Grace Pettis releases powerful LGBTQ ally track, “Landon”
The acclaimed Austin-based, Alabama-raised singer-songwriter shares the story behind the heartfelt track off her new album, Working Woman.
Alt-country/folk artist Grace Pettis packs her music with as much purpose as poetry, and there is no better example of this than her succinct, biographical ballad “Landon” — a heartfelt apology from Pettis to her gay best friend from high school. The inseparable pair grew up together in small town Alabama, enjoying a friendship which involved football, church, and dreaming beyond Bible belt life, all while taking the matter of faith very seriously. So when Landon came out as gay to Pettis, she couldn’t reconcile who he was with what she believed in.
“Loved you more than a boyfriend, more than a brother,” sings Pettis soulfully on her track “Landon,” named in honor of her friend. “Then I called you a sinner / Ain’t no sin bigger,” continue the lyrics which ask for his forgiveness of her past bias. “And there ain’t one damn thing wrong with you,” she concludes.
“Landon needed somebody to be on his side,” recalls Pettis. “He trusted me. And I let him down. Years of soul-searching, prayer, and information gathering led me to a very different place. I knew that I had wronged Landon in a way that I could only explain in a song.” With her uniquely deft lyrics Pettis addresses the origin of intolerance and enlists the power of music to heal. The first year she sang “Landon” live she couldn’t get through it without crying, but the process has been cathartic. The friends have patched things up and both agree the song is a meaningful way to help others learn acceptance.
“Landon and I are close again now, thanks in part to the song,” shares Pettis. “And we both love that it sheds a little light in the world for the next generation of gay kids growing up in the South, and for their best friends and families and all the people that love them.”
Lending gravitas to the message of the tune are guest vocals by the Indigo Girls. “To have the Indigo Girls adding their voices to Landon’s and my story now is overwhelming and deeply meaningful to me,” says Pettis. “It all just feels right, in a karmic and cosmic way. The whole thing brings me a lot of peace and joy.”
“Landon” is one of ten songs on Working Woman, and for this her fourth album, Pettis dug deep into her core beliefs which, along with acceptance, include practicing feminism.
“As a feminist, I can’t complain that the [music] industry is unfair to women if I’m not actively working on whatever level I’m at to change it for others,” Pettis explains, noting that women make up only 22% of chart-topping artists, only 12% of songwriters, and only 2% of producers. “The fact is, women like me work our tails off. We have to, to carve out our place in the world. It’s past time to recognize and honor women’s contributions.”
And Pettis practices what she preaches. The Nashville-made record features women-only or non-binary musicians, co-writers, engineers — right down to the photographer and graphic designer of the album art. In addition to the Indigo Girls, other guest appearances include Ruthie Foster, Dar Williams, The Watson Twins, Gina Chavez and Mary Bragg (who also produced), with mixing by Grammy Award winner Shani Gandhi.
Working Woman is out on May 7 here. “Landon” is available now here.
Watch the official video to the single “Working Woman”:
