Shelby Lynne paves her own 'Revelation Road'

Shelby Lynne says she doesn't seek approval for her art: "I play it for my most trusted people at my label, but it's not going to change what I'm putting out. This is what I've created. Take it or leave it."

When Shelby Lynne decided she wanted to write songs, she wasn't going halfway.

"I set the bar pretty high," says Lynne. "I always wanted to write songs like Kris Kristofferson. When I sit down and write a country song, that's what I want to do. I want to write something that's 'Wow!' Of course, we're all aiming to get there, but you have to set the bar pretty high if you're going to stand out."

Lynne has definitely stood out since she began writing her own music at the end of the 1990s. Through the decade before, Lynne had sang other writers' songs and attempted a career in commercial country music. She made a few inroads and had a handful of minor hits, but never came close to stardom. In 1999, Lynne reinvented herself with the album "I Am Shelby Lynne," which was mostly sounded like classic R&B and edgy pop and was entirely written or co-written by Lynne. Reviews were ecstatic. Lynne won a Grammy for Best New Artist.

Critical acclaim generally followed on Lynne's releases for the next decade, but sales weren't enough to make Lynne a top priority for major labels.

In 2010, Lynne started her own label called Everso.

"It's great," says Lynne. "I get to do what I want when I want. It's everything I ever wanted. The freedom to be creative is what people like me live for."

She says she didn't feel particularly restrained by major labels.

"It was just that you had to wait your turn. When you're not to priority it's frustrating. And if you don't sell records there's no way you're going to be top priority. I don't regret my time at labels. I'm just glad I'm not doing it anymore."

Lynne now feels free, though, to create exactly what she wants. She calls her new album, "Revelation Road," her most personal.

Lynne addresses sadness and nostalgia on the song "I Want to Go Back." And "Heaven's Only Days Down the Road," seems to address the tragedy that marks Lynne's early life. Lynne and her sister (singer-songwriter Allison Moorer) were orphaned as teenagers when their father shot and killed their mother before killing himself.

"I didn't edit myself on this record," says Lynne. "I don't give a damn. If you're going to create, you can't edit yourself."

Lynne trusts her own instincts as an artist when she records an album.

"I've been making records since I was 19, so I kinda know what I want to do. Even though every time I go in the studio it's as big of a surprise to me as it is to anybody else, because I don't have any idea what I'm going to do when I go in there. I have kind of an outline, but I'm not going to tell you that I know how everything is going to turn out. There's no way to predict that. You let the music lead the way. ... Nobody would probably believe me, but I let the creativity take over the captain role. I'm just there to make it happen.

"I have a recording space. I'm free to do what moves me. I don't have to play it for anybody and see their reaction. It's my reaction that matters. I'm supposed to be the creator and that's what I do. Art's not about business."

While she's somewhat critical about the business, she says she doesn't resent popular pop music.

"I love pop music. Since the beginning we've had pop music. It's fun and we like to party to it, go out and dance and drink. You gotta have it. It's a tool of life. I can't stop listening to Beyonce. I love that (expletive). But as far as what I do, it is an acquired taste. I write from my gut and my heart. It's personal experiences. It's just what I know and I feel like sharing it. Hopefully, people can relate it with what's going on in their lives."

Whether they do or they don't Lynne can't help but create.

"I plan on making music until I die. I've got some books I want to write. I fool around with drawing and painting."

And her musical goal of songwriting perfection hasn't changed either.

"I'm always thinking about a different way to write a love song — more interesting, more artistic, more beautiful ..."

© 2012, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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