Thursday, November 5th

Julianne Hough
Lakefront stage
7:30pm

If you thought Julianne Hough could dance, you'll be surprised to know just how well she can sing. Her debut album, produced by David Malloy, has a total of eleven tracks and features such writers as Craig Wiseman, Tom Shapiro, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Rick Ferrell, and Jessica Andrews (among others). With talent like this, she should have no problems building a successful music career.

Julianne Hough has been a name synonymous with professional ballroom dancing thanks to Dancing With The Stars (where she was a two-time champion) but until now most people had no idea she could also sing. With this show's season over, she's now ready to take Nashville and country music by storm with her self-titled debut album.
"That Song In My Head" really is the type of song that would stick with you after hearing it a few times, or once for that matter. Not only that, but it's perfect for the upcoming summer months with a topic of going out and finding someone to fall in love with and replaying special moments over and over in your head.

There's a cool vibe to the song, "You, You, You." I like how the continuing theme is to repeat certain words three times just for effect. The girl says she'll do anything and everything for the man who has captured her heart. She remembers everything about their first meeting and she hopes there will never be a last time for the two of them. It's suprising because she says: "When love came around my guard was never down. I was quick on my feet and I never would have thought that I'd ever get caught with my heart on my sleeve." So it must be special if she finally let down her guard and give him a chance.

Written by Steve McEwan and one of the "Hitmen of Music Row" Craig Wiseman, "My Hallelujah Song" is about a girl who realizes she's finally made it to a place where she completely belongs. My favorite line is: "Life is more than just how many breaths you take, but the moments that take your breath away." What a beautiful way of looking at things. You might have to take some twists and turns on the road of life, but if you have faith your patience is bound to pay off.
From a storytelling perspective, "Jimmy Ray McGee" is my favorite song from Julianne's debut release. It makes for a wonderful message to young girls in high school who are feeling pressure from the guys who want things to move faster than they should. At the time, it might hurt to wait or say "No" because when you're seventeen all you want is to be popular and liked but in the end you might find out just how things could have happened. The girl in the song felt pressured, so when Jimmy asked her to go to senior prom with him she refused and went with another boy. A few lines later, she talks about how he also went with someone else and that someone else gave in and wound up becoming a mother that night.

Not only does Julianne's brother Derek dance professionally like she does, but it sounds like he can also sing. Talk about a talented brother and sister duo. Derek is featured on the song "Dreaming Under The Same Moon." No surprise the harmonies are great and they sound great singing together.

Another one of my favorite songs on here is "About Life" and with a quick check of the songwriters I was surprised to see Jessica Andrews along with Marcel (Chagnon) and Trevor Rosen credited. Through all of life's ups and downs, she's always tried to see the brighter side of things even when things were dark. Though she's experienced quite a few things, she still feels the surface has hardly been scratched and there's more to come.
"Hello" should definitely be released as a radio single, but I wonder why it wasn't selected ahead of "That Song In My Head." To me it sounds more like something radio listeners would latch onto and DJs would want to play. We all see things that maybe our friends don't realize, especially with the subject of relationships. As much as we try to help them and warn them of certain people, they choose not to listen. You just want to say "Hello! Please listen to me!"

"Love Yourself" could go right along with "Hello," with mentions of phones and a girl who is telling her friend she should see herself in a better light. There's a certain positivity found on this album and it's quite refreshing. All in all a solid debut from this talented young lady.