The other day my mom and I went to a concert at the Blue Bird Theater in Denver. It was a small venue; intimate and well worn by not-yet-famous artists from across the country. One of them was Parker Millsap. Now, I'm not usually one to write this kind of thing, but Parker has captured my interest and, even as a poet, I've never been so awed by one's abilities to use words the way he does in his songs. I guess I'm a little star-struck, but there are many reasons why you should be too.
Parker Millsap is a 24-year-old singer from Oklahoma who began playing the guitar at the age of nine and hasn't put it down since. He's dedicated his sound to the folk genre (no, it's not country, they're different) and an almost purely guitar-dictated sound. He has a unique, husky, yet soulful voice and a poet's mind. He pulls his lyrics mainly from his own life experiences.
He grew up in a religious family that regularly attended a Pentecostal church, but there's no need to fear. He is not the Christian-rock type; rather he questions many religious values in his songs. He's neither religious nor anti-religion, but just like you and me: just trying to figure it all out. And songwriting seems to be the way he's doing it.
Within this last year he has been invited to play on CONAN live and with Elton John at the Apple Music Festival. He's also won the International Folk Music Awards' Artist of the Year. He's been recognized in the New York Times, The Boston Globe, Rolling Stone, and in many other magazines. But I'll bet you've still never heard of him. That's why I'm here: to convince you to hop on your Spotify and give him a listen.
Now, there's a science to listening to Parker Millsap that I'm willing to share with you. Here's what you do: first buy a soda of your choosing, find a pair of sunglasses that make you feel like you can kick ass, hop in your car and find some rural roads to drive down whilst blasting any one of Parker Millsap's songs at full blast out of your car stereo. Trust me, that's the true Millsap experience (and I do it on a regular basis, I won't lie).
If you still aren't convinced, let me give you a little taste while you are still here. Here are some of my favorite lines from a few of Parker's songs. I'm sure you'll appreciate them too.
1. I don't wanna be the guy that straps you to a railroad tie and listens for the rumble and the roar. I don't wanna be the villain in your dreams anymore. ("The Villain")
2. Excuse me from the table, it's just I'm not able to swallow my throat song here tonight; like something is broken, don't mind my choking on the words I should never have thought. ("Forgive Me")
3. He's got a King James edition with all the words of Christ in red and he reads the inscription every night when he goes to bed. And he goes fishing for sin in men like Jesus said. Got an old time conviction, keeps the bodies in the shed. ("Old Time Religion")
4. Raised me straight and raised me true, spent my days becoming you. Sunday morning, evening too, sitting in your second pew. Torn apart, my spirit's spent, I fell in love on accident. Wondered just what Jesus meant when he said all love was Heaven-sent. ("Heaven-sent")
AND THERE ARE SO MANY MORE!
So, basically, I'm in love. And you should be too! Parker deserves more recognition than he does, so why not give it a shot? You might just really love it.
Website: http://www.parkermillsap.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4nRyyRWxw1z_ZUFG...
