Up And Coming Indie Pop Artist Chey Rose Releases Her Latest Single, “Seventeen”

If you ask Ohio-born Chey Rose to sum herself up in one sentence, she’d likely tell you she is a lover of good lyrics, handwritten letters, travel adventures, and anything cat related. If you ask indie artists in the Nashville pop scene about her, they’d likely tell you they are big supporters of what Rose is doing in her young career.

Rose has her latest single, “Seventeen,” fresh on the streaming market, as it was released just last week. “It’s a slower, more intimate ballad perfect for breakup season,” she says with a LOL afterward. Rose’s release of her summer single, “V.C.R.,” has seen half-a-million streams, and was added to over 800 playlists.

She recently performed for a near-full house at Analog just prior to her release, along with several other notable pop performers. She remains hustling in a town that demands constant effort if you want to make a dent in the industry.

We caught up with Rose to learn more about her release, future plans, and more.

Who: Hey, I’m Chey, pronounced shy. Short for Cheyenne. I’m from Columbus Ohio, and am the oldest of five kids, and have three cats I’m crazy in love with (Puddles, Snowflake and Midnight). I grew up writing songs and singing, and always had a dream to come to Nashville to pursue it professionally – so here I am now! I absolutely love it- this journey has so far been everything I dreamed of and more.

What: My brand new single, “Seventeen”!

When: I released “Seventeen” Friday January 17^th, and funny enough, I didn’t plan that strategically. I didn’t even realize the correlation until my co-writers pointed it out to me. I guess it was the universe aligning the release date perfectly!

About The Release: “Seventeen” is a very raw, intimate break-up ballad. At its core, it’s a desperate cry to escape the jaded numbness that comes with years of failed love & expresses a longing for the ability to feel deeply & freely again, like a first, fresh heartbreak at age 17. It’s hard growing up and watching yourself become colder. This song basically highlights that, and elaborates on how messed up we really become after bad breakups. Kind of depressing – but hey, it’s real, it’s me, and I knew I needed to share it.

What’s Next: “Seventeen” is my second single off my upcoming EP album which has been in the works for quite a while now. It’s been such a personal journey of growth and self-discovery. Honestly, writing it has healed my soul from so much. I finished the last song for the album in November, and am super excited to keep releasing single by single. I’m aiming to have the full EP released by August 2020. 

Artists Influencing Me in 2020: So many! Some of my favorites include Kehlani (for her amazing R&B melodies), Sasha Sloan (for her real, raw lyricism), Nina Nesbitt (for her production / lyric substance) and finally everything about Olivia O’Brien. I also draw some major alt-pop influence from my all time favorite band LANY as well as up and coming artist Emily Weisband. 

If I Could Collaborate With Anybody, It’d Be: Probably LANY, since they’re my favorite band and were the ones who first sparked my love for synthy alt-pop. I remember hearing their first album and thinking, wow, I want to make music like THIS. It would be to cool to get the chance to collab or write with the band.

Favorite Thing About Nashville Other Than Music: Honestly I love that it’s a small town type of “big city.” When I first visited, I expected it to be so much bigger and spread out like other major tourist cities – New York, LA, Chicago, Atlanta, etc. – but it’s so close-knit and everyone knows everyone. You can walk down the street and see a familiar face, which gives Nashville such a warm, homey feel. I also love that there’s always something to do on any given night! 

Favorite Food in Nashville: So hard to pick… but I’m SUCH a sucker for a good burger, and after trying MANY (Burger Up, Burger Republic, Hopdoddy, you name it) I would say The Pharmacy has the best burger in Nashville. Perfect amount of seasoning, just juicy enough yet not too messy… makes my mouth water just thinking about it!

Last Movie or TV Show Watched: Sex and the City! It’s my all time favorite. I am such a huge fan of the show because I really relate to the main character, Carrie, as she’s a writer living in New York City and draws inspiration for her work from her personal life / love experiences. It’s also just a hilarious show and super entertaining to watch. I’ve probably re-watched all 6 seasons 3 times by now (don’t judge me).

Something People Don’t Know About Me: I’m gonna pick something random I really feel like no one knows.My dad is a pilot and delivers private aircrafts to dealerships / customers around the world. Growing up he was always visiting a ton of exotic places, but couldn’t always afford to bring back souvenirs for everyone in our big family of seven. So when I was in about third grade, he was traveling somewhere in the Middle East, (may have been Saudi Arabia) and I told him to not worry about the souvenir, just bring me back some sand so that I’d have a real piece of the place. So he did, and from then on it became this tradition that he would bring me back a little bag of sand from wherever he visited and label it with the place and year. Then I’d transfer the sand into different shaped glass jars and put them on display on my desk. To this day I still have every jar of sand – all different consistency, some dark, some light, some gritty, some fluffy. It’s cool knowing I have 16 different parts of the world right in my room. 

I Define Musical Success As: For a long time I was just writing songs based on what was popular or catchy or commercial “pop.” However, growing up and learning a ton about myself and others over the past year or so, I’ve decided to make every song personal to me. My goals and definitions of success have shifted big time. Now, I truly believe that if I can take something I experience and turn it into art that connects with people and makes them feel less alone, less misunderstood, then it’s ALL worth it to me. To me, that’s my true calling as a writer – not to exploit my own talents or show off how smart or catchy I can make my songs, but to use everything I’ve gone through as inspiration for art that heals souls. Beauty from ashes. 

Closing Words: Thank you so much for your awesome questions – it’s been super fun just being real and sharing my heart. That’s truly all I want to do with this life and I’m so excited for the journey ahead.