{"id":2502449,"date":"2026-07-15T01:47:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T01:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2502449"},"modified":"2026-07-15T01:47:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T01:47:08","slug":"deau-eyes-returns-with-new-album-to-grow-instead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/deau-eyes-returns-with-new-album-to-grow-instead\/","title":{"rendered":"Deau Eyes Returns With New Album\u00a0&#8216;To Grow Instead&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Four years is an eternity in today\u2019s music industry, especially when algorithms reward content, not creativity. When streaming services punish silence, at the expense of artistic evolution.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this disconnect, some artists race against trends, abandoning the search for truth in their music. Other artists dig in, recognizing that our interior lives are inherently irrational. They embrace that uncertainty as an elemental part of creation, trusting that the truth will emerge as we look for peace in our own contradictions.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Richmond singer-songwriter <strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/deau_eyes\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/deau_eyes\/\">Deau Eyes<\/a><\/strong> has spent the last four years proving exactly that. As she prepares to release her first full-length album in four years, <strong><em>To Grow Instead<\/em>,<\/strong> she reflected on that process: \u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of evolution. Sometimes it takes four years, because life influences the music. That\u2019s what art is about\u2026 a reflection of life.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"jeg_video_container jeg_video_content\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"To Grow Instead (Live at The Great Big Greenhouse) - Deau Eyes - Tiny Desk Contest 2025\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EPF7xZ9EKbg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2149\" data-id=\"531763\" src=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Matt-Shofner_RVA-Magazine-2026-3.jpg\" alt=\"eau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026\" class=\"wp-image-531763\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Matt-Shofner_RVA-Magazine-2026-3.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Matt-Shofner_RVA-Magazine-2026-3-1280x1834.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Matt-Shofner_RVA-Magazine-2026-3-980x1404.jpg 980w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Matt-Shofner_RVA-Magazine-2026-3-480x688.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) and (max-width: 1280px) 1280px, (min-width: 1281px) 1500px, 100vw\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">Photos by <strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mattshofnerphotography\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mattshofnerphotography\/\">Matt Shofner<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s not a hard sentiment to follow when you step inside her home studio on Richmond\u2019s South Side. Instruments are scattered everywhere. Recording equipment crowds the room. Paintings, sketches, and creative projects fill every corner. A whiteboard stands guard over the studio, mapping their various states of progress. Outside, a half-pipe dominates the backyard.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In that context, the title of her new album feels less like an abstract statement about art and more like a documentary about it\u2019s creation. Something she also observed when looking around her studio. \u201cThe record is pretty much a documentary time capsule of my life over the last four to eight years,\u201d said Deau Eyes. \u201cEvery song has led me to the next phase of my life.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That choice is reflected in her first single, \u201c<strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/distrokid.com\/hyperfollow\/deaueyes\/woman-of-my-word\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/distrokid.com\/hyperfollow\/deaueyes\/woman-of-my-word\">Woman of My Word<\/a><\/strong>,\u201d released June 26. The song was written acknowledging the weight of two overlapping realities: the double standards applied to women in the music industry and the absurdity of how we interpret that truth.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026.jpg\" alt=\"Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026\" class=\"wp-image-531766\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026-1280x1280.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026-980x980.jpg 980w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_RVA-Magazine-2026-480x480.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) and (max-width: 1280px) 1280px, (min-width: 1281px) 1500px, 100vw\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Listen <strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/distrokid.com\/hyperfollow\/deaueyes\/woman-of-my-word\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/distrokid.com\/hyperfollow\/deaueyes\/woman-of-my-word\">HERE<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The opening lyric speaks to that struggle while still leaving room for listeners to interpret their own experience: \u201cI\u2019m a woman of my word, clearly being with you is absurd.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen it comes to misogyny, there\u2019s been a lot of evolution,\u201d she said. \u201cBut it\u2019s so firmly rooted in our identities that people have only recently started to acknowledge or understand that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She also explained there\u2019s a deeper honesty beneath that double standard. \u201cI can tell you the truth, but you\u2019re not going to hear that truth, because you\u2019re only going to hear what you want to hear.\u201d That\u2019s why she said \u201cWoman of My Word\u201d is ultimately for anyone who\u2019s paid the price while choosing themselves.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Over the years and across her catalog, Deau Eyes\u2019 music has been defined by a sense of movement and progression. Each record feels like a testament to a different chapter of life\u2014from the Nashville sessions that shaped <em><strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/4Kzq4qEyVHwyyGAXA2CkPr?si=Zu9e5mXqRBKagUUmsCuXzg\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/4Kzq4qEyVHwyyGAXA2CkPr?si=Zu9e5mXqRBKagUUmsCuXzg\">Let It Leave <\/a><\/strong><\/em>to the methodical experimentation behind Richmond-made <em><strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/1HAbbNmnQidLXVsPLtAoII?si=aNjcJFqlQhKLE-5zYA8HKg\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/1HAbbNmnQidLXVsPLtAoII?si=aNjcJFqlQhKLE-5zYA8HKg\">Legacies<\/a><\/strong><\/em>, featuring DJ Harrison and Scott Lane.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And in many ways, <em>To Grow Instead<\/em> seems like the natural culmination of that journey. Co-produced with Ryan Gary, the record became a deliberate experiment in collaboration, sound, and arrangement. However, that process wasn\u2019t without an artist\u2019s frustration, beginning with the pursuit of a feeling she could see, but not quite hear.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026-2.jpg\" alt=\"Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026\" class=\"wp-image-531762\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026-2.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026-2-1280x1024.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026-2-980x784.jpg 980w, https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-interview_Landon-Shroder_photo-by-Peter-McElhinney_RVA-Magazine-2026-2-480x384.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) and (max-width: 1280px) 1280px, (min-width: 1281px) 1500px, 100vw\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo by <strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/michael.thibo\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/michael.thibo\/\"><strong\/><\/a><strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/irishjazz\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/irishjazz\/\">Peter McElhinney<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou have all these visual identities with your music, but you can\u2019t get the sound,\u201d she said. That willingness to discard work, begin again, and break through self-doubt became an essential part of her creative process, which she hopes will give the new album it\u2019s emotional gravity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI felt like the songs were very vulnerable\u2026 There were times where I would spend days recording versions of them and had to completely scrap them. The songs were so precious to me that I knew I needed to treat them the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the time the record arrives November 13th, Deau Eyes won\u2019t just be introducing a new album, but also her first child\u2014a daughter. The timing feels especially poetic for an artist whose work has always been concerned with documenting the evolution of life, rather than its completion.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When asked what it\u2019s like knowing that her daughter will one day listen to her albums, she paused before simply saying: \u201cI think that\u2019s such a beautiful thought.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Main Image by <strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/irishjazz\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/irishjazz\/\">Peter McElhinney<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Support RVA Magazine. Support Independent Media in Richmond.<\/strong> <br \/>At a time when media ownership is increasingly concentrated among corporations and the wealthy,\u00a0<em>RVA Magazine<\/em>\u00a0has remained one of Richmond\u2019s few independent voices. Since 2005, the magazine has provided grassroots coverage of the city\u2019s artists, musicians, and communities, documenting the culture that defines Richmond beyond the headlines.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But we can\u2019t do this without you. A small donation, even as little as $2, one-time or recurring, helps us continue to produce honest, local coverage free from outside interference. Every dollar makes a difference. Your support keeps us going and keeps RVA\u2019s creative spirit alive. Thank you for standing with independent media<strong>.\u00a0<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=Z94AYHGPMRDB4\"><strong>SUPPORT HERE<\/strong><\/a><strong>.\u00a0<\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong>Subscribe to the RVA Mag Weekly Newsletter\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/rvamag.com\/rva-newsletter-sign-up\"><strong>HERE<\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong><\/a>We\u2019ve got<em>\u00a0<\/em>merch<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bonfire.com\/store\/rvamag\/\"><strong>HERE<\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong><\/a>Subscribe to the Substack<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/rvamag.substack.com\/\"><strong>HERE<\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong><\/a>And Reddit<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/RVAmag\/\"><strong>HERE<\/strong><strong><br \/><\/strong><\/a>And YouTube\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@RVAMAG\"><strong>HERE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"et_pb_team_member_image et-waypoint et_pb_animation_off\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/rvamag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Landon-Headshot-HighRes-1-e1594661314394-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Landon Shroder\" class=\"wp-image-440944\"\/><\/div>\n<div class=\"et_pb_team_member_description\">\n<p>Landon is RVA Mag&#8217;s co-publisher and editor-at-large. He is also a foreign policy professional from Richmond specializing in high risk and complex environments, spending over 20 years abroad in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. He hold\u2019s a Master\u2019s Degree from American University in Conflict Resolution and was a former journalist and producer for VICE Media. His writing on foreign affairs has been published in World Policy Journal, Chatham House, Small Wars Journal, War on the Rocks, and the Fair Observer, along with being a commentator in the New York Times on the Middle East.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source rvamag.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Four years is an eternity in today\u2019s music industry, especially when algorithms reward content, not creativity. When streaming services punish silence, at the expense of artistic evolution.\u00a0 In this disconnect, some artists race against trends, abandoning the search for truth in their music. Other artists dig in, recognizing that our interior lives are inherently irrational. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2502450,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[493132,493133,493134,447311,24110,24104,322225,399174,29662,26626,493135,493136,489476,493137,493138,493139,493140,491035,493141,493142,493143,309511,493144,493145,493146,493147,493148,381308],"class_list":["post-2502449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-album-interview","tag-deau-eyes","tag-dj-harrison","tag-indie-folk","tag-indie-music","tag-local-music","tag-motherhood","tag-music-interview","tag-new-album","tag-new-music","tag-richmond-artists","tag-richmond-culture","tag-richmond-music","tag-richmond-music-scene","tag-richmond-musician","tag-richmond-recording-studio","tag-richmond-singer-songwriter","tag-richmond-va","tag-rva-music","tag-ryan-gary","tag-scott-lane","tag-singer-songwriter","tag-the-sunroom","tag-to-grow-instead","tag-virginia-artists","tag-virginia-music","tag-woman-of-my-word","tag-women-in-music"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Deau-Eyes-Returns-With-New-Album-To-Grow-Instead.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2502449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2502449"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2502449\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2502451,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2502449\/revisions\/2502451"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2502450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2502449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2502449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2502449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}