New music is coming from Michael Ray, and it’s not from his latest Dive Bars & Broken Hearts EP, released in June. The Florida native announces the release of the nostalgic “We Should Get A Drink Sometime,” out on Friday, December 8.
Thomas Rhett wrote the new song, alongside his father, Rhett Akins, Mike Busbee and Josh Kerr.
“I typically end up cutting more songs than I need when I’m in the studio, and sadly that means there are a few that never get to see the light of day,” Ray explains. “But this song has always been special to me, and it felt like the right time to put it out there. This one is for those of you traveling home for the holidays and reconnecting with those people in your life that you’ve lost touch with, whether you reach out or run into someone you didn’t expect to see.”
“We Should Get A Drink Sometime” will be out as Ray is enjoying a Top 40 hit with “Spirits and Demons,” his duet with Meghan Patrick.
“We went through so many thoughts and names; they were all great, but nobody felt quite right,” Ray says of choosing Patrick as his duet partner. “And it’s funny, because the answer was right under my nose. I’ve been friends with Meghan for years, in the way you’ve got your ‘Hey, I’m off the road. Wanna grab a beer?’ friends when you’re home for two or three days.
“So many of us are out there weeks at a time, chasing the dream,” he continues. “When you’re always gone, those friends who get you and get the commitment it takes, where you pick up right where you left off? They’re gold. Meghan’s not only a friend and a great hang, no matter who’s around, she’s got a voice that can blister concrete – and a gift to reach right into a song and rip its heart out, put it in her throat and meet you line for line with some intense emotions.”
As soon as Dive Bars & Broken Hearts was released, Ray hinted that he was already working on more music.
“We’re talking about going in soon to start the next side,” Ray recently hinted to Everything Nash. “I’m writing, and listening to a lot of songs, getting set up to get in the studio as soon as we can, and not let much time slip by. We want to try to keep things close together. I’m excited.”
The 35-year-old has released plenty of music in the last several years, but says it’s Dive Bars & Broken Hearts that is his most authentic, and a good indicator of what fans can expect moving forward.
“I think it is the first album where it’s 100 percent me,” Ray said. “I didn’t chase anything. I wasn’t trying to do anything but really be very focused on songs that I wrote, and songs that I got sent that I loved. I knew what I wanted to say. I knew how I wanted the record to be; everything I already had in my mind. And so, because of that, I think that’s why people are gonna hear a difference sonically. They’re hearing a difference vocally. They’re hearing a difference in a lot of ways.”
Pre-save “We Should Get A Drink Sometime” here. Find all of Ray’s music and upcoming shows at MichaelRayMusic.com.
Read ‘Michael Ray: 11 Things to Know About the Country Music Singer’ here.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of EB Media/Anna Warner
