October 2022

Americana singer/songwriter Jessica Willis Fisher has set several personal appearances surrounding the release her hauntingly beautiful and brave personal memoir, Unspeakable: Surviving My Childhood and Finding My Voice tomorrow, November 1, 2022 through W Publishing, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Using the written word as her witness statement, Jessica Willis Fisher gives a lacerating portrait of a girl finding her voice after years of being silenced in an elegant, harrowing story of the manipulation and codependency that defines abusive family relationships. Unspeakable is now available for pre-order HERE and Jessica will give her first televised interview tomorrow (Nov. 1) on Tamron Hall, along with a performance of her autobiographical song, “My History,” from her recently released album, Brand New Day. Check local listings for showtimes HERE. An autographed hardcover edition of Unspeakable is currently available from Premiere Collectibles and Jessica will be signing live from on Instagram tomorrow, November 1, at 1pm EST. Join the virtual event HERE. BookTrib praises, “I was not expecting the depth at which Fisher would share her world, nor how gracefully she would navigate it for us…Unspeakable is a book that should be read, by girls and women who may think that they will forever be defined by the things that happen to them.” Growing up the eldest daughter in a large, highly controlled, fundamentalist Christian household, Jessica was groomed to write songs and perform with her family’s touring group, The Willis Clan.  Jessica was expected to conform to her father’s disturbing and chaotic teachings, but she survived his mental, physical, and sexual abuse.  Her family shot to fame after an appearance on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” and soon after had their own reality show on TLC – “The Willis Family”– for two seasons. The world loved this beautiful family of 12 kids; young and vivacious, the Willis’s presented themselves to be extraordinary and happy. But the older and wiser Jessica got, the more she had to face that what was going on behind closed doors would forever be escalating.  Publisher’s Weekly declares, “In this wrenching debut memoir, singer-songwriter Fisher recounts the “mental, emotional, spiritual” as well as brutal physical and sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her father, Toby Willis […] It’s a painful story, but it’s bravely told, for herself and “other little invisible girls and boys.”  Beautifully written and monumental in its bravery, Unspeakable captures the beauty and ugliness of a young woman finding her way—filled with longing, fear, confusion, secrecy, but most importantly, hope for the future. Unspeakable follows the release of Jessica’s critically-acclaimed debut solo album, Brand New Day, earlier this year. The dynamic project finds her discovering that there is indeed a way forward through music. An emotional centerpiece of the album, “My History” was the first song Jessica wrote after taking a multi-year hiatus from creating, following her escape from the unhealthy environment of her upbringing. Brand New Day musically represents her new start at life and helped her reclaim her voice through music. She’ll perform music from Brand New Day on the Grand Ole Opry this Saturday, November 5.

TomKats Hospitality and Acme Feed & Seed, the bar, restaurant and event space on Lower Broadway, revealed a large-scale mural of Tennessee icon Dolly Parton at a private event this past Friday. Created by local artist MacKenzie Moore – whose recent credits include Kacey Musgraves’ “Star Crossed” album art – in collaboration with CTK Enterprises, the piece adorns Acme’s exterior wall facing First Avenue. Acme is housed in the historic building once home to iconic Nashville businesses like Acme Farm Supply and Acme Feed & Hatchery. “MacKenzie’s work of art brings the spirit of iconic Tennessee artist Dolly to life,” said Lauren Morales, chief operating officer at Acme and TomKats Hospitality. “Showcasing Nashville’s musical legacy and providing a platform for new artist discovery is part of Acme’s core mission. Adding this dose of colorful public art to Broadway, with Dolly’s blessing, is a special honor.” Moore, Morales and CTK representatives were on hand to unveil the mural during the event, where donations were encouraged for Parton’s signature charity, the Imagination Library. During the event, the Imagination Library of Middle Tennessee coordinator Brooke Seigle-Rochelle also spoke about the importance of the charity, which is dedicated to inspiring the love of reading in young children through gifting free, high-quality books to children from birth to age 5. Acme encouraged donations to the charity throughout the entire event. Acme also offered Dolly-themed cocktail specials throughout the weekend, donating $1 for each cocktail sold to the Imagination Library.

The road to Elle King’s forthcoming album Come Get Your Wife, out Jan. 27 and available for pre-order today, is not one you would find on Google Maps. It’s full of dirt roads from her youth spent in rural Ohio (a nod to that on the album’s opening track), pot holes and bumper-to-bumper traffic on the streets in New York and L.A. and some uncharted routes to London and Nashville.   The new project pulls from all that influence and life lived on the road and the result is a dozen authentic tracks that could be the musical autobiography of her life. One of those tracks, “Try Jesus,” and the hilariously, ingenious music video are out today. Co-written by King, the irreverent but not blasphemous song finds her looking for a more fulfilling relationship since all the guys in her life are letting her down. ‘“Try Jesus’ came at a time I was trying to give my life over to something greater – and you can feel it,” says King. The tongue-in-cheek song is awash in thick gospel choir wail with just enough church organ to witness. With a song as fresh as “Try Jesus,” the video needed that same sass and fun, so King reached out to a co-star of her favorite series to see if she would join for the video. “The Righteous Gemstones is one of my favorite shows and I adore and have a hell-a respect for Edi Patterson who plays Judy Gemstone,” says King. “She responded quickly to my DM and said she would love to work together. She came up with the concept and believe it or not this is her directorial debut!  She’s such a pro and brought this energy, focus and joy to the set and I’m so excited this video is finally out!” Of the video, Patterson added, “My goal with the concept for this video and for the execution of it was to have an idea that helped Elle feel totally free to be completely gorgeous and wildly funny. Spoiler alert- she’s really, really good at both.” In addition to “Try Jesus,” with the Oct. 21 pre-order, fans also have access to previously released tracks “Out Yonder,” her current single “Worth A Shot” (featuring Dierks Bentley) and the smash, award winning song “Drunk (And I Don’t Want To Go Home)” with Miranda Lambert. The platinum certified single marked the first female-female collaboration to reach the top spot of Country Airplay chart since 1993.  “This whole album is a crazy quilt of all sorts of moments and things that might not seem to go together, but because they’re me, they do,” says King. “It’s very Southern Ohio, very who we are – and very much a lot of people who are just like me, because I know they’re out there.” Come Get Your Wife sharpens King’s gaze, digs into her roots, puts her banjo front and center and creates a record that’s as alive and electric as she is. Taking all the pieces – the rock, soul, (blue)grass and country that she loves – she’s made an album that demands your attention, then delivers on all cylinders.   Come Get Your Wife Elle King Track Listing:1.     Ohio – Written by Elle King, Bobby Hamrick, Ella Langley & Matt McKinney2.     Before You Met Me – Written by Tofer Brown, Meg McRee & Lauren Hungate3.     Try Jesus – Elle King, Geoffrey Warburton, Casey Cathleen Smith, Ashley Gorley & Ben Johnson4.     Drunk (And I Don’t Want To Go Home) With Miranda Lambert – Written by Elle King and Martin Johnson5.     Lucky – Written by Elle King, Bobby Hamrick, Ella Langley & Matt McKinney6.     Tulsa – Written by Elle King, Bobby Hamrick, Ella Langley & Matt McKinney7.     Worth A Shot (featuring Dierks Bentley) Written by Shane McAnally, Ross Copperman and Josh Osborne8.     Crawlin’ Mood – Written by Charlie Worsham & Jesse Frasure9.     Bonafide – Written by Elle King, Bobby Hamrick, Ella Langley & Matt McKinney10.   Blacked Out – Written by Elle King and Martin Johnson11.   Out Yonder – Written by Bobby Hamrick, Ella Langley & Matt McKinney12.   Love Go By – Written by Elle King, Geoffrey Warburton & Joe Janiak