While it may be hard to admit, past mistakes and their consequences really make you a better person.
Budding artist and ACM Award-winning songwriter Greylan James is detailing the coming-of-age realization with his brand new track “Things That I Can’t Change,” which is out now on all music streaming platforms.
Written by James with Jared Mullins, Rocky Block and Brock Berryhill, the 28-year-old tells Celeb Secrets that the song is all about “the concept of talking about their past and how even though you can’t change it, they can make it who you are.”
“Jared [Mullins] came up with the idea, and he was really just talking about how he met a girl and we were like, ‘oh my gosh, tell us what happened.’ Jared was the last guy we thought would settle down,” Greylan recalls to Celeb Secrets host Juliet Schroder in an exclusive interview.
“He was basically saying that she saved him. He tried to change her mind with stories about his past, and she didn’t go anywhere. She made him who he is today.”
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Teaming up with one of the genre’s hottest names, Cole Swindell, the honest, relatable story has potential to be a future country classic. The longtime co-writers turned tourmates and friends, the duo first chatted about hopping on a track together during a friendly game of golf a few months ago.
“We were just drinking on the gold course one day, and I told him about my career and said ‘dude, it would be sick if we did a song together at some point.’ And he was like, ‘bro, anytime, any song. You just pick it, let me know and I’ll hop on it,” Greylan mentions.
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While he didn’t write the song with the intention for it to be a collaboration, the Knoxville, Tennessee native knew he wanted to send it to Cole immediately for feedback and potentially give to him to cut on an upcoming project. Luckily for him, Cole suggested a feature and the rest was history.
“I’ve been a big Greylan James fan since the first time we wrote together a few years back,” says Swindell in a statement. “Not only is he a great songwriter, but his voice and the way he delivers a song is just special. I was honored when he asked me to sing on ‘Things That I Can’t Change’ because it’s such a GREAT song and message that I think a lot of folks, like myself, can relate to. I’m excited to see where it takes him and thankful he and his team asked me to be part of it.”
“Things That I Can’t Change” is Greylan’s third standalone track release this year and follows his previous released songs “Who Broke Up With You” and “Man Up.”
As to why he wanted to release “Things That I Can’t Change” at this state of his life, the hit songwriter says that it not only gives his fans a deeper glimpse of who he is as an artist, but also serves as a “turning point in his career” to gain new listeners around the world.
“This is a song that’s really special to me,” Greylan says. “I just think it really sets the tone and lets people know that I’m going to try to put out songs that you can relate to whether it’s a deep song like this or some of the lighter ones. I think this is a good turning point in my career.”
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Greylan will continue playing shows across the nation as direct support for Ashley Cooke on her your place Tour, which runs into early 2025. You can see a full list with ticketing options on his website at GreylanJames.com.
For more our Greylan’s music, make sure to watch our full interview below, and don’t forget to let us know what you think of “Things That I Can’t Change” by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecretscountry.
