Premiere: Tiffany Williams | Ticket to the Moon
I immediately fell in love with the music of Tiffany Williams when I heard her January 2019 debut EP, When You Go. Her haunting, yet stunning vocals are the immediate draw, but upon more attentive listening, you are captivated by the detailed lyricism. It’s no wonder as Williams is a former English teacher and an award-winning fiction writer. Tiffany has resided in Nashville for a handful of years now, but her love for her East Kentucky roots always shines through in her writing. The generations of pride, hard work, heartache, loss and redemption shine through in everything she pens. Her most recent work from this year is remarkable and only stands to solidify her rise to the pinnacle of the Appalachian artists that are dominating the country and folk music scene as of late. Premiering today, is her latest single of 2020, Ticket to the Moon.
Williams’ vocals are elegant and effectual. The arrangements are warm and apropos. The listener feels the tenderness and longing for the lover that comes and goes.
“The man I wanted to love bought a ticket to the moon / He kissed my hand and he said I’ll be back soon, I’ll be back soon”
Heartbroken with the realization that you’ve done everything you can, but you can’t force what isn’t meant to be. The bridge then shifts to a prevailing tone - taking back control and attempting to move beyond the relationship and sadness.
“You come and go, knowing I’ll be here / But one day I won’t”
The single is co-written with Nashville-based singer-songwriters, Ben and Kassie Wilson of the duo My One & Only. Ben also handled the instrumentals for the single, playing acoustic guitar (doubled all the way through), drums, bass, and even creating the ethereal, atmospheric sounds heard in the background on the electric guitar. Clocking in at just over two and a half minutes, “Ticket to the Moon” is still brimming with emotion which only lends more proof of her astute linguistic ability. Of her relationship with words, Tiffany Williams states, "I'm a lexophile—a lover of words. That's always been central to everything I've done—from teaching high school English and studying Appalachian speech and sociolinguistics in graduate school to writing songs and stories. Songwriting has a special place because I feel that's where I can truly operate at the confluence of all the things that are dear to me—words, story, and music."
Photo by Danielle Shields