Beth Snapp on new single “Something To Prove”

Beth Snapp recently released a new single, “Something To Prove.” She tells us:

I’m a singer-songwriter from Northeast, TN, and I certainly draw from the influences of the Appalachian culture—that’s pronounced App-uh-latch-un ;). My music is multi-genre influenced Americana and sometimes kind of hard to pin down. However, I love the flexibility of serving a song in whatever direction it needs to be served.

When I was writing the song, I was initially writing for myself, to be honest, but I quickly realized the universal message that we all were needing to hear. I wanted to send folks some encouragement and let them know that 1) it’s ok to feel all the stages of working through what had happened to our lives (which essentially was grew process), but 2) we can’t give up, and we should do the best we can so that on the other side of the mess, we were proud for how we reacted and progressed through what was ultimately a ginormous mess of unknowns.

Tell us about your new music and the inspiration behind it.

It started with a conversation with my friend, Dave Eggar (also on cello for this track). He was asked the question: who do you want to be on the other side of this? ‘This’, being COVID of course. I didn’t really have an answer. Music had all but disappeared, and I found myself working in the COVID unit of my local hospital as an occupational therapist. It was a tough moment in life, for sure. BUT! I had this opportunity to redefine life, and in the process, I knew I needed to answer that question to begin heading where I needed to go. I realized that years from now, I wanted to be able to say that I did my part in the pandemic, but also I wanted to just be proud of myself for, however, I continued to live through the tension, whatever that was. I wanted to be able to say I didn’t just survive it, I found a way to thrive. Then, the task was to define what it meant for me to thrive, and I think that’s a question we’ve all been tinkering with as of late.

What was the songwriting and recording process?

The songwriting process happened very quickly, which was therapeutic for me. The recording process took more time than I think I’ve spent on a song (but hey, we had plenty of time, right?). I brought the song to Dave (Eggar) and Phil Faconti, and we all put our heads together and began building the vision. I’m typically one to go for efficiency, but we created it with some patience. I think we got a richer result, and I’m thankful I was given the opportunity to approach it in that fashion.

What do you hope your fans/listeners take away with them when they listen to your music?

Most of my songs have a very cognitive component, usually emphasizing pretty universal emotions and life moments that form relational connections. So, it always makes my heart happy when a person connects and finds their own personal meaning to the stories.

When did you first pick up the guitar and what drew you to that instrument?

There’s a picture of me at about age three holding a guitar upside down (it makes sense because I’m left-handed, but I play right-handed now). I don’t actually remember that moment. I really picked up the guitar and gave it some effort when I was fourteen. I had just gotten my wisdom teeth out. I think I was just getting more into different genres of music that included acoustic guitar, and I wanted to learn to play these songs I was just discovering. Also if I’m honest, I was medicated and bored, so it seemed like a good way to fill that day lol.

Who are some of your musical influences?

I’ve always been drawn to any artist who has the ability to be cross-genre. When I was first learning to play, I loved listening to John Mayer and his ability to go from blues, folk, pop, and rock. I always loved Alison Krauss and Union Station. Norah Jones and Amos Lee were always favorites too, and I’ve had people from time to time compare me to them. I love a ton of other genres, but I guess the cross-genre folks influence me, and perhaps gave me permission to do the same.

What’s next?

Live shows are beginning to trickle in! Also, I’m sitting on another single from those covidular sessions, lol, so that’ll be released at some point. Also, speaking of Alison Krauss and Union Station, I’m getting ready to record a few tunes with Barry Bales (bassist for AKUS). Definitely feeling hopeful for the return of music, and excited to share more!