Yesterday, Marcus King released the third single from his forthcoming album Mood Swings. “Hero” is a seamless blend of country and soul that showcases King’s crystalline vocals. Watch the lyric video for the new single below.
Videos by American Songwriter
Mood Swings, King’s forthcoming Rick Rubin-produced album will hit record store shelves and streaming services on April 5. He started sharing singles from the collection in January with “F—k My Live Up Again.” Last month, he shared the stirring title track.
[Marcus King Mood Swings World Tour: Get Tickets]
Marcus King Reflects on “Hero”
Marcus King co-wrote the country-soul track with Dan Auerbach. In a statement, he reflected on the song and the writing process.
“This is one of those songs that seemed to write itself, in a way,” he said. “I was at Easy Eye in Nashville, just dropping in to say hey to the fellas. I remember being a little troubled from a recent argument I had with my then-girlfriend and also struggling to maintain a fairly new sobriety,” he recalled.
“In retrospect, it feels like a divine intervention that Dan and I both ended up at the kitchen table with guitars, and this beautiful chord structure comes out of Dan’s palms,” he continued. “This is one of my favorite cuts on the album because it has very little to no metaphor, hyperbolic lyrics, or any other writing techniques. It’s simply a story,” King added. He went on to say that it’s “a story of a girl unwilling to rely on anyone for her happiness and hellbent on doing things herself or on her own as to keep from relying on anyone.”
Mood Swings World Tour Dates
- 03/09 – The Capitol Theatre – Port Chester, NY
- 04/06 – U.S. Bank Stadium – Minneapolis, MN w/ Chris Stapleton
- 04/13 – 10 Annual Major Rager – Augusta, GA
- 04/19 – Moon Crush “Pink Moon” Festival – Miramar Beach, FL
- 0506 – The Moore Theater – Seattle, WA
- 05/07- Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR
- 05/08- Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR
- 05/10- The Masonic – San Francisco, CA
- 05/11- Grand Sierra Ballroom – Reno, NV
- 05/14- The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA\
- 05/15- The Van Buren – Phoenix, AZ
- 05/17- The Complex – Salt Lake City, UT
- 05/18- Fillmore Auditorium – Denver, CO
- 05/22- The Monument – Rapid City, SD w/ Chris Stapleton
- 05/24- Denny Sanford PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, SD w/ Chris Stapleton
- 05/25- Harrah’s Stir Cove – Council Bluffs, IA
- 05/26- EPIC Event Center – Green Bay, WI
- 05/29- The Pageant – St Louis, MO
- 05/30- GLC Live at 20 Monroe – Grand Rapids, MI
- 05/31- Blossom Music Center – Cleveland OH w/ Chris Stapleton
- 06/01- Railbird Festival – Lexington, KY
- 06/02- Salt Shed – Chicago, IL
- 06/04- College Street Music Hall – New Haven, CT
- 06/06- Freedom Mortgage Pavilion – Philadelphia, PA w/ Chris Stapleton
- 06/07- Jiffy Lube Live – Bristow, VA w/ Chris Stapleton
- 06/08- Landmark Theatre – Syracuse, NY
- 06/10- Ruby Amphitheater – Morgantown, WV
- 06/12- T-Mobile Center – Kansas City, MO w/ Chris Stapleton
- 06/13- Thunder Ridge Nature Arena – Ridgefield, MO w/ Chris Stapleton
- 06/14- The Criterion – Oklahoma City, OK
- 06/15- Globe Life Field – Arlington, TX w/ Chris Stapleton
- 07/11- Darien Lake Amphitheater – Darien Center, NY w/ Chris Stapleton
- 07/12- The Pavilion at Star Lake – Pittsburgh, PA w/ Chris Stapleton
- 07/13- Palace Theatre – Albany, NY
- 07/ 16- Egyptian Room – Indianapolis, IN
- 07/18- Huntington Center – Toledo, OH w/ Chris Stapleton
- 07/19- Schottenstein Center – Columbus, OH w/ Chris Stapleton
- 07/20- The Fillmore Detroit – Detroit, MI
- 09/04- Orpheum – Vancouver, BC
- 09/06- Grey Eagle Event Center – Calgary, AB
- 09/07- Midway Music Hall – Edmonton, AB
- 09/09- Burton Cummings Theatre – Winnipeg, MB
- 09/13- Massey Hall – Toronto, ON
- 09/14- London Music Hall – London, ON
- 09/17- Kemba Live! – Columbus, OH
- 09/19- Warner Theatre – Washington, D.C.
- 09/20- Warner Theatre – Washington, D.C.
- 09/21- The Ritz – Raleigh, NC
- 09/24- Avondale Brewing – Birmingham, AL
- 09/26- Riverside Theater – Milwaukee, WI
- 09/28- The Sylvee, Madison, WI
- 09/29- Vibrant Music Hall – Des Moines, IA
- 10/07- Roxian Theatre – Pittsburgh, PA
- 10/09- State Theatre – Portland, ME
- 10/11- House of Blues Boston – Boston, MA
- 10/12- The Fillmore – Philadelphia, PA
- 10/13- Brooklyn Paramount – Brooklyn, NY
- 10/17- La Riviera – Madrid, Spain
- 10/18- Sala Apolo – Barcelona, Spain
- 10/20- Fabrique Milano – Milan, Italy
- 10/21- Komplex 457 – Zurich, Switzerland
- 10/23- Le Transbordeur – Lyon, France
- 10/25- Essigfabrik – Cologne, Germany
- 10/27- Markthalle – Hamburg, Germany
- 10/28- De Roma – Antwerp, Belgium
- 10/29- AFAS Live – Amsterdam, Netherlands
- 10/31- Metropol – Berlin, Germany
- 11/01- The Grey Hall – Copenhagen, Denmark
- 11/03- Bataclan – Paris, France
- 11/05- Eventim Apollo – London, UK
- 11/06- Albert Hall – Manchester, UK
- 11/07- Barrowland Ballroom – Glasgow, UK
- 11/09- O2 Institute – Birmingham, UK
- 11/10- The Great Hall – Cardiff, UK
- 11/12- Olympia – Dublin, Ireland
Featured Image by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for LOVE ROCKS NYC/God’s Love We Deliver
If you purchase through links on our site we 05/earn an affiliate commission.
