Songs I Grew Up On with Alana Springsteen

We got to celebrate the first day of summer this past Tuesday with one of our favorite country artists, Alana Springsteen, in the latest edition of Songs I Grew Up On. She’s a country singer-songwriter from Virginia Beach with some serious pipes. Her new project History of Breaking Up Part 2 comes out July 15th.

“Writing these songs was my therapy. I learned so much about myself and about love and heartbreak through writing this project,” she told The Nash News. “My goal with all of it I guess is to somehow be a small part of [the country music community’s] story. I hope it’s honest enough where you can find a piece of your truth in it and I hope it gets you through whatever you’re going through.”

According to Springsteen, the love story told over the course of the record is deeply personal, but it will still resonates with anyone who has ever experienced heartbreak or loss in love: “An incredible songwriter in town told me, ‘Sometimes the more specific you are, the more general it is to everybody’...I think it’s because you can feel their heart so strongly in it that you can put yourself in the exact same place. That’s my challenge for myself always. It’s, ‘How vulnerable can I be?’”

Springsteen admitted that it is a challenge for her because she’s not an open book. Nonetheless, she was able to truly “pour her heart out” and be completely honest in her songwriting, “It’s always been my escape from when I started writing songs when I was nine years old, and so this is my way of getting those feelings out,” she exclaimed.

So, it tracks that the music she was raised on, the music that made her the artist she is today, possesses a similar skill set: the ability to tell universal truths through individual experiences. Here are the five songs that inspired Springsteen to write and perform her own.

1. "So Small” by Carrie Underwood

Springsteen’s memories of this song and its impact on her childhood were vivid. She recalled listening to it for the first time on her bedroom floor with her iPod shuffle and her headphones in. “It’s one of her most underrated songs,” Springsteen said. “The way she sings it, the way she can emote with her voice is unlike anybody else. For country music at the time, she was the voice. Nobody else delivered a lyric like Carrie. I was always so inspired by the way she would tell a story.”

2. “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac

Springsteen isn’t the first person to choose “Landslide” for her Songs I Grew Up On list, but her reasons for doing so are all her own. “I remember vividly wanting to learn how to play this guitar part,” she remarked. “I was just getting into finger picking…and I remember I felt like such a badass when I finally learned it.” According to Springsteen, she didn’t understand the song’s meaning when she first learned it. That didn’t really matter, because “you can feel exactly what they’re trying to say.”

3. “The Way You Make Me Feel” by Michael Jackson

There’s a reason why this song is considered a classic of America’s pop music catalog. According to Springsteen, it’s because “The Way You Make Me Feel” is timeless. “It sounds as good today as it did back then. Michael Jackson is the GOAT!” Springsteen said excitedly. “I grew up loving his music. And this was my dad’s influence. My dad was a music lover–always had something playing around the house.”

4. “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears

Springsteen went through a time in her life where all she wanted to do was listen to ‘80’s music. “I did a deep-dive…there were all these uncovered hits I’d never heard before,” she explained. “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” was a standout in her discovery of the decade and even inspired her to write a song of her own with the same drum beat called “Close to Me” (which will be released on her new album) It’s a country tune with the iconic Tears for Fears groove. “You don’t hear too many of them, so it was kind of like a challenge, and we did!” she said. Springsteen also said that she likes to mash up “Close to Me” with different songs like “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” and “Electric Love” while performing live.

5. “Cop Car” by Keith Urban

Springsteen remembered losing herself in this Keith Urban classic the first time she heard it. “I all of a sudden could see this entire movie in my mind, and I love songs that do that, have that effect on you,” she said. “I think one of the things about country music they do so well is tell stories so that you can see it all happening in your mind.” Springsteen even said she listened to it yesterday in preparation for Songs I Grew Up On. She wanted it to be fresh in her mind so she drove around in her jeep–top down, “Cop Car” blaring through the speakers–and Springsteen recalled that it transported her into the narrative of the song: “It takes me back, just like that,” she said. “Keith Urban is just one of my favorite artists in general–such an incredible performer, such an incredible guitarist, vocalist. He’s another icon that I grew up loving.” She went on to say that Urban and this song (which affected her so profoundly) helped her realize who she wanted to be and what she wanted to do when she grew up.

To hear more of country music’s best new releases, head to our Playlists Page and follow The Nash New Releases playlist on Spotify. For the latest in country music news follow The Nash News on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok, and don’t miss our brand new newsletter!