Outside Of The Box

A song about refusing to be simplified, labelled, or trapped inside someone else’s idea of who you should be.

I’ve always struggled with being put into categories.

Musically, people want easy answers. Are you country? Are you pop? Are you Americana? Are you indie? Are you trying to be radio-friendly or weird? Personally, it’s the same thing. People want a neat version of you they can understand quickly, especially when your background, your sound, your style or your personality doesn’t fit one clean lane.

Outside Of The Box came from that frustration.

I didn’t want to keep explaining why I could love storytelling songs and modern pop production at the same time. I didn’t want to explain why I could be soft and angry, serious and funny, vulnerable and loud, rooted in Watseka but changed by Chicago. I got tired of feeling like complexity was a problem I was supposed to solve.

The song is about pushing back against that. It’s about realising that maybe the point isn’t to find the perfect box. Maybe the point is to stop accepting the box as the measure of your worth.

For me, Outside Of The Box is one of those songs that says something simple but important: I don’t want to become easier to describe if it means becoming less honest.