Drake Milligan was already having success when he competed on Season 17 of America’s Got Talent in 2022. Still, his time on the show, where he came in third, expanded his audience even more. After AGT, Milligan released Dallas/Fort Worth, his debut solo album, which includes “Sounds Like Something I’d Do,” a song that became his first radio hit.
Milligan returned last fall with Tumbleweed, his sophomore record, and one that aptly describes his life in recent years.
“Over the last few years since my debut record, right off the heels of AGT, there were so many songs that didn’t make it into that pile,” Milligan tells Everything Nash. “So this is technically my sophomore project, my sophomore album, if you will. Over the last few years, it’s just kind of been crazy. I haven’t really had time to catch my breath. We’ve been on the road. In a lot of ways, I’ve felt like a tumbleweed. And when we found the song ‘Tumbleweed,’ I knew I wanted it to be the title of the record, just because in a lot of ways, it’s how I’ve felt over the last few years.”
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The Story Behind “Tumbleweed” by Drake Milligan
“Tumbleweed” says in part, “She’s gentle when she gets to be / Like an angel kissing me / Softer than a summer breeze whispered on my skin / Strong enough to let me roll / Turn me ’round and bring me home / Anywhere I’ll ever go and everywhere I’ve been / / I’m a tumbleweed / I’m a tumbleweed / I’m a tumbleweed / And she’s the wind.”
Milligan wrote a lot of songs on Tumbleweed, but the title track is written by Ian Christian, Cam Newby, and Bobby Pinson. Still, it resonated with Milligan as much as if he had written it himself.
“The song is really about having that grounding, having the wind behind you,” Milligan explains. “You can kind of feel like you’re being pushed aimlessly in all directions when you’re doing this thing, but you know that there is a force there. There’s a wind there. And for me, it’s my fan base and my family and my team being the kind of driving force behind it, pushing me in a certain direction.”
What Drake Milligan Says About His Sophomore ‘Tumbleweed’ Album
Milligan has 14 songs on Tumbleweed, writing 11 of them. The record is produced by the legendary Trent Willmon.
“There are a lot of songs on here,” the Texan says. “There are songs that I wrote eight years ago when I first moved to town. There are songs that I wrote just for this project. There are songs that I didn’t write, that I just happened to find. And I got to explore some different kinds of country sounds, some different influences. There are songs that are inspired by the music of Marty Robbins on here. There’s a song that’s inspired by Roy Orbison on here. There are so many different things I feel like I’ve gotten to dive into artistically on this record. And I’m glad to have it out there.”
Milligan is spending much of the next few months on the road, including shows in Australia and Europe. Find tour dates on his website.