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Artist Spotlight
Mills

Mills performing on stage

Mills traded Friday night lights in Kentucky for studio lights in LA and found himself somewhere in between, his story one of second chances and finding faith in the process. His journey began in small-town America, where football ruled and music felt like a far-off fantasy. An injury in high school pushed him toward songwriting, and what started as a way to pass the time soon became his purpose, recovery becoming a revelation. After navigating label highs and lows, Mills returns with his new album the future is safe, a wholly personal record born out of heartbreak and healing, finding faith in his own creative rebirth. We caught up to talk about his roots, the move back home, and how making music with his closest friends helped him fall back in love with the process.

LUCIDBLOOM in red lighting

Take us back to the beginning, what first pulled you toward making music, and when did it click that this could be more than just a hobby?

As a kid I always loved music. I could keep time and match pitch for as long as I can remember. But I grew up in Kentucky, and in the south, football rules. It didn’t always feel possible to make it a real career. My brother is a writer and producer so seeing him get into it naturally made me want to as well. I was in choir in middle school and got into theater. I really fell in love with the feeling of performing but I knew there had to be a way for me to be myself on a stage. I got a guitar for my 13th birthday and started playing country songs I liked. After a few years I started producing on my computer and got into chopping samples. After that I started writing songs and putting them out. I was still playing sports in high school but after an ACL injury I couldn’t do anything but play guitar and make beats. I’d say that was the turning point that took it away from just being a hobby. I was forced to pour everything into my music because it’s the only thing I could do. I really fell in love with it during that time period.

Who were the artists or records that shaped you early on, the ones you kept returning to when you were figuring out your own sound?

I didn’t grow up in a house with a lot of care towards music taste. My parents always had on America’s Top 40 in the car, aside from a jock jams cd my dad and I ran into the ground. It wasn’t until my brother showed me John Mayer that I felt my personal taste started to form. It was a long process that is still in motion. When I got into making beats I really did a deep dive on the art of hiphop and sampling. I listened to all the greatest albums and tried to emulate the feelings I was getting in the tracks. I would listen to obscure Italian movie soundtracks from the 50’s looking for the perfect sample. I was still into singer/songwriter stuff as well. John Mayer, Ed Sheeran, and James Fauntleroy were the soundtrack playing in my headphones in high school. I really developed a real taste for songwriting when I moved to Laurel Canyon. I was in this magic place with all these names I hadn’t heard floating around. I started to do my research and got so inspired by the sounds of Crosby Stills and Nash, Joni Mitchell, Little Feat, and the so many other artists and groups that shaped the “California Sound.” It was inspiring to think of these people coming to LA from all over to tell their side of the story.

Your new record the future is safe feels deeply personal. What was the spark that set this album in motion?

I signed a record deal when I was 20. It was awesome for a few years and then some things changed, I got a new team and it just didn’t feel as inspired as it once did. I felt these suits trying to box me into a one dimensional pop artist and my gut was saying retreat. I had music I was making that I loved but they didn’t see my vision. Ultimately that working relationship ran its course and I was dropped by the label. I was left feeling lost and confused and like I wanted to go home to remember why I was out here in the first place. I had mostly all of these songs made. My best friend and producer Austin Brown dragged me out of my lull and said lets finish the album. I dove into my discography and tried to craft that narrative. Feeling lost and unsure about tomorrow but finding the faith in yourself and a higher power to believe everything will be alright. It was and continues to be a mantra for me.

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Where did you record it, and who did you work with in the studio?

I did a lot of it at my friend Graham’s house, Calhoun Studios, in Sherman Oaks. All of my music is made with my best friends Austin and John Brown as well as my older brother Logan. I worked on a few with my buddy Nemo too. Also some songs were written and recorded in Bowling Green, KY at a studio called Angel Oak. I guess I’ve got a thing with oaks.

You wrote the title track right before moving back to Kentucky from LA, how did that move influence the record?

I was trying to write a song that I could turn to during this difficult phase of my life. I was lost. I felt like I wasted 4 years on a dream that was taken from me. I felt I had no control over the situation and I was trying to win with a shit hand. Songwriting is and always has been a very spiritual experience for me. I believe the spirit moves through artists as vessels. Artists are put here to feel things and express them so other people have somewhere to turn when they're in a similar spot. This song feels like a testament to that. We were in the room for three hours tops. The song was written in one. This is one of the ones that had to happen. The drummer made the guitar part haha. It was already written, we just had to be open to receiving it that day. This song kept me at it for the 3 years I went away. This was the north star.

Who did you work with behind the scenes, producers, engineers, musicians, and how did they help shape the sound?

I worked with my best friends Austin, John, Sol, and Graham very closely on this. We went to Graham’s house and put finishing touches on all of the tracks. I also had my friend Jon Hill come in and help out with a few sonic elevations on some of the tracks. My friends know me well. They know my taste and they know how to translate my madness into something beautiful. It’s a byproduct of hundreds of songs together. I believe we shape the song together by being close and knowing each other's taste and tendencies. 

Mills kicking dirt

Was there a particular song that changed the most from demo to final version, and what’s the story behind that transformation?

I would say The Wizard would be the one that changed the most. I started writing it on an acoustic guitar and it took this screaming energy that I knew needed to come through in the instrumentation as well. I was listening to an old playlist when Whipping Post by the Allman Brothers came on. I knew that this was the reference. Really aggressive sonically as opposed to how I wrote it acoustic. 

When you sit down to write, do you usually begin with lyrics, melody, or a mood you’re chasing?

It really changes song to song. Some days I’m in line at coffee, and overhear a conversation that sparks a phrase that I write down in my notes, and it unlocks a whole concept. Sometimes I’ll be driving in silence and suddenly start humming a melody that won’t get out of my head and I’m filling in words. Songwriting is a bit like fishing to me. Some days you throw the line and the fish aren’t biting. Some days your line gets tangled and you can’t throw a line at all. But some days everything lines up and from the first cast the fish are biting all day. I try to give time to my guitar everyday. Even if it’s 15 minutes til I’m stuck. At least I tried. I never know how or when it will strike but what I do know is half the battle is showing up.

How different is your mindset when you’re in the studio versus when you’re on stage?

I would say it’s pretty different. In some cases in the studio I can feel how fun a song will be live and try to keep that in mind as I am creating. But in most cases it’s very personal and I want to keep the song feeling inward in the creation process. When I’m on stage I am trying to give as much energy to the room as possible. I’ve lived in these songs for some time at this point so I know what the world feels like and I try to tap into the emotions I was feeling while writing the songs. Hm.. Maybe there’s more crossover than I realized.

Mills sitting in the bucket of a front loader

You’ve just recently released Ain’t As Pretty A Blue under the name Fleeland with Frances Whitney. How did you and Frances first connect musically and what drew you to working together?

A good friend of mine connected us in a session one day and it was love at first sight.I loved the way she wrote and how she approached songs. I was put in to write with her and some friends and we really had a beautiful day. I went to her house to write again the next week and we wrote what would later become the first product of Fleeland. At the end of the second session she asked if she could play this song she had written the night of the day we met. I obviously agreed and she played “Ain’t As Pretty A Blue.” It was this insane moment and I was in awe of her. Later in the week she gracefully asked me if I wanted to write a second verse. I said yes and the rest is history. It’s been such a blessing and the most beautiful music experience I’ve had creating with her.

Who are some artists or collaborators you’d love to work with in the future?

I still love John Mayer and would love to kick it with him. I don’t really have a list of producers and writers haha. I have my crew I love working with right now. I believe if I’m meant to work with other people I will meet them in the wild and what will be will be.

What’s next for Mills?

I have another album in the works. I made it on a ranch in Texas with my best friends and it really feels true to where I’m at these days. Fueled by Miller Lite and dips in the creek. I can’t wait to share this new music with the world. Also Fleeland will have more to come soon.

 

You can find Mills on Spotify, Instagram and YouTube.

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