Callista Clark On Her Breakout Success: ‘It’s All Very Surreal’

If you haven’t heard the name Callista Clark, you will soon. Clark is on the rise in the music industry and she has even been labeled the “next big thing” in country music.

“It’s all very surreal. I can’t believe it. I still can’t believe it and it’s just amazing,” Clark said in an interview with Country Now’s Lauren Black on Connect with Country Now, airing on CTRL_Music_ on Twitch. “It’s a great feeling. I mean this whole collection, I wrote most of the songs on it in my first co-writes ever in Nashville when I was 14, 15 years old. So, I’m just really glad to see that those songs are resonating with people and that they’re relatable. That’s the biggest thing that I can hope for.”

At just 17-years-old, Clark’s talents extend well beyond her years and that can be heard through her debut single, “It’s Cause I Am.” The empowering song is among five tracks on her EP, Real To Me, that truly reveals who she is as a person and as an artist.

“I knew I wanted to call this collection, Real to Me. It was the second co-write I ever had, so I just wanted to keep putting things in there that showed different sides of me and different songs that had their own personality,” Clark explained. “It’s Cause I am” is definitely the more confident, sarcastic side of me, sassy side of me, and so I feel like that’s the best way to start off something.”

Being as young as she is, Clark worried she wouldn’t be taken seriously in the music business. As a result, she wanted to start off this EP with great confidence.

Several well-known artists, such as Demi Lovato and Jennifer Nettles, have already taken a liking to the bold teen. After performing at an event with Nettles, she became a mentor for the young artist and even offered her some advice, which Clark shared with Country Now.

“She says, ‘Be yourself because no one can be you better than you can,’” Clark recalled. “I mean, just say what you need to say. Songwriting is what sets you apart you tell your story and just hope people relate to it.”

It seems as though Clark has a lot more inspiring music up her sleeve and she is preparing to share it with her growing fanbase in the coming months. 

“I definitely can’t wait to release new music, just because, you know, these were some of my first co-writes. So, that means that we started from the very beginning and there’s tons of songs from then to where I am now that I’m just dying to put out,” she shares. “I’ll be patient, I will try.”