Country singer-songwriter Jack Owen has finally shared some new music, a song called "I Was Jack (You Were Diane)," and it's a fresh take on an '80s rock classic.
The song samples John Mellencamp's 1982 hit "Jack & Diane" (with Mellencamp’s blessing) and follows Owen’s 2017 Greatest Hits album and 2016's American Love.
“I think any time you take a sample of a song, or you're paying homage to a song by using its original qualities, which that's what this song's truly doing, it's just common courtesy to reach out to the original writers and composers of that song,” Owen told iHeartRadio. “So, we felt it was pretty necessary to reach out to him and get his blessing on it. And, it was pretty fulfilling to know that he said, 'Yeah, I like that. You guys run with it.' So, we did. And, with his blessing, I think that makes this that much sweeter.”
Owen has been working on new music with award-winning producer Joey Moi, who produced many of the country star's biggest hits including "Barefoot Blue Jean Night," and "Alone With You.”
"It's kind of being able to interpret something that when I hear the song, songs that I didn't write, I relate to them as a fan would on a song that they hear for the first time,” explained Owen. "I remember hearing this song for the first time, I was like, 'I have to sing that.' And, the great part about it is that when you record it, and it's released to the world like it is now, it's something that you better be prepared to sing for the rest of your career.
“I always make music with the hopes that people out there that support what I do will enjoy it. But, I really do make music, too, because I enjoy it. I can't tell you I've ever recorded a song that I just didn't want to sing or something because I thought it would work elsewhere. I mean, I record it with the fact that hopefully I love it and someone else will love it, and that someone will also, they see that. People believe music when they see their artist singing it. They know if that person means it or not.”
He added: “This song just takes me back every time I hear it, every time I sing it, every time I play it.”
Original article by Nicole Mastrogiannis at iHeartRadio