THROUGH THE LENS: Erin Enderlin on Venue Variations, Sad Songs, and More

Before a show earlier this month at the Listening Room in Grand Rapids, Michigan, singer-songwriter Erin Enderlin sat down with ND photographer Bryan Bolea for a brief interview. Better known for writing for country superstars like Alan Jackson (“Monday Morning Church”) and Lee Ann Womack (“Last Call”), Enderlin continues her journey to make her mark in country music.

Last year was a pivotal one for Enderlin, who was selected to be part of CMT’s Next Women of Country tour, headlined by Tanya Tucker, and Rosanne Cash tapped her to perform at the Johnny Cash Heritage Festival. She’s also recorded two albums, and her latest single, a rowdy anthem of self-worth titled “Somebody’s Shot of Whiskey,” was released last fall. Below is her interview with Bolea, edited for length and clarity:

Bryan Bolea: The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum included you in their 2020 American Currents exhibit. How did that hit you?

Erin Enderlin: Well, to be honest it’s still a little surreal. I’m a huge nerd for country music. I love the history and I love the Hall — in fact I volunteered there as tour guide for school kids for quite some time and have done other projects with them. It means more than I can say that the folks at the Hall think enough of my music and career to include me. It’s really validating in an unexpected way, meaning that when they called to tell me, I was completely blindsided. I was just head-down working and I never would’ve dreamed I’d have been at a point where they’d notice me, much less include me. Unfortunately, the exhibit wasn’t open most of the year because of COVID, but for me it really kept me going in that strange hard time to know that it was there.

BB: The Listening Room provides a quieter, more intimate, setting than most other venues. As an artist, do you prepare differently for different types of venues? 

ER: I definitely prepare for different types of venues different ways, and there are different feels to my show depending on the vibe and the audience. I play some pretty drastically different types of shows — some are quiet, listening audiences that really enjoy the stories behind the songs all the way to noisy bars where I’m just opening for someone else and need to play more, talk less, and maybe throw in a few more tempos and covers. I think you have to be really cognizant of the venue, who’s booking you, and the audience to try to tweak the shows a bit so they work best for the occasion.

BB: Every music movie seems to have a scene in which the artist first hears one of their songs on the radio. What is your favorite way to imagine people listening to your music; do you imagine them sitting down, carefully listening to an album or do you prefer an image of them listening to a particular track as it comes up on a “Road Trip” playlist?

ER: I will say I’ve had quite a few people — even a hero of mine — tell me the first time they heard me was one of my performances on the Opry, either on the radio or in person. I’ll just never get over that. That was my biggest dream growing up, to get to play in that circle. Otherwise, I think a playlist on a road trip would be cool. I love a good road trip.

BB: Your knack for writing achingly sad songs led one author to suggest that people would fill a room just to hear you talk about the stories behind those songs.  Sad songs are a staple of traditional country music, but in lesser hands, they often slip into unintentional parody. What do you think enables you to write so authentically about such pain and what is it like to have fans respond so strongly?

ER: Well, I’ve always been drawn to the gritty, raw side of life. I go dark quite a bit, sometimes more so than I realize ’til someone else points it out. I’ve struggled with chronic depression for most of my life and I also think I’m a pretty empathic person — I really feel people’s stories. I went through losing several people close to me right before I moved to Nashville, and I think I was grappling with a lot of questions around those experiences. Definitely was in “Monday Morning Church.” It’s really powerful when fans reach out to share their stories with me, when they say that a song has helped them grieve or not feel so alone. I think it’s probably the most amazing part of what I do. I remember when that song first came out a woman tracked down the mailing address of my publishing company and sent a letter about her husband dying and that the song made her feel less guilty about being angry at God. Said it helped her work through some of those feelings. It really hit me hard. I mean, there was no social media, and I wasn’t famous by any means, but something I’d been a part of moved someone I didn’t know enough to find me and tell me that.

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