Lakeside alum’s single climbs country charts
Blane Howard’s single, “Promise To Love Her,” continues to gain traction and move up the country music charts.
The 2006 Lakeside graduate posted the song’s music video to Facebook in March. The original video itself recently sped past
4.5 million views and is nearing
79,000 shares.
Fans, family and friends have watched as the single has cleared every milestone sooner than expected. The song cracked the top 40 of MusicRow’s Country Breakout Chart for the first time this week.
“As it has progressed, it just keeps picking up steam,” Howard said. “Blake Shelton had a new song on the chart and all of these big artists had new songs out and we still gained pretty good ground.”
Howard is the son of Barry and Lori Howard. He later graduated from Belmont University’s School of Music in Nashville, Tenn., where he now lives, released the “Bout Time” EP in 2013 and followed it with the full
“Away We Go” album in 2015.
“Promise To Love Her” was written last summer by Howard and his friend, Jordan Kyle Reynolds. Howard said he wanted to give the song to his soon-to-be wife, Megan, on the morning of their wedding, but only if it was the end result he desired.
“We wrote it in about an hour and a half to two hours,” Howard said. “The way it came out is the way you hear it now. It came out exactly the way I wanted it.”
Howard performed the song in front of Megan and their guests on the morning of Oct.
22, 2016. She asked for the song to be used for their first dance.
“Up until that point, it was just a piano demo we had done at my co-writer’s house,” Howard said. “It was just something we did really quick and that was it.”
The song resonated with guests and friends. A Facebook video of the couple’s first dance accumulated more than
500,000 views in less than two months.
Howard said he felt like it was a good song, but did not expect it to get the attention it has received. A soon-to-be-bride reached out to Howard while he was on his honeymoon to request to use the song at her wedding.
“So, I had to find Wi-Fi on my honeymoon and email it to them,” Howard said. “It has been crazy how fast it has taken off and how many people have related to it.”
Footage for the music video is from Howard’s actual wedding, fitting as the song is about his relationship with his wife. Howard said he was reluctant to make it more than a personal gift to his wife, but a swell of positive comments and messages convinced him to release the single.
Expectations were tempered as Howard is an independent artist. The single was produced by Brad Hill, who was nominated for a Grammy from Maren Morris’ album, “Hero.”
Feedback suggested radio stations would take at least a month or longer to use the song in their rotations, but three stations picked it up in its first week. Great American Country and other television networks picked up the video soon after it was released.
“We found out right off the bat that it was starting to grab onto people,” Howard said.
Howard said he has not had time to work on another album with preparations for his wedding a year ago, release of the single and a busy touring schedule. He said he hopes to return to the studio later in the year and record several new songs.
Hot Springs welcomed Howard home Aug. 5 when he opened for Josh Turner at Magic Springs’ Timberwood Amphitheater.
“It always feels like home whenever I come back,” Howard said.
“For the most part, it is still the same,” he added. “The roads haven’t changed. It is very nice to be able to go home and see the old, but also to see the new that is coming with it.”
Howard performed this weekend at the 26th annual Northwest Arkansas Charity Challenge of Champions to support the Northwest Arkansas Women’s Shelter. He has stops in Texas, the Ouachita County Fair in Camden on Friday and Woodstock, Ga., upcoming before the State Fair of Texas in Dallas.
The massive state fair features 24 days of free concerts on the Chevrolet Main Stage, where Howard has performed the past two years. Organizers invited Howard to perform in a weeklong residency this year Oct. 7-14 on the Dr Pepper Stage.
“It is very cool for us, because you get to see so many other people,” Howard said. “You play a couple of different shows from 1 o’clock to 6 o’clock and you take some breaks in there, but it lets you spread out your time over a full week.”
Two musicians Howard met as young students at Belmont continue to tour and perform with him. Wes Burkhart performs with Howard on bass and Joey Wengert performs on guitar. Simon Roper joined the band full-time on drums about two years ago. Howard said his band members, parents and other supporters have helped him find success.
“We are all kind of like a family,” Howard said. “We spend so much time together traveling and on the road. We are friends not only on the road, but here in Nashville in town as well. I say ‘we’ because I wouldn’t be here without them.”
The band has toured with Howard throughout the MidSouth and have developed a connection with the state. Howard said he has taken them to numerous locations and events in Arkansas, including Razorback football games, Lake Hamilton, DeGray Lake and the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park.
“They have been all over the state with me and they kind of feel like Arkansas is a second or third home to them,” Howard said.
“Promise To Love Her” is available on iTunes, Amazon and Google Play. Howard’s music is also available on Spotify and YouTube.
His songs and albums are available on his website, https://www.blanehoward. com, as well as merchandise and updates from his performances. Fans can connect with him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.