“In my career, I tend to write the best music in the worst situations,” Adam Sanders tells American Songwriter over the phone about his new track, “Bible Versus.” At the time of its inception, he was going through a rough breakup. He says the new song encapsulates “what I was living with on a daily basis, trying to cope with a breakup in the right way, and battling all of the wrong ways.”
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On May 7, Sanders announced a bold next step in his career—a debut full-length album, What If I’m Right, due May 21. He co-wrote each song on the upcoming collection that has taken almost 12 years to come together.
Raised on ‘90s country, Sanders pays tribute to his shaping influences with “Bible Versus.” Penned by Adam Sanders, Ben Stennis, and Brice Long, the titular double-entendre—which he credits to Stennis—is characteristic of the wordplay that helped define that decade of country music. Building on that, the track features searing pedal steel, sonically reminiscent of those early inspirations. Lyrically, Sanders exhibits the ways in which leans on faith, but with an unexpected delivery.
After writing the song that day, the writers pitched it around town to little avail. As a songwriter, Sanders has garnered a ton of attention with his songs that have been recorded by Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, and Dierks Bentley. He also co-wrote Cole Swindell’s No.1 hit “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey” and Dustin Lynch’s “Hell of a Night.” When “Bible Versus” still hadn’t landed, the songwriter took it as a sign to take it under his wing as an artist.
“Maybe the title scared people?” he speculated about the track. “As a Christian, it was really relevant to me. When it came to album, I knew I would have to pick it.” After teasing it on social media for perspective, his fans clung to it. He says, “They keep asking me for this one, so I’ve kept it in my back pocket.”
Signed to a co-publishing deal with Round Hill Music Nashville, the Lake City, Florida native’s pair of recently released songs from the forthcoming project, “Do What We Do” and “What If I’m Right” follows the release of Adam Sanders (Live). Other 2020 singles including “Ruled The World,” “Make Em Wanna Change,” and “Drink Drank Drunk” also landed a spot on the 13-track list.
“Im really blessed and excited to be in this position,” says Sanders of the new album. “I moved Nashville to be on top of the country music world. I’ve accomplished half of that, and my hope is that this project bring me all the way there.”
Listen to the premiere of Adam Sanders’ “Bible Versus” below. Pre-save What If I’m Right, ahead of May 21, here.
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