Country Singer Jarod Grubb Talks Playing The Guitar, Nashville, And New Single “Tiki Bar On The Beach”

This singer-songwriter just made the song of the summer

The extremely talented country artist, Jarod Grubb just released his brand new radio-hit “Tiki Bar On The Beach”, the ultimate summer song of the year.

We had the honor of talking to Jarod on all things moving to Nashville, the competitiveness that it brings, and his music career so far:

Q: What was easier to pick up: the guitar or the piano? 

J: “Definitely the guitar. I took piano lessons for 10 years before playing the guitar, so the theory and ear training transferred to the guitar and made it easier. But, to me, the piano is the ultimate instrument because both hands are playing notes – you’re playing the bass and treble clefs at the same time!”

Q: Tell us about your upcoming single “Tiki Bar On The Beach”. 

J: “Tiki Bar asks the questions, “If you didn’t have to worry about money where would you go? What would you do?” Chris Jansen would buy himself a boat and a truck to pull it. For me, I would buy myself a house on the beach somewhere hot and tropical and if you wanted to you could find me hangin’ out at the nearest Tiki Bar. It’s actually the first song I wrote after moving to Nashville and I’ve written plenty since then, so it’s kind of cool that we chose this one to be my first significant release. I’m from northwest Montana and grew up in the rocky mountains, but I’m a total beach nut.”

Q: What inspired you to start your music career? 

J: “Lots of encouragement from great people along the way. Legendary musicians from back home, John Dunnigan and Christian Johnson, would always let me sit in during their sets. And so many friends that have enjoyed my songwriting. I have always written songs for fun and didn’t want the industry or the prospect of doing it for money to ruin the purity of it. But, at one point, I felt like if I didn’t try, I would regret it. I started my first band, the JGrubb Band, back in Boise, Idaho about 5 years ago and I met a guy named Gary Tackett (Billy Currington’s first lead guitar player) who was hosting a songwriter’s showcase. After I played a few he told me I need to high-tail it to Nashville and get some songs published… so, I did!”

Q: Did moving to Nashville change your outlook on music? 

J: “No, not at all. I think it’s tried to. For example, both “industry” people and fans talk about how competitive it is. They’re right. There’s only so many slots on the radio and so many venues to play at.  So, it’s tempting to try and do what everyone else is doing and try and “beat the best.” But the real beauty of music is that it’s really about the connection between you (the artist) and the listeners, whether it’s live or streamed, and what feelings your music evokes.

So, I have really tried to stay true to that. There’s always the thought of an artist “selling out” and just writing commercial songs. I think there’s plenty of time to write both – songs that fit the commercial format and songs that come straight from the heart and don’t have any purpose except to get out into the world.  Sometimes they (the songs) do the old switch over. Sometimes I’ll write a song just for fun and I modify it to get released.  And sometimes I’ll try to write one for a record and instead just let it flow.”

Q: If you could feature with any music artist, who would it be and why? 

J: “Kenny Chesney for sure. I don’t have very many fans yet… but I think we would have similar ones.”

Q: Do you still play baseball as a hobby? 

J: “Nope. Without the prospect of playing in the bigs, I don’t see the point lol. I still coach, though! “

What are your biggest goals in your music career? Maybe a tour? 

My goal is to be prevalent on the radio. I know that if I am achieving that the tours and the great venues will follow! But I try to just stay within myself and work on becoming the best songwriter and performer I can possibly be on the daily.

Where can we follow your amazing journey? 

The socials..@jarodgrubb