On her new album, Wright finally realizes all those dreams of making music that comes from her deepest soul. That let me reach for my best self and trust what I found when I did that and to not be afraid about being imperfect. As terrifying as it could be expressing some of these feelings, those have become my best moments.

“He taught me to understand that a great deal of making music is intention, and then to trust those intentions all the way.

Crowell actually pointed Chely to Henry and he quickly became a vital influence and contributor to I AM THE RAIN. Putting her talents as a singer-songwriter to the fore-front, the beginnings of which can be seen with producer Rodney Crowell on her 2010 record LIFTED OFF THE GROUND, becomes fully formed on I AM THE RAIN. Her recent songs were coming from a place of total openness and spoke to the kind of self-discovery that changes lives. Scheduled for release on September 9th, Wright and multiple GRAMMY® Award-winning producer/artist Joe Henry (Allen Toussaint, Bonnie Raitt, Carolina Chocolate Drops) approached the work as a new beginning. When it came time to record her new album, Chely knew it was going to be different from everything she had done in the past.

And as she begins to sing the lyrics of “Inside,” her confidence, intelligence, and poetic ambition quickly come into focus. After more than five years away from the spotlight, and through a heroic personal and creative journey, Wright has returned with the release of a long anticipated new CD. The opening chords of the first track, “Inside,” on award-winning, singer-songwriter, author, and activist Chely Wright’s new record, I AM THE RAIN, are direct, purposeful, and intense – a sound that defines the brilliant album.

Chely wright memoir