Singer-songwriter Baylee Littrell chatted about his new single “Hey Jesus,” and he recalls his time on the reality singing competition “American Idol.”
‘American Idol’ experience
On competing in the latest season of “American Idol,” Baylee said, “It was pretty good! It was a long journey, but it was good. I was glad to get home.”
During the audition process, Baylee was able to harmonize and duet wit h his father Brian Littrell of the multi-platinum pop group Backstreet Boys.
Baylee Littrell on Slater Nalley
Baylee had great words about competing alongside country singer-songwriter Slater Nalley on “American Idol.” “I love Slater; he is so talented,” Baylee exclaimed.
‘Hey Jesus’ single
Regarding his new single, “Hey Jesus,” he said, “I wrote it a couple of years ago, and it was about my struggle with faith. I wrote this song and it brought me back to faith.”
Baylee continued, “It was a moment where I didn’t know if I was ever going to release it or sing it, but when I got to that second round on ‘American Idol,’ it was my moment to sing it for people, and let them hear it.
“That was a big risk; I didn’t know how long I was going to stay on the show so that was really that moment of people getting a chance to hear it,” Baylee elaborated.
“It was one of those moments where I was terrified, but once I got up there, I felt at ease,” he noted. “I felt all of us had this moment of worship on the show, and it was so cool!”
“So, it pleased our crew and our cast-mates, and I felt good about it, and that was a comforting feeling,” he admitted.
Lessons learned from this song
On the lessons learned from “Hey Jesus,” he said, “This song taught me that being a Christian is about having flaws and knowing that there is only perfect one.”
So, we are made in God’s image but sometimes people misconstrue that as we have to be perfect when we really can’t be perfect,” he noted.
“I felt that Jesus accepted me for my flaws but I didn’t accept myself. So, in a lot of ways, it was me learning to trust my faith, and put my trust in something bigger instead of looking to myself for the answers first,” he explained.
“That’s what I want people to take away from it, as well as gain a little bit of confidence or ease,” he added.
Future plans
On his future plans, Baylee shared, “More music. We have a tour lined up for later this summer that I am excited about, so we will announce that pretty soon.”
“Hopefully, we could be looking at an album release in the future as well,” he added.
Advice for young and aspiring artists
For young and emerging artists, Baylee said, “My advice would truly be to not give up. This business is so tough and there are moments when you are going to want to quit, or people are going to tell you to quit, or you are going to be let down by people.”
“A lot of people say, ‘never meet your mentors because they let you down.’ I say, ‘meet your mentors’ and take that risk,” he underscored. “A lot of my mentors are people I looked up to and they let me down.”
“Them letting you down, you realize that you have to get through the process on your own, and that is probably one of the greatest things that can happen to you,” he noted.
“You need thick skin in this business, and I would say ‘meet your mentors,’ and take that risk,” he noted. “Most of the times, it is not going to be what you think it is, you need to keep going, and you need to do this for yourself.”
Stage of his life
On the title of the current chapter of his life, Baylee revealed, “Discovery.”
“Right now, we are in ‘Discovery.’ We are in the phase of finding out who we are as a person,” he said.
“Releasing ‘Hey Jesus’ was really the first step. This new record will be somewhere along the lines of ‘resembling self-discovery,’ a ‘new beginning,’ or ‘personal healing.’ I want that to be what it is for people,” he elaborated.
“It’s going to be a very diverse record, and I am very excited for it,” he added.
Dream duet choices in music
Baylee listed “The Temptations” as his dream duet choice in music. “I would love to do something with The Temptations even though there is only one original member [Otis Williams] left,” he admitted. “That would be a dream collaboration right there.”
The female artist he would love to do a duet with is “Kacey Musgraves,” and he also expressed his love for Christian music queen “Amy Grant.”
Closing thoughts on his ‘Hey Jesus’ single
For fans and listeners, he expressed, “I want people to write their own story from this song because people are going to experience different emotions when they hear it, and they are going to go through their own moment of faith and confidence.”
“I want this song to be a moment of relief for people. I search for relief every day for my own mind,” Baylee concluded.
“Hey Jesus” is available on digital service providers by clicking here.
For more information on rising singer-songwriter Baylee Littrell and his new music, check out his official website, and follow him on Instagram.
