Austin Snell \u2018Colors\u2019 EP Art<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nFor the U.S. Air Force veteran, opening up his life to the public isn\u2019t just a career strategy, it is the core of his creative identity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s really the only way I know how to write songs. That\u2019s kind of how it started,\u201d he explained. \u201cI started writing songs to get my thoughts and emotions out, and it is something that somewhat comes naturally. I love writing songs that mean something.\u201d<\/p>\n
The singer-songwriter co-wrote all of the songs on Colors<\/em>, and wasted no time digging into the backstory that shaped his world growing up. Looking closely at where he came from, he opens up the EP with a deeply personal track called \u201cDaddy\u2019s Eyes,\u201d which takes a look at family and fidelity, and finds him relating to his father in every aspect except in how the two of them saw the world. The lyrics cut deep, painting a vivid picture of generational differences and personal growth.<\/p>\n\u201cI don\u2019t see the world the way he did \/ I don\u2019t look to put me first \/ Couldn\u2019t see that girl, watch that kid \/ Go through so much hurt \/ And there\u2019s a list of things \/ Ain\u2019t hard to trace \/ The apple back to the tree \/ But the man I saw in him \/ Sure ain\u2019t the man I see in me,\u201d<\/em> Snell sings throughout the chorus.<\/p>\n\n\n
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Reflecting on how \u201cDaddy\u2019s Eyes\u201d came about, Snell notes that it set the tone for the entire creative process going forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it was the first song that we wrote in terms of songs on this project,\u201d he shared. \u201cAnd that was my turning point as far as just knowing that I\u2019m capable of writing something like that. It\u2019s super deep and personal to my own life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like, as a songwriter, sometimes you try to put yourself in other people\u2019s shoes a lot and tell a story that you think that someone else would enjoy\u2026.And I think that I kind of hit this little passion in my career where I wrote that song, and I was like, oh, okay. I can write songs that literally are for me, and then can help someone also through a certain situation. So that was kind of my turning point. That was probably, like I said, the first song we wrote. And that\u2019s kind of what took us into the realm of putting out this entire EP of all these songs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Snell says he was intentional in opening up the project with \u201cDaddy\u2019s Eyes\u201d as well, wanting to make a bold statement right out of the gate.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, absolutely. I wanted to get it out of the gate,\u201d he confirmed. \u201cWe have \u2018You Being You,\u2019 and it\u2019s kind of just a fun song about meeting someone out, but with the project being centered around the mental health aspect and my personal story, \u2018Daddy\u2019s Eyes\u2019 was definitely intentional, and I wanted to start off the gate with what the album is going to be like and what it\u2019s supposed to be about. And then after that, we just let it take you on a little rollercoaster ride.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Austin Snell; Photo Provided<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAs listeners buckle up for that rollercoaster, they quickly encounter \u201cCircles,\u201d written alongside Michael Whitworth, Austin Nivarel, and Andrew Baylis. The track deals with the highly relatable subject of having a relationship stuck in a toxic pattern. Despite the heavy theme, Snell says it was an easy write with the guys that he considers his close friends, serving as a necessary tonal shift for the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just wanted to write something fun, and my writes were getting pretty serious and my writing process was getting pretty serious. And you have to find a healthy balance of always writing this topic or this style or tempo or whatever and mix it with some stuff that\u2019s not so sad all the time, I guess, for lack of better words,\u201d he said. \u201cBut it\u2019s a toxic relationship song. We wrote it in a way where it feels like a fun song you can listen to just wherever and have a good time too. And I definitely wanted to have a mixture of both of those on the project.\u201d<\/p>\n
The inclusion of \u201cCircles\u201d showcases Snell\u2019s versatility as an artist, proving he can navigate the dark, somber corners of the human experience while still delivering the kind of rhythmic, engaging country-rock anthems that get crowds moving during his live sets.<\/p>\n
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Austin Snell; Photo Provided<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nClosing out the project is the title track \u201cColors\u201d\u2014 a song Snell wrote for his girlfriend of three years, turned fianc\u00e9e, Ally Klein. The track provides a fitting and emotional anchor for the EP.<\/p>\n
Adding a visual aspect to the lyrics, Snell got engaged to Klein and featured the touching, real-life moment in the music video for the song, shot at Nashville\u2019s stunning Scarritt Bennett Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wrote \u2018Colors\u2019 for her last year\u2026 I feel like I\u2019ve tried to write her love songs in the past, and it just has kind of felt a little too, I don\u2019t know, polished and perfect,\u201d Snell said, explaining his idea behind \u201cColors.\u201d \u201cLove is just never polished and perfect all the time. There\u2019s always something that you\u2019re going to be working on, and it\u2019s like, why do I need to make this seem so perfect when it\u2019s not? And I feel like part of being in love is going through all the ups and downs together and choosing each other, and that\u2019s kind of what the whole essence of the song\u2019s about.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued, \u201cSo I wrote a song and definitely felt as soon as I wrote it that it was a little different than your average love song and definitely different for me. I\u2019m usually not writing love songs. It was something super special, and I was already planning on asking her to marry me at some point, and it timed itself out to where this was perfect. I\u2019ve never been more nervous in my entire life than proposing in a music video, but it was super special for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n
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The elaborate plan required absolute secrecy, and keeping a secret from the person you share your life with is no small feat. Snell credits his team for pulling off the ultimate romantic ambush.<\/p>\n
\u201cI genuinely don\u2019t think she had any clue,\u201d he said of the moment he asked for her hand. \u201cSo we did a good job, and the director, Emma Kate Golden, was the one who made the entire video, and we bounced ideas off of each other. We kind of had it down to a science, so we figured it out and made it happen. But it was definitely a moment that I\u2019ll never forget my entire life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though the song serves as the definitive bookend to the project, Snell<\/a> didn\u2019t initially know \u201cColors\u201d was going to be the title track for the EP. The concept evolved naturally, refusing to be rushed until the pieces fell into place.<\/p>\n\u201cI didn\u2019t even know what the song was really going to be. I had the title in my phone for, I mean, probably a couple of weeks, and I didn\u2019t really know what it meant. I knew that it had something to do with mental health, but when we walked in the room, I told Johnny Clawson, one of the guys I wrote it with, I was like, I want to write this song for Ally. And I always knew it was going to be about mental health, but I want to write it to her about mental health. And so when we wrote it, and I feel like you write a song as a songwriter sometimes, and you finish it, and you get out of the room, and you\u2019re like, oh, this is definitely something special, more special than just your normal. And so we wrote it, and the title Colors just kind of kept coming up in song meetings and talking about the EP. And I don\u2019t honestly think with an album or EP about mental health that we could have picked another song for the EP to be the title track. It just made the most sense for us. So that\u2019s kind of how it happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
While he\u2019s enthusiastic about sharing his new music with the world, Snell emphasizes that his absolute favorite part of his career is the face-to-face interactions he gets to have with people at his shows.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, meeting fans at shows is always my favorite part about this whole thing because music was such a huge part in my life and bringing me through certain moments in my life and stuff, music was always what helped me through that. So all of my favorite moments are meeting fans and hearing the same stories from them,\u201d he said of the deep fan connection he has through his music. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of just all I really wanted to do in this music thing was help somebody through something because music was kind of there for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Snell isn\u2019t alone in opening up about mental health. Many artists lately have been sharing a similar dialogue, with figures like HARDY, Lainey Wilson, and Ella Langley leading the charge. Furthermore, the Academy of Country Music\u2019s Lifting Lives organization had a segment, spotlighting these issues at the 2026 ACM Awards.<\/p>\n
When asked why he thinks these conversations have become so much more common and accepted in Nashville and the wider music industry in recent years, Snell acknowledges the shift as an undeniable force for good.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s awesome that they are sharing\u2026 I couldn\u2019t give you an answer on why people are sharing more about it these days, but I do know that it\u2019s a good thing. I think one of the first things that people tell you to do if you\u2019re going through anything is just to talk to somebody and have somebody that can be there for you and talk you through it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd so I think from a fan\u2019s perspective, it\u2019s always going to help a fan hear someone they look up to talk about some of the things that they\u2019re also going through. So I think it\u2019s always a positive thing that people are being more open about how they feel\u2026. people are going through things all the time. So I think it\u2019s a huge positive.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Austin Snell; Photo Provided<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWith the new music out in the world, Snell is eager to look toward the future. Having recently wrapped his Home Sweet Hell<\/em> tour and celebrated a major milestone by debuting Colors <\/em>on the legendary stage of The Grand Ole Opry, he is ready to completely re-energize his live set.<\/p>\n\u201cI\u2019m just excited to build these songs into the new set. And with the music changing and taking a new life, I\u2019m excited to just kind of revive our live show,\u201d he shared. \u201cWe\u2019ve been playing not the same show every year, but a lot of the same songs and a lot of the same energy. And I\u2019m excited to dive into it and kind of see how we can come out of the gate for whatever the next tour is that we do, and do something that shocks a crowd. And that\u2019s kind of where we\u2019re at, but we\u2019re doing festival season and fairs, and so we\u2019ll do that and debut the songs here and there. I\u2019m sure we will do some sort of touring around the fall.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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