Smith drops "Meanwhile in Carolina"

Friday, January 12, 2024 – Two weeks before the release of his debut release, "Smoky Mountains," Conner Smith is out with "Meanwhile in Carolina."

Smith also will headline the Creek Will Rise Tour in the U.S. before traveling across the pond for C2C Festival in March, joining CMA's Introducing Nashville Line Up for performances throughout the U.K. and Europe.

Penned by Smith alongside Blake Pendergrass, the ballad feels like leafing through a sonic photo album and reveals Smith's real life romance with fiancé Leah Thompson.

"Meanwhile in Carolina' shows the heart of my debut album and is one of my favorite songs I've ever written," Smith said. "You always imagine that person, you always think about 'em, wonder where they are, wonder what they're doing. I was so proud of this song after we wrote it, because I knew it was one that mattered – it was a song that meant something."

Featuring GOLD-certified "Take It Slow," viral hit "I Hate Alabama," Top 15 single "Creek Will Rise" and forthcoming duet with Hailey Whitters on "Roulette On The Heart," the collection contains 11 songs.

"It very much took 23 years to make these 12 songs," Smith said. "I felt like I found my own lane I was able to drive down, and I'm really proud of what it has become. There's not a wasted second on the record. Every song matters. And I think it really shows all the different things that make me 'me' – as a songwriter, a vocalist and as a performer."

The track list is
1. "Smoky Mountains" | Written byConner Smith, Zach Crowell
2. "Creek Will Rise" | Written byConner Smith, Chris LaCorte, Chase McGill, Parker Welling
3. "Roulette On The Heart(featuring Hailey Whitters)" | Written by Conner Smith, Jessi Alexander, Chase McGill, Mark Trussell
4. "Heatin' Up" | Written by Conner Smith, Chase McGill, Daniel Ross
5. "Baby, I" | Written by Conner Smith, Devin Dawson, Mark Trussell, Parker Welling
6. "Meanwhile In Carolina" | Written by Conner Smith, Blake Pendergrass
7. "Boots In The Bleachers" | Written by Conner Smith, Ben Hayslip, Jordan Walker
8. "Take It Slow" | Written by Conner Smith, Ryan Hurd, Mark Trussell
9. "Trouble" | Written by Conner Smith, Zach Crowell, Jerry Flowers, Chase McGill, Mark Trussell
10. "I Hate Alabama" | Written by Nick Columbia, Drew Green, Hunter Phelps, Lee Starr
11. "Regret In The Morning" | Written by Conner Smith, Hunter Phelps, Daniel Ross
12. "God Moments" | Written by Conner Smith, Zach Crowell, Devin Dawson, Blake Pendergrass

Tour dates are:
Jan. 12 | Charlotte, NC – Coyote Joe's^
Jan. 13 | Greenville, SC – Bling Horse Saloon^
Jan. 18 | Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club^
Jan. 19 | Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE^
Jan. 20 | Medina, OH – Thirsty Cowboy^
Jan. 25 | Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theatre^
Jan. 26 | Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl Nashville^
Jan. 27 | Tuscaloosa, AL – Druid City Music Hall^
Feb. 13 | Toronto, ON – Horseshoe Tavern
Feb. 22 | Omaha, NE – Barnato#
Feb. 23 | West Peoria, IL – Crusens Farmington Road#
Feb. 24 | Bloomington, IN – Bluebird#
March 15 | North Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues

^ Lauren Watkins
# Eli Winders