Maren Morris says of coming out, “I can’t imagine anything more lame than staying quiet and counting your dollars while other people are being harmed.”
TAMMYE NASH | Managing Editor
Nash@DallasVoice.com
Being on a concert tour doesn’t leave much spare time, but Arlington native Maren Morris took time this week to answer a few questions for Dallas Voice ahead of her Dreamsicle Tour concert happening Sunday, May 3 at Dallas’ Majestic Theatre.
(If you live closer to Houston, the Grammy Award winner performs there Saturday night, May 2, at the 713 Music Hall.)
Dallas Voice: First of all, welcome back home to North Texas. How long has it been since your last concert here in DFW? And is there something you always look forward to seeing or doing when you are here? Maren Morris: It’s been far too long. My family lives in Arlington, so I love seeing them and my high school friends when I come to town. They’ll all be at the Dallas show, which will be so special.
You have said that you named the tour Dreamsicle because it captures the lighter “summertime” kind of energy of your new music. Tell me about that new energy. I know that these last few years have been a time of big changes for you, so is that Dreamsicle energy part of a new outlook and new direction for you? Yes, it’s a reminder to me to remain present and relinquish my grip on the perception of control. I feel lighter and easier now that I’ve let go.
You stepped away from certain aspects of the country music industry that didn’t align with your values and beliefs. Do you think that the country music side of the industry is changing at all? My side of country music is always changing for the better. People want to connect and feel safe and accepted. Country music has always been about people’s real stories and embracing all of those stories, not just some. It’s definitely getting there.
A lot of performers, it seems, tend to avoid talking about politics and controversial topics, or, if they do they keep it “low key.” What gives you the confidence to speak out on these subjects? I’ve always been a loudmouth Texan who sticks by her morals over popularity. We get one life, and I want to spend mine taking care of people, through music, activism, charity — whatever avenue I’ve got — while I can. I can’t imagine anything more lame than staying quiet and counting your dollars while other people are being harmed.
You have, throughout your career, been supportive of the LGBTQ+ community, and now you’ve come out as a proud member of the community yourself. How has coming out changed your outlook on your music and your life overall? There’s a freedom in coming out that makes you feel incredibly exposed but also like nothing can hurt you anymore. You’ve shown your cards and no one can use them against you. That’s incredibly human.
You have always had a lot of fans in the LGBTQ+ community, and I am sure that fan base has continued to grow since you’ve come out. Have you seen changes in how your fans respond to/relate to you now? My crowd has just dialed in more as being every walk of life, age, race, orientation. It’s a safe crowd because all are welcome, and everyone is kind and respectful. As an artist, you have to earn that over time, and I have by being honest with them.
Moving back to a more general topic, what’s next? I know you are on tour through the summer, but are you working on a new album maybe? New music? Have you ever considered maybe doing movies or something like that? I wrote songs for [the children’s movie] The Wild Robot, and that was incredibly special for me as a mother and as someone who has always loved children’s movies and books. I’d love to dive into that side of things more.
I’ll definitely be taking a vacation and eventually writing songs, but no album plans for a bit. Dreamsicle has felt like two album cycles, because we started with an EP then led into a full album, so I’m excited to chill for a bit and live some life to write about.
Last question: What have I missed? What did I not ask you about that you want to talk about, that you want people to know about you and/or your music? Honestly we covered some ground here! I do want my Texan fans to know how much I love being from this state, and the effect it’s had on my songwriting, my pride, my grit has been such a gift.