Between Falling in Reverse, Fred Durst and Machine Gun Kelly, it seems that many rock artists are dipping into country music nowadays. As it turns out, Scott Stapp almost made that jump, too.
The Creed frontman tells ABC Audio that he believed his solo track “If These Walls Could Talk” might be his “entry point song into the country music world.” After all, he’s been living in Nashville for seven years and has been “surrounded by country music and doing co-writes with guys that write for country artists.”
Initially, Stapp thought that up-and-coming country artist Alexandra Kay, who caught the “Higher” rocker’s attention with a Creed TikTok cover, might be a good match for “If These Walls Could Talk.” His management also suggested country star Lainey Wilson.
“Once I did some research, I was like, ‘Hey man, she just did a duet with HARDY and Jelly Roll, I think she’s probably duetted out,'” Stapp says of Wilson.
Ultimately, Stapp didn’t go with any country artist, instead opting for “Rest in Peace” rocker Dorothy, who he realized was right for the song while seeing her live in concert.
“I wasn’t thinking genre, I wasn’t thinking any kind of bigger picture of, ‘Oh, if I can get into this or that,'” Stapp shares. “I was just thinking what voice would be the best way to take this song to the next level and reach the most people. And my gut told me in that moment that it was her.”
“If These Walls Could Talk” appears on Stapp’s new solo album, Higher Power, out now.
Stapp is currently on Creed’s reunion tour.