Brantley Gilbert is looking forward to a busy 2017 but heās getting the ball rolling now with the release of his current single, āThe Weekend,ā the first tune from his upcoming album, The Devil Donāt Sleep, which will be available in January 2017.
Although Brantley, who was known for his rough-and-tumble partying ways, has changed over the years, the new single takes him back to his roots of those raucous country-rock party anthems heās known for.
āIām not quite as wild as I once was, but for me, when I get up onstage, āThe Weekendā gets me ready for the shows, the runs and the tours, because every weekend weāre showing up,ā Brantley tells Nash Country Daily. āThese people have been waiting on this night for months. For us, we get three of them in a weekend. Itās a party, and it gears me up for that, but itās a good timing songāa feel good songāespecially at a time when I feel like our countryās a little stressed.ā
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What isnāt stressed is Brantley. The laid back, fun-loving singer finds himself at a good place in his lifeāmarried to his wife, Amber Cochran, for a year and a half and sober for five years after hitting rock-bottom. Under that rugged and tough exterior, Brantley is in stark opposition to how one might construe him to be. The tattoos, piercings, leather jacket and beard may have some folks weary of the Georgia native. But what they donāt outwardly see is his kindness, his faith and a heart as big as they come.
āThere was a time in my life where I think I had a misconstrued meaning of what tough was,ā Brantley says of a period in his life that saw him quick to snap. āDecember 18 will be five years alcohol-free. Alcohol-free is a big thing for me. I think since then I donāt find myself in very many situations where I need my fists as much. Itās more about being spiritually tough and morally tough for myself and the people around me.
āIāve always been a believer first above anything else,ā Brantley continues. āI feel like Iām like any other Christian. I think Iāve definitely strayed from time and time, and my relationship has not always been the best, but I think thatās always been a part of my music as well. When I created that space bad things happened, but lessons were learned. Blood was spilled, tears were shed, but lessons were learned. Itās kind of clichĆ©, but itās so true. I wouldnāt take anything back. I donāt regret anything, which is kind of hard to say, because thereās a lot of bad things. If you flip back a few pages in this book, it gets pretty dirty. It gets pretty rough. But had it not been for that, I donāt think it would be as good as it is now.ā
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The Devil Donāt Sleep is Brantleyās fourth studio albumāthe follow up to 2014ās Just As I Am, which spawned No. 1 hits āBottoms Up and āOne Hell of an Amen.ā
āAll of my records are chapters of my life,ā explains Brantley. āThey always cover the good the bad and ugly. With this one [The Devil Donāt Sleep], I kept waiting on the ugly. In the past, my life has been a constant cycle of doing really well and then straight to rock bottom. For some reason my rock bottom has a shovel at the bottom of it [laughs]. I donāt understand. Itās kind of a constant cycle. But with this [album] it was really interesting because I really was waiting on more of the uglyāwhich is a terrible way to live waiting on something terrible to happen. But getting back with my wife and being married and that whole chapter of my life is really a lot of good. Itās been an extremely blessed chapter of my life. Probably the most blessed chapters that I can think of.ā
But what about the albums name? Would a person who is happy and in a good place want to conjure up images of his reckless ways. For Brantley, the title is a reminder to him to keep him from returning to the temptations that have veered him off track in the past.
āThe Devil Donāt Sleep is really all about just being conscious of the temptations and the traps that Iāve always fallen intoāthe bad decisions that Iāve always reverted to, said Brantley. āThose bone headed moments of my life, theyāre always there. Decisions are always there to make.The Devil Donāt Sleep, for me, is always just being aware that I am an addict. Iām a recovering addict, but Iāll always be an addict. Those temptations are there. Thereās a lot of roads that go left. Itās about just appreciating the fact that God has blessed me so much in this chapter of my life and appreciating my marriage and that relationship that is so fulfilling to me. Itās my life. Sheās my best friend. Sheās the best player on our team. Itās just about appreciating those things but at the same time, being conscious that the shadows are right around the corner.ā
The āBottoms Upā singer has a lot more to appreciate these days as he gears up for a headlining tour, The Devil Donāt Sleep Tour 2017, that will kick off in February 2017 along with opening acts Tucker Beathard and Luke Combs. The album will offer 16 brand-new songs penned or co-penned by Brantley and will be available in two versions, Red and Blue.
āYou got the Red version and the Blue version,ā Brantley explains. āAs weāve been playing shows throughout the years, there are songs, work tapes or demos that people have asked aboutāthat they could find them in random placesābut we finally wanted to make them available for everybody. There are two different versions that you can pick up. Weāre extremely excited about it. Again, this is another chapter of my life, and weāre really stoked about this. I donāt know if Iāve ever done [an album] that is as back and forth as this one is. It covers a lot of ground as far as just making the genre versatile. It just does a little bit of everything. It yins and yangs a lot in the weirdest way. Itās awesome. Iām stoked about it.ā
Photo by James Minchin/BMLG