Cassidy Daniels, Piper Bateman, and Braelyn Watt, knew they were onto something good when they formed July Moon in the midst of the pandemic.
Teaming up with legendary songwriter Liz Rose, whose writing credits include Taylor Swift‘s Fearless album and Little Big Town‘s “Girl Crush,” the talented trio draws inspiration from artists like fan favorite British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, six time GRAMMY® Award winning group The Eagles, and quintessential country hellraisers The Chicks. They hope their music acts as a bridge between classic rock and country, which is something that’s highly needed from females in the music right now.
“Our whole goal sonically is to take elements from the amazing classic rock songs we all grew up on and turn them into something twangy yet timeless,” band member Piper Bateman tells Celeb Secrets in an exclusive interview. “We all have major roots in country music but we also have such a big love for bands like Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles. We like to think our music is a great bridge between the two genres, as we want our music to be loved by the country listeners but also the people who love the classic rock stuff like we do.”
View this post on Instagram
Recently, the girls shared their new single “You Think You Know Someone” on all music streaming platforms, and according to their team, the song takes back every complimentary thing they’ve ever said about a former flame.
The drop of “You Think You Know Someone” trails after the trio’s debut single release, “Champagne Plans,” which came out in April. The trio ultimately wants “You think You Know Someone” to be the song that their fans scream at the top of their longs to help mend a bad break-up. With SUCH a relatable message, we think their wishes will come true in no time.
July Moon chatted with Celeb Secrets to talk about all things “You Think You Know Someone,” the group’s future plans, and more. Keep scrolling to read our full Q&A with the country/rock trio and let us know what you think of “You Think You Know Someone” by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecrets.
You can connect with the girls by giving them a follow on Instagram at @julymoonofficial.
Celeb Secrets: Can you take us through the early beginnings of your musical journey — how did y’all meet and come together to create July Moon?
Braelyn Watt: “Cassidy and I had been friends for a while because we got put together through Liz (Rose) & Shevy (Smith). We both had new puppies at the time and we hit it off immediately on our first write together because we both happened to sneak our dogs into the office. We met Piper years later through a mutual friend of ours. We wrote one song with her and our blend was so natural so Cassidy and I looked at each other and said “yep, we can be in a band with this girl.”
CS: For people that are unfamiliar with your sound, how would you describe it? What makes it unique?
Piper Bateman: “July Moon’s whole goal sonically is to take elements from the amazing classic rock songs we all grew up on and turn them into something twangy yet timeless. We all have major roots in country music but we also have such a big love for bands like Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles. We like to think our music is a great bridge between the two genres! One of our favorite things to hear from people is, ‘I normally don’t like country music but I love your songs.’ We want our music to be loved by the country listeners but also the people who love the classic rock stuff like we do.”
CS: We know that you are working closely with Liz Rose, who is really well-respected in town. How did you connect and can you talk about what it’s like working with someone so big in the industry?
Cassidy Daniels: “I met Liz when I was about 14 years old at a little beach bar in Key Largo. She was playing a show with Stephony Smith & Lisa Carver. My sister (who’s a massive ‘Swiftie’) was actually the one who recognized Liz’s name on the bill and I just decided to be a ballsy 14 year old and plug my guitar into the house system as soon as they finished their round. I was scared to death but I remember thinking “if she can just hear me I know she’ll give me a shot.” I played what I thought was my best song and Liz, Stephony, and Lisa kind of had no choice but to entertain me at that point, haha. Liz finally came up to me and my parents after and said “Please come to Nashville and stay with me and I’ll help you get writes.” About a month later I was doing just that and my first ever co-write was with Liz & Phil Barton! Ever since then, Liz has backed me and July Moon up 1000% and has earned the ever endearing title ‘Mama Liz’.” It’s truly still unreal to hear songs like ‘You Belong with Me’ & ‘Girl Crush’ out and go “hey, that’s our boss!!”
CS: What’s been the biggest takeaway from spending time and making music with Liz?
CD: “One of the best things we’ve learned from Liz is that you can never go wrong being a humble and genuine person in this industry. Liz literally taught me how to write songs but more importantly she taught and is always continuing to teach July Moon how to be a band.”
CS: Can you talk more about your new single “You Think You Know Someone?” Was there a personal experience that inspired the song?
CD: “I had just gotten out of a bad break up at the time we wrote the song and I pretty much just went into the writing room pissed off as all get out at my ex. Poor Clara (Calaway) & Scott (Stepakoff) were probably a little scared because I was ranting and raving about the situation but as great writers like they are, they took my insane story and helped me condense it into a 3 minute long ‘anger banger’.”
CS: Do you have any favorite memories from working on this track?
PB: “The day we recorded this track was magical. We were in the studio with our producer Chris (Rafetto) and we had an incredibly talented band bring this song to life. I remember vividly just listening to the way each instrument added another element to the song in real time and looking around the room at the girls… We were all bright eyed and bushy tailed, thinking, “yeah this is one is going to be killer.”
View this post on Instagram
CS: What’s the overall message that you hope fans will take away from listening to it?
CD: “This is the kind of song we want to see people screaming to the top of their lungs! We miss badass female country breakup songs. Us girls wanna cry, scream, and maybe have a bonfire with our ex’s sweaters—you know just girly things! We want this song to be the soundtrack to all that!”
CS: Is “You Think You Know Someone” a taste of what we can expect from July Moon’s music in the future?
PB: “You can definitely expect more ‘anger bangers’ from July Moon as long as Cassidy stays in the trenches of the modern dating scene haha. However, our next single is not angry at all… and a very different vibe. Our goal is to have songs that all different audiences can connect with, yet all still sound like July Moon.”
CS: What are the rest of your plans for 2023?
BW: “2023 has been a whirlwind so far and July Moon’s biggest year yet! You’ll definitely be seeing more music from us by the end of this year and way more shows.”
CS: Do you have any goals (personally or as a group) that you’d like to achieve this year?
PB: “This year we’ve been working really hard on July Moon’s debut project and our goal was to get that out into the world. So far we have our two songs out now, and the rest of the project soon to follow!”
CS: Since we’re Celeb Secrets, do you have any secrets (fun facts) about yourselves and making the song “You Think You Know Someone” that we wouldn’t know just by seeing you live/listening to the song?
CD: “I didn’t actually go into the writing room with this idea for July Moon specifically! It was actually supposed to be what I call a ‘let me get this off my chest’ kind of write. Everything naturally fell into place once the girls got a hold of it and it truly elevated the song to what it is today! It also happens to be the hardest song for me to sing live…”
For more Country news, visit CelebSecretsCountry.com.
