Sure, Tommy Prine grew up in Nashville surrounded by music, art, and writing—and it’s certainly no secret that he learned to play guitar by watching his late father, John, picking his own beloved tunes—but summers spent in his mother’s homeland of Ireland lent their own inspiration and ten straight years camping at Bonnaroo introduced Prine to a swath of music not belonging under the greater Americana umbrella. In a way, what makes Prine’s own music so special is how he’s navigated life and creativity apart from his family’s name—as he once said, on stage, to a disorderly request for one of his dad’s songs, “You’re not about to get an hour of John Prine Junior.”
The truth is, it took a long while for Prine to even share the songs he’d been writing about the triumphs and tragedies of his life, only recently deciding to let his friends and now-collaborators Ruston Kelly and Gena Johnson hear what he’d been putting together. Kelly and Johnson got back to Prine—together on a call, in an intervention of sorts—and urged him to quit his job, get in the studio, and share his music with the world. And on June 23rd, Prine will finally release his debut album, This Far South. C0-produced by Kelly and Johnson and released via Thirty Tigers, This Far South is an emotionally complex but universally accessible debut that sonically brings together a colorful patchwork of musical influences and lyrically explores existential questions and emotional experiences.
Today, Prine shared the album’s title track, “This Far South,” with fans; a slow-burn fingerpicked promise to himself that is sure to resonate with many. “I found my rock bottom and tried to escape it several times, ultimately finding the courage to see it through to the other side,” remembers Prine. “There were several years where I felt without purpose…spent all my time partying and just existing. I found myself at a fork in the road and chose the better path, and in that moment, I swore I would never be ‘this far south’ again.” Thick with vocal harmonies, the song’s final verse finds its plot at least partly resolved, its narrator singing: “I’m learning that it’s not good to fly / I’ve chosen the habit that I’m dropping / Coming down’s exhausting / I think I deserve some rest.”
Fans can stream or purchase “This Far South” today at this link and pre-order or pre-save the full album ahead of its June 23rd release right here. Itching for more Tommy Prine while waiting on the album to drop? Don't miss the live version of "This Far South," recorded at Garden & Gun here and check out previously released singles, “Ships In The Harbor”—which Luke Combs "can’t stop listening to" and Garden & Gun called “A gorgeous meditation on change and loss, and an acknowledgment that both are inevitable”—right here and “Turning Stones” here.
Prine is fresh off of a run of shows in the southeast that just culminated in his first of four residency shows at Nashville’s The Basement, not to mention supporting Tyler Childers over two sold-out shows in London. A full list of tour dates, including the rest of the March residency, can be found below or at tommyprine.com/tour.
Catch Tommy Prine On Tour:
Mar. 9 - Nashville, TN - The Basement
Mar. 16 - Nashville, TN - The Basement
Mar. 30 - Nashville, TN - The Basement
Apr. 4 - Brighton, UK - The Folklore Rooms
Apr. 5 - London, UK - The Slaughtered Lamb
Apr. 7 - Dublin, IRE - Vicar Street
Apr. 8 - Dublin, IRE - Vicar Street
Apr. 20 - St. Petersburg, FL - Palladium Theatre
Apr. 21 - Jacksonville Beach, FL - Blue Jay Listening Room
Apr. 22 - Tallahassee, FL - Word of South Music and Literature Festival
Apr. 29 - Wilkesboro, NC - MerleFest
For ticket information, please visit tommyprine.com/tour.
