Behind the Album: Lisa Nicole’s “Where Wild Hearts Beat”

Photo by Suzanne Sagmeister

Hailing from Castlegar, British Columbia, Lisa Nicole is taking the world by storm with her story-driven lyrics and modern country sound. Over the last couple of months, LiL has had the pleasure of premiering Lisa’s music video for ‘Count On You’ + her song ‘Sunday Funday’. Today we are ecstatic to team up with Lisa again and give you an exclusive behind the scenes look at her first full length album ‘Where Wild Hearts Beat’. Check it out below :

“Where Wild Hearts Beat” is truly a country and pop collection of my own stories and experiences. Overall, it has a feel-good vibe but there are still a few tearjerkers along the way.

On a personal level, this album is extra special because it’s all of my own songwriting, along with great co-writers from Nashville, along with Jason Thomas, my music partner of 16 years. The guitar tracks on the album are all played by Jason and he also sings background vocals on “He’ll Be With You”. CCMA award-winner Jeff Johnson produced the album and he is a musical ninja. He brought out the best in me and made this album a reality after almost 5 years of putting the pieces together.

Now, join me for a look and a listen behind “Where Wild Hearts Beat”!

1. Gypsy Girl – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Phil Barton/Brian White)
Just like the words “freedom queen, got places to be” I wrote this song for those road trips with or without your besties! 5 years ago down in Nashville, I got to write it with hit songwriters Phil Barton and Brian White. We wrote this song and completed the demo in one hour! From writing to recording, we didn’t change anything.

After listening to it, I hope this song will spark an adventure in your near future!

2. Sunday Funday – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Jason Thomas/Jeff Johnson)
In 2016, Jason Thomas, and I sat down to write “Sunday Funday”. “Sunday Funday” is a thing here in the Kootenay’s, whether it’s patio hopping for “Caesar Sundays” or hanging at the beach for the day – this song tells the story about those fun Sundays that get away on you.

We brought it into the studio with Jeff Johnson, made some lyric tweaks and voila – your Sunday song is here!

3. Wait On Me – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Dave Pahanish/Jason Thomas)
I’ve tried to write this song a few times over the years. It wasn’t until Jason and I got into the room with hit writer Dave Pahanish in Nashville that we wrote this smash. Ironically, the story is similar to Dave’s song he wrote for Keith Urban “Without You.”

The inspiration comes from being on the road for days, to weeks, to months away from my partner at home. In the end, he always waits on me and welcomes me home with open arms.

4. Dear Mama – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Beth Marie Anderson)
A personal song I wrote in 2017 with my friend, Beth Marie Anderson. It was a reflection of my Mom, who has battled drinking, depression and abuse for her whole life. It was always hard for me to understand and we had many fights about her drinking over the years.

This is a song built on hope and trust. It’s a song for Mama – and now we can say with so much happiness that she is 1.5 years sober.

5. Do Your Thang – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Jason Thomas/Jeff Johnson)
At the time of writing this tune, I was looking for one more song on the album. I wanted an anthemic, fist pumping, dance style song! Jason, Jeff and I wrote this song in the studio one afternoon and recorded it the next day.

It’s a fun, up-tempo song about being yourself, and that your differences are beautiful. It’s about embracing each other with love and kindness and making a point to just do your thang!

6. Count On You – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Dave Pahanish/Jeff Johnson/Jason Thomas)
Ironically, when I wrote this song, we weren’t in the middle of a pandemic, where you really needed those people close to you, to count on. It’s about being able to count on that special person in your life whether, it be a spouse, family member or friend.

The verses are based on all the things that could go wrong, and once you get to the chorus, it lifts you up just like that person who “lights up the room” when they walk in.

7. He’ll Be With You – (Writers: Lisa Nicole/Tenille Arts/Mallory Johnson)

The biggest tearjerker on the album. While I was living in Nashville, one of my best friends lost her husband in a tragic accident. One of the hardest parts about being on the road are these moments you’re not home for. That week, I was writing with Tenille Arts and Mallory Johnson. I told them I wanted to write a song for her. It was an emotional write and we recorded this song with a fairly acoustic feel and soft drums that come in on the second verse.

As we have all come to realize since 2020, life changes so quickly that the future is entirely unpredictable. This song reminds us to make the most of each moment that we have with the people we love (and who love us) the most.

That’s it! Thank you so much to Live in Limbo for the opportunity to share my experiences of putting “Where Wild Hearts Beat” together.

Thank you to everyone for listening and please tell me what song you relate and connect to the most!https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/689711782