Mitchell Tenpenny’s ‘The 3rd’ Offers a Deeply Personal Look At The People Who Raised Him And The Legacy He Plans To Leave Behind [Exclusive]

When Mitchell Tenpenny set out to create his new album, The 3^rd, he asked himself the questions – “Where am I right now in life?” and “What is going to be the most authentic thing for me to present at this moment?” Setting these intentions allowed him to compile a list of 20 tracks that document a period of reflection centered around the importance of family, where he came from and the legacy he wants to leave behind. 

This project offers a stark difference from 2022’s This Is The Heavy album, as it was created before Tenpenny was married and before he started taking a hard look at his future. The country singer tells Country Now that he experienced a change in perspective after tying the knot with his now wife, Meghan Patrick, and the journey he’s embarked on since then comes to light very clearly on his new record. 

“It describes where I’m at, at this point. For me, that was the hardest part. When you’re making a new record, it’s like, how do I make it different enough so that it doesn’t sound the exact same or be about the exact same things. But also, I wanted to be relatable like my other records were. I want it to still have that sound,” he explained to us. “This one’s more about where I’m at now. I care more about family and where that’s going to lead to the next part, whereas when I was making ‘This Is The Heavy,’ I wasn’t married or wasn’t in any of it. Your life changes when you get married, and your perspective on things change, and for me, it’s all a different perspective hidden in this record.”

Paying Tribute To His Roots On The Cover Art

Before even diving into the track list, it’s important to acknowledge the careful thought that went into the cover art for this album. Upon first glance, it looks like a collage of chaos, but each aspect of the cover actually tells an important detail of Tenpenny’s life story. The images include nostalgic snapshots of his dad, his grandad and sentimental memories like the first guitar his parents bought him as a teenager and one of his father’s drawings. 

Tenpenny finds himself standing in the middle of the collage, sending the message that while you may feel small in the great big world, it’s the family and the important memories that remind you that you are a part of something so much bigger. 

“There’s some of my dad and my granddad, there’s the dog tags on there, the first guitar my mom and dad got me when I was just starting. I was like 13 or 14 and they had to put down payments on it because it was a gift. At that time, it’s like, man, them putting that much money into me means they believe in it and that means everything in the world for a kid. And there’s dad riding on his Harley or standing on it, which shows his crazy side. That doodle in the top left corner is just, my dad used to doodle all the time and that’s something he was doing on the phone one day with his friend, probably. It’s just little hints at The 3rd, where that comes from, of the people, the two before me, and I love the way it looks.”

Themes Of Heartbreak, Love And Family

The album was set up in a way that honors his roots, but it wouldn’t be a true Mitchell Tenpenny album without a few of his relatable heartbreak anthems like “Started Stoppin’,” “Good Thing Goin’,” “Not Today,” “Breaking My Heart” and “Bigger Mistakes.” He also draws from his own love story with Meghan and wears his heart on his sleeve in songs like “Same Moon,” which he revealed was influenced by his love of Brooks & Dunn. 

The theme of family hits listeners right away with the title track sitting at the very top of the collection and then 10 songs in, he purposefully placed the tune “Set It In Stone.” Organizing the track list in this way allowed Tenpenny to introduce how he got his name, the people who raised him, and how he now hopes to carry on their legacy. 

The story of “Set It In Stone” depicts the emotional experience he had while visiting his dad’s and grandparent’s burial sites and seeing his last name on their headstones. He admits it “got me in the feels” and found it easy to write the song as it details everything he was feeling at that moment.

“I kind of wanted it to be like how I got my name to how I want my name to be left when it’s on a headstone,” he shared. “I think it’s important to think about what do you want to leave behind, what do you want people to say or know about you, and I finally got to that point of my life where I wanted to write that.”

Tenpenny rounds things out with another special tune, “Tennessee In Me,” which pulls double duty as a love song that serves as a tribute to his home state as he details his pride for his southern upbringing. 

“We have so much in this state, from west to east coast. It’s pretty vast, and there’s so much to offer and how I grew up and being born and raised in Nashville. I tied it into a love song at in the end of it, but it’s really just about where I’m from, the state that I love and the things that I love about it, honestly. I wanted to, musically, do it in the style of the artists that I was influenced by at that time too. They were Nashville artists like Matt Wertz and Dave Barnes, Josh Hoge back in the day, that style of music, the six-piece band, acoustic guitar singer/songwriter vibe. So I kind of went back to my roots on that side of the genre.”

Showcasing His Rock And Roll/Country Sound

Nostalgia sits at the forefront of the project, taking listeners back to the sounds and the influences that made Mitchell Tenpenny fall in love with music in the first place. He celebrates this by combining his passion for country music with the undeniable pull he feels towards that hard-hitting rock and roll sound. The only two collaborations on the project showcase both ends of the musical spectrum for Tenpenny. His latest release “Demon or Ghost” feat Underoath showcases his rock side while his song with, Colbie Caillat, “Guess We’ll Never Know,” digs into the pop-country side. Combined together, these two songs make up his current sound. 

“It’s such a full circle for me, I mean that was a scary one because I want people to understand that this isn’t me just hopping over to the rock world, this is where I come from. I was in emo bands, I was a screamer, I was a drummer, this is where my heart is too, just as much as it is country music,” Tenpenny prefaced of his track with Underoath. “This isn’t an inauthentic thing that I’m just jumping on board of. I wanted people to see the other side of what I love.”

Mitchell Tenpenny is on the road, bringing his story and unique sound to cities across the country for his Woke Up In A Dream Tour. The trek runs through mid-November with Dylan Schneider serving as the opening act.