Daily Discovery: Mackenzie Wasner Drinks and Thinks Over “Red Wine Reminder”

Contemplatively imbibing and reminiscing on some old memories that popped up on her phone one Sunday night Mackenzie Wasner found herself singing around all those recollections, and writing.

“Sometimes when you’re drinking red wine it makes you think about things,” says Wasner. 

By the next day, Wasner connected with co-writers Smith Curry and Craig Wilson to piece the song together. The song was written on a Monday and recorded by Friday. “As soon as Smith strummed the first chord on his guitar, I freaked out because it perfectly matched the hook I had been singing—same key and everything,” says Wasner. “The song just kind of fell out. It was the first time Craig, Smith and I had ever written together, not to mention the first time Smith and I had met, so we felt super accomplished when we were done.”

For the Tennessee Native, whose father Pete Wasner has written for and worked with  Garth Brooks, Vince Gill, Trisha Yearwood, Kathy Mattea, Pam Tillis, and more, writing starts with singing. Carving out time each day to write, there’s really no process for the Tennessee native. “Even if I’ve only got 10 minutes, I put my phone down and strum the guitar or just start singing while I’m curling my hair,” says Wasner.

“It’s the reward of making something from nothing,” says Wasner. “Sometimes the song takes an hour and falls out and other times not so much. Other times it can feel frustrating, hard, you’ve got to revisit once or twice, but then, when you finally get it right it’s really right.”

Every part of the writing and recording process is evolving, and consistently rewarding, to Wasner, who was also a contestant on Season 12 of American Idol.

“Then, you get to record it and demo it and continue to watch your little baby that you just created grow into a real song,” she says. “Then, you play it out at a show and may have someone come up to you and say how much they enjoyed that one little song that you fought so hard for. Did I say how rewarding that is?”

Wasner admits some of her best writing is through collaboration. “There is nothing better than getting in a room with another songwriter you love and bouncing off of each other,” she says. “It sometimes feels like a game, like you’ve got to guess the correctly before them. Sometimes you win and then sometimes it’s like ‘dang, I guessed before you, but your answer was way better.’”

On “Red Wine Reminder,” Wasner reminds that in the grand scheme, things are often never as bad as they seem, and hope it’s a relatable and light-hearted enough story in these heavier times.

“The lyrics are pretty melancholy but the melody and words stick with you,” says Wasner. “It’s just a good, easy song to sing along to. My friends have always begged me to write a song about wine, so there you go, friends.”