause it was so bad. I didn't want people like wasting their money on it. It's
24:48like, let me stop you right now. Well, this isn't a horror, but have you seen the menu?
24:53Oh, the menu. Oh, just, that's all I'll say. It's, I think it just, it just came out on Apple,
25:01but I think it's on, uh, HBO max. Now it's got, um, uh, uh, uh, uh, Joseph Fiennes, um,
25:11a few other act, uh, a few other actors you'd recognize. Um, but I've heard of that now that
25:17you mentioned it, but, uh, yeah, I haven't seen it. I've been very like, there's been few movies
25:25lately that I've felt like were fresh after seeing it. Like, Oh, that was a fresh concept. And this,
25:30this one is top of the list. That's the thing. It's like, I'm always looking for something
25:33different. And if it's, if it's different and weird, you know, it can still be good.
25:37This movie I saw the other day, it was just awful, but I saw like, you know, Megan last year,
25:42you know, that was pretty cool. You know, I heard it's good. Yeah. It wasn't, they just,
25:45they just announced a sequel for it. So it had to be, it had to do something. Yeah. But the menu,
25:50it's a menu. Okay. It is. It's not horror, but there's a lot of killing. I'll just say that.
25:56I saw terrifier two in the theater. It can't be more than that. I'll tell you that much.
26:02Hey, Chris, thanks so much for your time. I really talk to you, man. Always.