Nate Ruess, frontman of the Grammy award-winning band Fun., will be dropping his debut solo album, Grand Romantic, on June 16th via Fueled by Ramen. While the album’s art and tracklist have yet to come, we do know that Ruess collaborated with Grammy award-winning producer, songwriter, and vocalist, Jeff Bhasker. Bhasker, who has found success working with artists such as Kayne West, Jay Z, Kid Cudi, Robin Thicke, Drake, Bruno Mars, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Eminem, and Ed Sheeran, helped Fun. earn a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year as well as a Grammy for Song of the Year with “We Are Young.”
Along with the album’s title and release date, Ruess has also shared a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the video for the first single off his upcoming album. The track, “Nothing Without Love,” dropped late February with the video being directed by Anthony Mandler. The song, which has charted on several U.S. charts, came to Ruess while he was showering. “I had to jump out and sing it into my phone. Then I said THIS ONE, in capital letters. Normally, if I put something in capital letters, then I better pay attention to.” He continued, “I just wanted it to feel like an old-timey song. It doesn’t have a traditional chorus; it kind of just has a tagline at the end of every verse. I think in songwriting I’ve spent a lot of time writing songs with traditional choruses, and I wanted to experiment with someone else.” For Ruess’ songwriting talents, he will be awarded the Hal David Starlight Award this June at Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Dinner in New York City.
Fun., who seem to be on an extended hiatus, have not released a follow-up to 2012’s Some Nights, and insist that despite rumors that the band “are on shaky terms with weeks, even months, going by with little to no communication among bandmates,” they are not breaking up. In a Facebook post from February 4th, the band hoped to clear up any rumors of bad blood by updating their fans, stating “you guys are EVERYTHING to us. honestly. We want to treat YOU GUYS (our amazing fan base) with the respect you deserve; and that is by making music when we are fully ready to make it and never giving you guys anything that is less than 100%. “Some Nights” was a successful album and it would have been very easy for us to jump back in the studio and capitalize on our momentum. but making records and touring when its “good for business” means nothing to us. we make records and tour when we are inspired to do so. that is the very reason why we have built such a special connection with all of you. That is how we can be the most honest to the people who support our music.”
FDRMX Eyes: James Paterson is a folk/pop musician from the United Kingdom. Paterson has recently revealed a music video for his single, “Read Between the Lines.”
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