Gabby Barrett Shows Depth & Vision On New Album ‘Chapter & Verse’ [Interview]
Gabby Barrett. Photo: Robby Klein
Multi-Platinum singer-songwriter Gabby Barrett released her much-anticipated sophomore album, Chapter & Verse, a few weeks back. With 14 songs all co-produced by Barrett, the project reflects the life lived since the 23-year-old broke out onto to the scene with her debut album, Goldmine, and shows off her depth and song-sense.
Barrett had big shoes to fill with Chapter & Verse. 2020’s Goldmine delivered mega-hits such as the seven-time Platinum chart-topper “I Hope” and triple-Platinum, three-week No. 1 “The Good Ones.” But the singer, now with two kids and another one on the way, wasn’t phased by the pressure. She turned inward, writing songs about her real life and looking for outside tunes that spoke to her values.
Within the 14-song tracklist for Chapter & Verse, Barrett is listed as a co-writer for over half. She also produced the project alongside Ross Copperman, which she says helped her maintain her strong vision for the album.
“I always love to be really hands-on with whatever I’m doing. I have to admit, I’m a very particular person. That can get in the way sometimes,” Barrett says with a laugh. “I like being heavily involved in all aspects of everything from the imaging, to the coloring, to the sound, to the singing, the way that the songs were sung, who was collaborating, etc. I’m just very involved in the creative, so I’m really glad that I got to [co-produce] this time around. ”
In addition to some other early releases, the album was preceded by its current radio single, “Glory Days.” Written with James McNair, Emily Weisband and Seth Mosley, the tune reminds us to live in the present because, as Barrett sings, “these are the glory days.”
Now top 20-and-climbing at country radio, “Glory Days” marked her second time in the coveted most-added position with 77 first-week stations on its add week. It marked the most first-week adds for a female artist in the genre in 14 months.
“‘Glory Days’ was the centerpiece [of the album], and that’s why we chose to release that song first as a first peak,” Barrett shares. “It reflects what my life looks like right now, and it also fits so much into the theme of what the rest of the album talks about: family, faith, [being] real, vulnerable and honest.”
A highlight on the project is the evocative “Growin’ Up Raising You.” Written with Jon Nite, Zach Kale and Jimmy Robbins, the song tells Barrett’s truth about becoming a mother young. She sings about the birth of her first child, Baylah May, saying, “Six in the morning, hands are shaking. Half ready, half scared to death. Hand me the world wrapped in a plain blanket, the world falls asleep on my chest. I’m so in love even though we just met, got no clue what I should do next.”
“That’s a very special song. It came from a very intimate place,” Barrett says. “I’m only 23. I’m pretty young and still figuring out a lot of things. I don’t know everything and have lots to learn while raising another human. There’s difficulties and challenges to that, but it’s a beautiful thing—figuring it out while they’re figuring it out.”
Another standout is “Dance Like No One’s Watching,” a tune that superstar Luke Combs shared with Barrett.
“I loved it immediately when I heard it. He texted the song to me and gave me the backstory on it. He wrote it with James McNair and Emily Weisband, who I wrote ‘Glory Days’ with,” Barrett says. “He was very passionate about it and I was really thankful that he had chosen me to put a vocal on it if I felt compelled.
“He kindly was able to hop in the studio and throw some vocals on it, too,” she says. “I know he really loves the song. I’m really thankful that he also got to sing on it and be part of it in that way.”
“You’re My Texas,” a romantic song about how your person becomes your home, is a beloved track for Barrett. She wrote it with a hero, Texan Miranda Lambert, alongside Hillary Lindsey.
“I’ve always respected [Miranda] and loved her music and her songwriting abilities, so I was really thankful to get in the room with her and Hillary Lindsey,” Barrett says. “We were able to write a song about Texas. You can’t be country and not have a song about Texas.
“I got to know her more as a person. She’s just one of the most real artists that I’ve ever met, which I appreciate a lot because you don’t see that always.”
Chapter & Verse has a lot of Christian values weaved throughout its 44 minutes, including in its title, which was Barrett’s husband and fellow musician Cade Foehner‘s idea.
“[The title] connects to me in a faith-based way. Biblically it connects with chapters and verses—that’s such a big part of me as a human and as an artist. It also connects to the many things that I’ve had to learn quickly within the past couple of years, because life has just felt really fast professionally and personally,” she says. “It was me saying, ‘This is the chapter I’m in,’ and then writing all the verses to that chapter.”
The album begins with a song called “The Chapter”—one of Barrett’s favorites on the project—and ends with “The Verse: Doxology (Amen),” which features Christian music mainstay Phil Wickham.
“Something that I’m also trying to be intentional about with my albums is [highlighting my faith]. On my first album, I did a Christian song. With this album, I end it with a strong message in that song.”
With her second album in the hands of the fans, Barrett will soon welcome her third child. Just like in Chapter & Verse, her life, music and career all culminate together, hand in hand.
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