Fresh off an international tour in Germany, Kansas City native Danielle Nicole is ready to release her new album. The Love You Bleed is out January 26 from Forty Below Records, co-produced by Nicole alongside producer Tony Braunagel and mixed by John Porter. “I want to take time to celebrate the album,” says Nicole, though she is also getting ready to get back in the studio and work on her next. Her last album, Cry No More, was released in 2018. Looking toward the future, Nicole hopes to spend more time collaborating with other artists.
Tell me more about music in your early life.
Both my parents sang, my dad played guitar and my mother wrote music, too. My brothers and I naturally fell into it. We were never pressured, but we were always encouraged. My dad knew more theory and my mom was very musical, so I learned everything about vocals from my mom. My dad passed away before I started playing an instrument, but I remember him sitting down with my oldest brother, Nick, and teaching him guitar.
When did you become interested in the blues?
I fell in love with it from a young age. My dad was into country rock and classic rock, but then he also fell in love with Johnny Winter. Between that and my mom listening to Etta James and Bonnie Raitt, it was just heavily influenced in our home. I connected with the feeling that music gave me more than anything. I was also influenced by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey and their style of singing. They brought a lot of soul and blues into pop music.
What things are you exploring in this new album?
This record came more naturally to me than my last album, Cry No More. My husband and guitarist, Brandon Miller, and I came together on this album. Brandon contributed so much to these songs musically. This album has more of a celebration of love in my songwriting, and it wasn’t purposeful. This is definitely the one that just came together naturally. I would bring the song to Brandon and tell him, ‘This is this is what I have, and this is what I’m missing.’ And he came up with the most beautiful, beautiful sections in the middle that really tied the story together.
Do you have any hopes for the way the audience receives it?
I think the work is going to speak for itself. The blues community is very tight knit, we are a huge family, and we worry about each other and care about each other. It’s all about being grateful for the time we get and the people we get to spend it with.