Photo: Wes and Alex for iHeartRadio
Jimmie Allen gave a first-listen experience to the crowd at his exclusive iHeartCountry Album Release Party presented by AT&T Dream In Black. The night before dropping his highly-anticipated third full-length album, Allen performed some of his newest tracks — and a few of his previously-released fan-favorites — at his party on Thursday night (June 23).
Allen kicked off the exclusive album release party with “Be Alright,” the first song on his new album, Tulip Drive. It’s one that conveys a message to the listener to keep enjoying life, no matter the obstacles they face. Allen explained to iHeartRadio’s Brooke Taylor that he doesn’t want to ever want to miss out on living fully today because he's worrying too much about tomorrow.
Allen announced Tulip Drive earlier this year, noting since then that it includes some of the most personal work of his career so far. The 17-track collection is named after the street his grandmother lived on in Delaware, and the award-winning country singer-songwriter explained at the time: “This is the first where I chose to write songs about my own personal experiences, thoughts and hopes.”
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The audience attending the iHeartCountry Album Release Party also got to hear some of Allen's biggest songs, including “Best Shot,” “Make Me Want To” and “Down Home,” the emotional tribute to is late father, James, who died in 2019.
“‘Down Home’ is probably one of the most special songs I’ve ever written,” Allen previously explained. “I wrote it about my father – kind of like, hopefully he’s in heaven and looking down on everything I’m doing and hope he’d be proud of me. I wrote it with my friends [Tate] Howell, [Rian] Ball and [Cameron] Bedell. It’s a song that’s actually helped me a lot because in the midst of missing my father, I think about him seeing everything I’ve got going on and it’s like… even though he’s gone, he’s always with me. I hope this song finds its place in the world and this song helps people that have lost not only a father, or a parent, or a loved one just like the song has helped me.”
Tulip Drive also includes a few collaborations with several iconic artists, including a track featuring CeeLo Green and T-Pain, a song featuring Katie Ohh, one featuring Aadyn, and one with iHeartRadio’s icon award recipient, Jennifer Lopez. Allen teamed up with Lopez for a reimagined version of “On My Way” from her movie Marry Me. When they released the new version, Allen reminisced on meeting Lopez for the first time in 2010, as a contestant on American Idol. As soon as he heard her early 2000s song “I’m Real,” Allen recalled in a tweet: “I told myself one day we would do a song together and It happened. I’m honored to be a part of the reimagined version of ‘On My Way.’”
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Allen introduced Ohh to the stage as a surprise guest to perform their duet live, telling the audience, “the world needs to hear her voice.” The pair teamed up to perform “Broken Hearted,” a song that Allen said throws back to a college relationship.
The “Down Home” singer — who is getting ready to kick off a 43-city tour with powerhouse country artist Carrie Underwood later this year — also included a candid message about mental health near the end of his show. He encouraged those in the audience to check on others who may me struggling or to seek help when they need it. “Nobody should go through that alone,” Allen said as he opened up about his own health. The heartfelt message led Allen to perform “Settle On Back,” which Allen considers one of the most personal songs on his record. It serves as a tribute to the best parts about returning home: settling back with his boys at the pier, drinking a few beers and setting hooks with his fishing pole.
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The country hitmaker continued showing love to his Delaware hometown with a powerful snippet of “Home Sweet Hometown,” leading into a high-energy rendition of “Freedom Was A Highway” to close the show. That song, a collaboration with Brad Paisley, became one of Allen’s latest No. 1 songs earlier this year, along with “Make Me Want To” and “Best Shot.”
Tulip Drive is available as of Friday (June 24). See the full track list here:
- be alright (Jimmie Allen, Jason Evigan, Gian Stone, Castle)
- what i'm talkin bout (Zach Abend, Michael Hardy, Seth Ennis)
- kissin you (Jimmie Allen, Ashley Gorley, Zach Crowell)
- down home (Jimmie Allen, Rian Ball, Cameron Bedell, Tate Howell)
- settle on back (Jimmie Allen, Tate Howell, Trip Howell, David Pramik)
- pesos (feat. CeeLo Green & T-Pain) (Jimmie Allen, Edward Martin, Vincent Venditto, T-Pain, Thomas Callaway, Yannique DeLisle Barker, Chris Doyle, J. ”Lonny” Bereal)
- love in the living room (Jimmie Allen, Jesse Frasure, Brandon Day, Alysa Vanderheym, Cary Barlowe)
- on my way (Jimmie Allen & Jennifer Lopez) (Ivy Adara, Leroy Clampitt, Michael Pollack)
- broken hearted (feat. Katie Ohh) (Jimmie Allen, Ashley Gorley, Will Weatherly)
- habits & hearts (Steven McMorran, Derrick Southerland, Jess Cates)
- right now (Jimmie Allen, Matt Rogers, Jordan Schmidt)
- wouldn’t feel like summer (Alysa Vandereheym, Matthew McGinn, Jimmie Deeghan)
- undo (Matt Rogers, Matt McVaney, Daniel Breland)
- get you a girl (Jimmie Allen, Justin Ebach, Matt Jenkins)
- keep em coming (Jimmie Allen, Brad Tursi, Will Weatherly)
- every time i say amen (Travis Hill, Jon Nite, Ross Copperman)
- you won’t be alone (feat. Aadyn) (Jimmie Allen, Justin Ebach)
Find Tulip Drive on iHeartRadio here. Listen to some of Allen's newest songs below.