Hunter Hayes admits he felt a lot of pressure when he started work on Storyline, the follow-up to his platinum-selling, self-titled debut album. A lot of that stress came from people asking him if he was worried about the sophomore jinx.
Hunter says, “When somebody mentions that, you panic, ’cause you’re like, ‘Oh, wow, I didn’t think about it that way.'”
Once Hunter started work on Storyline, he let go of the pressure and got excited about making new music. Earning multiple industry awards and scoring #1 hits from his first album helped him in the recording process for Storyline, too.
“If anything, there’s more excitement,” Hunter explains. “There’s more confidence, and by confidence, I mean, in telling your story and baring your soul in these songs. You feel so much better about doing so after what we experienced with the debut record.”
Hunter experimented with his touring band creating new sounds for Storyline, but fans of his debut project will find plenty of familiar elements on the album.
He says, “I’m not in a rebellious place of like, ‘I have to do something off-the-wall different,’ but I’m also very cautious to not repeat myself too, too much.”
Storyline features Hunter’s latest hit, “Invisible.”
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