Chris Anthony first captured audiences attention with his debut single, “Alone.” His honest lyrics about his personal struggles with mental health resonated with listeners and earned him over 10,000 streams on Spotify. His latest single, “Get Away” highlights that same authenticity.
ECHO chatted with Chris about his single, what fans can look forward to next and more.
Listen to this interview as a podcast here.
When did you first get interested in music?
As early as I can remember – at least age three. I recently dug up some old family videos of me. [In the videos] I was singing while my Dad was playing the guitar. [I became] seriously interested in music, probably, last fall.
Was there a specific event that was the catalyst for that decision?
There wasn’t a specific event. I just kind of decided that the timing was right and I was able to start working with some people and get the ball rolling a little bit.
Were there any people that you listened to growing up and do you feel that they influenced your sound today?
Yeah, for sure. Definitely – I was a big Beatles fan. I still am. I listened to a lot of the Stray Cats, Elvis Presley, Dion – a lot of old school artists too. Who else did I listen to? Duane Eddy, Johnny Cash – just a lot of old school music, definitely. I always listened to that growing up.
Were there any elements of that music that inspired you either through the lyrics or the melody?
Something with The Beatles that I really like is someone could just listen to it and just want to hear good music. Everyone can pretty much agree that they have good music, but you could also dig deeper into it and be like hey this has a message. I think having a platform or having some sort of message like that is really good for all audiences because you can kind of draw on everyone. You can draw on the people that want to sit and analyze your stuff and draw on the people that are just in their car wanting to listen to music. I think they pioneered it then and I’m trying to still translate that now in modern times. It’s pretty cool.
You have talked about how you like to use music to explore your personal experience with mental health in your music. Why is that something that is important to you?
It’s not something that is talked about in the mainstream media. I wish it was something that was brought up a little bit more. We can all agree that if you go on instagram or go on social media all you see is people trying to show their best image. It’s kind of that whole realm of uncertainty and not being that perfect person. I’m someone that’s more straight up and up front about things. I’d rather address those issues that aren’t being addressed because I think that people with that need a voice too.
You address that in your new song, “Get Away.” What was the inspiration behind writing that track?
It started off completely different. All my songs, when I start off writing them they start off as a sad ballad on a piano or guitar. I wanted it to be kind of just the idea that in the night you’re doing all these fun activities. Writing it more, I’m like this just seems dumb. I kind of thought of the idea like hey everything is stressful in the world right now, let’s just enjoy our time to ourselves and quit being so stressed. Whether you physically go out and you leave – you go on a vacation you get away or it’s like a mental vacation. You’re sitting at your desk working – you just need five seconds to sit back, relax and get away, get out of your own headspace. Get rid of all the negative energy and try to just relax yourself. Don’t get caught up in all the stuff you see online and just stay chill. That’s kind of what I was going for.
What did the writing process look like for “Get Away”?
As I write most of my songs, I like to be very mellow and relaxed. I do a lot of writing at night actually. I’m also pretty old school. I like to do pen and paper. Sometimes I’ll do it on the notes on my phone or something. I like to usually have the light in the background [dim] or dim lit candles or something. I like to listen to music too. Not to try to copy, but just always have music running through my head. Also, in the shower too, I just think of really amazing tunes. For my last single, “Alone,” I thought of most of the lyrics in the shower. Like one of the main riffs of this song I thought of in the shower too. It doesn’t always happen in one session and it doesn’t always happen right then and there. I usually end up going back and fixing it. It’s pretty laid back for the most part.
Have you pinpointed what about the night sparks your inspiration?
I have no idea. Maybe it’s because the rest of the world is asleep and that’s when I’m grinding. I have no idea. During the day, I’m doing my daily routine. I’m working out. I’m going to work. You know, all the stress of the day. You have scheduling and meetings. You’re always needed at a certain time and I guess at night it’s kind of your time. I mean, you should be sleeping, but that’s kind of my time. I don’t have to be anywhere. I can kind of do whatever I want. There’s just no limit. You can just kind of go freely. That sense of freedom, I guess.
You collaborated with Bardo on “Get Away.” What was it like working with him?
It was awesome. He’s super talented. I found him through a couple of mutual friends of mine. He did- I don’t know if you are familiar with any Trevor Daniel music at all? His latest album Nicotine, he did almost all the production on that. He’s in a band too. Super talented. He does a lot of pop artist stuff. I reached out to him and kind of just showed him my vision. It was hard with quarantine. A lot of it was done through Zoom calls and stuff. He was just like, ‘hey, here’s this.’ I was like, ‘hey, here’s this.’ It took us a couple of months, but he is really easy to work with. He’s super talented. It was amazing. I’m super blessed I got to work with him.
You’ve worked with Bardo and you’ve also worked with Warren Russell on your previous single, “Alone.” Who is your dream collaborator ?
Honestly, I’d say maybe Charlie Puth, actually. He’s super talented. He has perfect pitch. Plus, he has such a good appreciation of music like jazz and everything. He’s someone I feel like I can hop in and he can help you with any sound – obviously pop of course, that’s his thing. I feel like he produces good stuff, he writes good stuff and he’s a talented singer so he’s someone I’d just like to explore ideas with. Since the fact that he has perfect pitch, I could be like, ‘hey, I have this [hums] in my head what is this.’ He’d be like, ‘oh, here it is.’ He’ll whip out the piano and play it. I feel like someone that is that musically educated would be really cool to work with. Plus, he has a lot on his shelf too.
If you could set fans up in the perfect environment to listen to “Get Away,” what do you imagine it looking like?
I’d probably say open highway, open freeway, windows down, blare that music as loud as you can. Summer vibes for sure. If you don’t have a car or you’re stuck inside – if you’re just doing homework or need some free time, you could do it then. It’s definitely a very outdoorsy, enjoying nature song because I just kind of feel it. I would say that’s a good vibe for it, yeah. Big outdoor guy.
What do you hope people get out of listening to your music?
I hope they can relate it to their own life and/or problems and realize that no matter how much stuff they see on social media telling you got to look this way, be this way, that it doesn’t really matter. Just be yourself, have fun. One quote someone told me that I kind of like to live my life by is, “you came in this world alone, you’re going to be put in the coffin alone.” Just stay true to yourself. Just try to enjoy life and don’t try to live under other people’s standards. It shouldn’t matter that much. Do what makes you happy because we are only here for so long so just enjoy your time and have fun – responsibly. It’s kind of depressing, but it’s facts.
What can fans look forward to next?
I’m working on a music video for this, actually. I’m super excited. Couldn’t even tell you when it’s going to be released. Besides that, I’m always working on new music here. I’m super stoked for this music video. It’s going to have sort of a vintage, retro vibe. I have an amazing cast that I’m going to be working with, so I’m excited for that. Besides that, not much, were just trying to survive out here.