The Interviews

Lila McCann

Interview by Darren O'Neill

Hi Lila, how is everything going?

Everything is going good!

Your new album is out, and it's a great cd, how does it feel to be only nineteen years old and have close to two million albums sold?

It's pretty exciting. To be able to do what I love to do and share it with other people is awesome!

On the new album I read that you had a hand in pretty much every aspect from picking a new producer, picking the musicians that played on the cd, how was that different from how you approached your first two cds?

I think the biggest difference in the whole process was that I was out of school. Before, I was still balancing school and my career, when I went into the studio I had a week to go in and sing because I had to go back to school. This time I was out of school, I had all the time in the world, so therefore I got to spend a lot more time in the studio which was great for me!

How was working with David Malloy, and how did he change your sound do you think?

I think if anything this record has a more clear sound. Every producer is different, and they all bring something different to the table. He and I were just really in synch on what we wanted the record to be like, as far as the songs we choose and the sound of the music. So, that part was really easy.

Do you feel you came pretty close to the sound you were going for?

Oh, definitely!

The first single, “Come A Little Closer” is a great song, a great summer song especially. It's back towards the top of the CMT video charts right now, do you feel it's kind of getting a second wind?

As far as the video goes, yeah! The video has been doing great. As far as the song resurrecting itself on radio I don't think that's going to happen. We have a new single coming out that is just a wonderful song, and I have already moved on and am looking forward to what's going to happen next.

The new single is the ballad “Because of You” right?

Right.

One thing I have to ask you, on the video for “Come A Little Closer” how many outfits did you actually wear?

(Laughs) About six or seven. Too many!

How long did it take to make that video?

It took one day, about fourteen hours.

Does that get tiring?

Yeah, we go out there at seven in the morning and then you're in makeup for two or three hours. You do all that kind of stuff, and when you start you get like a 30 minute break for lunch and that's it for the whole day. It makes for a long day!

It's not as glamorous of a life as everyone thinks, right?

Definitely not! It can be, but video shoots are a lot of work!

While sitting in traffic yesterday, I listened to your three albums back to back, and I could hear on the first cd a lot of Reba and Dolly in your vocals. On the second cd, they were a little less apparent, and on “Complete” I feel you've really established a style all your own. Do you feel the same way?

Oh, I definitely agree with you. I think a lot of that had to do with also being younger and going into the studio and either being worried about what I was going to sound like or just too shy to let loose. This time I went in there and said I'm going to do it my way, and that's what it came out sounding like!

Well, your way definitely works!

Thank you!

The album shows off a lot more vocal range, songs like “Mighty Mighty Love” which I think would be a great single has a little more of a gospel flavor, it seems like every song is geared to being an uplifting kind of song.

Really, it was a fun record to make. The whole process when we were in the studio recording and everything, everyone had a ball.

I read that the song “Like A Rocket” was actually brought to your attention by Chalee Tennison. Does that happen a lot where an artist might here something not right for them and pass it along?

Maybe, it hasn't happened to me before. Chalee and I got snowed in somewhere about a year ago during an acoustic concert. She was like “there is this song that I think would be really good for you” and I ended up listening to it and loved it, so it turned out nicely.

The song “Is It Just Me” takes a little bit of a different angle of the falling in love theme and I think it's a really cool song.

Thank you, that's one of my favorites!

How hard is it to find songs like that, the kind that bring a fresh feel to the subject matter?

I think that's one of the hardest things about finding songs, especially when you're looking for ten or twelve for a record. I mean, we easily went through five hundred songs just to find ten. And that's something that gets very trying. But it's also fun to see what's out there too. It's all about finding what's right for you. It's not to say the songs I listened to were bad, but everybody has a different type of song that they're attracted to. Going through all of those songs that I heard, these were just the ones that I felt worked with me the best.

That's the trick I think, pairing the songs with the artists. I know it happens all the time, artists pass on songs that become hits for other artists that might not have worked for them.

Oh yeah, I passed on Trisha's current single “I Would Have Loved You Anyway.” It's funny, when I heard it I thought this would be great for Trisha or Martina, but it just wasn't something for me. It's always funny to hear when that happens.

I was going to ask you what you did over the 4th of July, but I saw you were posting to the message board on your official web site!

What did I do on the 4th of July.. I went canoeing down a river in Tennessee. We went on like a 6 hour trip, then had a barbeque with a bunch of friends.

How often do you check in on your web site?

I think it's really important to stay in touch with the fans. It's so easy for me when I'm on-line checking e-mails to get on for a few seconds and say “hi” really quick on the message board. It keeps people interested, and on the web page because they know that I do care about the fans. I think that is one of the most important things in a career, and important to keep a good relationship with fans.

With meeting fans, or even with the web board on your site, do you get an idea of what kinds of effects that your music has on your fans? And, is that wild to think that there are people out there really looking up to you and what you do?

Yeah, that is wild. Just to think that that many people are looking up to me. To me, I'm just doing what I like to do, you know? I'm just doing my job!

There's been a lot of talk about youth coming into country music, and I think it's cool that people, especially with younger artists, can watch them grow up and their careers grow, and really almost grow up with the artist. The guy that runs the Women of Country site, which has been around since about the time your first cd was released, is a huge fan of yours and when I set up the interview with you I talked to him and said “well, I know you're going to want to do this interview” and he said “no way!” So, I asked him what he meant, and he said “I've had a crush on her since I was fifteen, I'd never get a question out!”

(Laughs) That's funny!

I look at that, and it hit me that there are country fans that are literally growing up with you, and the music.

That is one thing that's cool about being young is that the fans that you have that are younger, and older folks to, they do kind of grow with you, which is cool.

Your image has definitely changed since your last cd, the best guage of that I guess would be the new video. The first time I saw the video, it was on CMT and came on right after a Faith video, and not paying a whole lot of attention I thought it was another Faith video when I saw the long blonde hair, it just really caught me by surprise when I realized who it actually was!

That was really the funniest thing, putting out a new video and people are saying “oh wow, I haven't seen you since you had braces on!” I'm thinking, wow, I had them off three years ago so it's time to make a new video!

How important do you think image is? With MTV and all the videos, it's obviously more important than it was say 20 years ago...

I think most importantly the music comes first. And, image is something that I think people have images forced on them. For me, it's about being comfortable with who I am, and I am pretty comfortable so I don't mind.

One thing I had to ask, I read a quote from what I believe was a Yahoo! chat that you did, and someone asked you what you were looking for in a guy and you said “honesty, personality” and then what caught my eye was “a darn good sense of humor” because, you said “I'm kind of a dork, and kind of goofy.”

Yeah, I just want to have somebody that I can laugh with. Because I am, I'm a responsible person, and I'm grown up, but I'm also 19 and I'm a funny person.

I always hear stories of artists, and strange things that happen out on the road... Do you have any good stories?

Oh Lord.. This is probably the weirdest thing. I was in El Paso, Texas a couple of months ago in the afternoon one day. One of the fans came in and said “what's the weirdest thing you've ever signed” and I said well, I haven't really signed anything that odd before. I mean, I've signed shoes, and pretty normal stuff. He said “have you ever signed a prosthetic before?” And I said “excuse me?” He's like “you know, a prosthetic, because I have a prosthetic leg, and if you'd be willing to sign it I'll take it off right now and you can sign it for me.” I started laughing because I thought he was joking, but he sat down and he was like “here, pull it off” and I was like “WHAT!?!” He goes “here, pull it off” and he starts shaking his leg. And, so we pulled his leg off, from about the knee down, threw it up on the table and I signed it. Then he popped it back on.

That is pretty wild!

Yeah, I was in tears I was laughing so hard. It was just bizarre. Then he was like “Brooks and Dunn are next!” I said “well you tell them Lila sent you!”

So, you're the trouble maker or the sly one?

I think I'm both. It just depends on the day.

Have you ever just cracked yourself up on-stage where you just couldn't get it back as quickly as you'd like?

Oh yeah! My drummer has a talk-back mic, so during a show he says something and we can hear him but the audience can't hear him. For instance, he'll say what the next song is going to be, or whatever. And, sometimes the things that get said on that... Everybody, the whole band can be laughing and the audience is wondering why.

How was it moving out of the house, and out to California? I'm sure for anybody it's a big deal, but especially for you pretty much launching your career full time...

It's been really good. I've been in LA for a year and I'm really enjoying it!

Is the weather a little better than Seattle?

Much better! (laughs)

I saw that you were featured in Teen People Magazine's “20 Teens That Could Change The World” issue, is that a pretty wild honor to get?

Yeah, especially being able to sit and talk with the other teenagers that were there, and hear about the things that they were doing. I was just kind of like “well, I'm just a singer.” Everybody else was so involved with different kinds of things like politics, or being doctors, or finding a cure for cancer. It was all kinds of different things, so I felt pretty honored to be a part of that.

That's cool, the thing to remember with singing is that it touches a lot of people...

Oh, definitely.

A lot of times I think we forget the power that music can actually have on the people who hear it...

It totally does. My best friend and I, she's a big movie buff and so am I, were sitting in the car the other day and we were discussing about how, if you notice during a movie the perfect moment always happens with great music. And, she said how much better “I love you” sounds with music behind it, and we got into this conversation in the car about it, and we were just dying laughing. Because, then we were picturing all of these things said, and we'd turn the radio up and then turn it back down to hear to hear what it sounds like without music. It was pretty stupid.

But, everything sounded better with the music, right?

Absolutely! Everything did.

On “Something In The Air” you cut a song called “Rhymes With” which was co-written by one of my favorite songwriters Carolyn Dawn Johnson...

Oh, I love her!

Who are your favorite songwriters?

Oh gosh, that's such a hard question. You know really there are so many. I love Carolyn Dawn Johnson, she's actually one of my very favorites. I really like Victoria Shaw. I think Michael Delaney, who wrote “The Way You Love Me” for Faith Hill, and he actually had cuts on my first two albums. He's a great writer. There are so many, it would be hard for me to pick just one.

Here's a topic that keeps coming up, and I don't know if you'll want to answer or have an opinion on this one or not because it's a little controversial, but do you think country radio right now has a little too much power? I mean, you hear of a lot of great songs that won't get played and some songs that aren't the best that move up the charts...

Umm, yeah... I don't have a comment on that... (Laughs) I'm just kidding, I think that radio is great, and I am very thankful because obviously people wouldn't know who I was without it. But, if I had a radio station I would only play what people called in and requested I think! It's also different with every station, because some stations base their playlist solely off the charts and others base it off of what they feel is great music.

What are the last 3 or 4 cd's that have made it through your cd player?

Let's see, what did I just buy... Nelly Furtado, that's real country (laughs), Jessica Andrews, I have her new cd, and Nickel Creek, I just bought that and I really like that. That's probably my favorite right now is the Nickel Creek album.

You see, I think that's cool that you listen to different genres. It seems to me that a lot more country artists these days are talking about influences outside of country music...

Oh yeah, I've always listened to a little bit of everything.

It's good to have a variety of sounds!

Definitely.

Do you feel that your career is any different since you are based out of LA instead of Nashville?

No, I don't think it really is. Because, from the very beginning, people have known me as “the girl from Seattle” and being on this coast doesn't seem to have had an effect on that.

I think it's cool that it can be done!

Well, I spend more time in Nashville than I do here! (Laughs)

That is one thing I did wonder though, how did a young girl from Seattle, Washington get into country music? You don't usually put Seattle and country music together.

Actually my dad had a country band, he still does actually, and I started playing music with them when I was four years old. I was the only musical one out of my brothers and sisters, just because I was always attracted to it, and that was pretty much it!

Do you ever get stage fright before going out to sing?

Every once and a while, it really depends on the kind of show. I don't usually.

What is your next goal that you would like to accomplish?

I would really like for my next single to go #1 so that I could go on a really cool tour! (Laughs)

Who would you like to tour with? What would be the perfect fit for you?

You know, anybody really. I would love to be on the road with Tim McGraw. We went on the road a couple of years ago and had so much fun. Just because the energy is so neat! Anybody, I just like being on the road with other artists because you have other people to hang out with, which is always fun! I think being on tour with Lonestar would be awesome!

One of your first touring experiences was with the George Strait Fest, how was it playing for those huge crowds?

It was really cool, I think the thing that made me the most as ease were Tim and Faith. It was the first tour that I had ever done, and I was a really big fan of theirs and Gracie was about a year and a half old, and every day during my part of the concert and I would look towards the back of the stage and Gracie would be in the stroller and Tim and Faith would be standing there like clapping and cheering me on the whole time, to make sure I was doing ok. Which I thought was really cool.

How long before we see you out on the road as a headliner?

I don't know, I need to have a hit single and a #1 record, then maybe I'll be on my way!

I think you definitely have a shot with what is on this cd!

Why thank you!

I'm sure there will be a video for “Because of You” coming out soon?

We haven't shot it yet, but right now since the video for “Come A Little Closer” is doing so well on CMT that we don't want to do another video right away so they don't compete with each other. So, we'll wait a little while.

I read that you might have a little bit of the acting bug, is that something you'd like to do more of in the future?

I have done a little. I think when I get a little more settled in LA, and I have more time to do that. Right now I am so focused on this new record that I don't want to do much of anything else. But, when I get a little more open space I would love to try it again.

Do you have a favorite song off of the new cd?

I'd have to say “Because of You” because it's the single, but they are really all my favorites. I like them all.

The one song I really liked was “Whisper The Words” which is a really touching song, and I read that it was a very last minute addition to the cd...

Thank you, yeah it was we actually had the album finished and mastered and getting set to be pressed when David Malloy called and said “man I just finished this really cool song, and you need to come cut it!” So, we went in the next day and did it.

Lila, thank you for taking the time to talk with us, it's been a pleasure!

Thank you!