With His New Album, ‘Worthy,’ Soul Rocker Anderson East Gets Back to Making Records That Feel Good

Following his acclaimed arrival in 2015, modern soul rocker Anderson East has seen just about every kind of success there is—from stately headlining shows and the fawning attention of tastemakers, to a 2019 Grammy nod for his No. 1 single at AAA radio, “All On My Mind.” But over time, a stifling sort of pressure began to build.

Videos by American Songwriter

Following Maybe We Never Die in 2021, the Alabama native took a creative beat. He focused on private life and kept busy as a co-writer and producer, more than a bit disenchanted with the grind of an artistic career. But now he seems officially re-enchanted, after making a record the way he used to—just for the thrill of it.

“I am comfortable that it exists,” he explains in a thoughtful, if guarded, admission. But that’s not actually the non-statement it seems. What he means is Worthy (released May 30) was released because it’s a deserving batch of new tunes, not because “it was time” for a new album.

“Usually putting a record out, you have this anticipatory … not really fear, but just kind of nervousness that you hope people like it,” he says. “And with this, I’m like, ‘I like it.’ And I’m OK with that being enough.”

Still soaked in soulful Muscle Shoals influence, but more refined and totally at ease with its spacious hollows, Worthy lives up to its title. Co-produced with longtime friend (and Grammy factory) Dave Cobb, East’s smoky vocal rasp feels fine-tuned and passionate, with a warm mix of rhythmic groove, tender emotion, and bright horns giving off the rich sound of classic vinyl—even in MP3 format. And with help from Natalie Hemby, Lori McKenna, Trent Dabbs, and more, its songs dig deep into the philosophic firmament.

Like the title suggests, many explore a quest for inner peace and optimism, snatched from the jaws of the commercial-art cycle. But East says it wasn’t coming from a “destructive” headspace. Just one that needed a refresh.

“I’d gotten to the place where I just wanted to get back to really enjoying what I was doing, instead of feeling like I had to continue, for the sake of keeping everything in motion,” he says.

Worthy began as an excuse to help Cobb, East’s longtime mentor, break in his new studio in Savannah, Georgia. The pair had already created East’s previous three albums together, so the collaboration was no surprise—but what came out was. Always attracted to Cobb’s unstructured, first-take approach, East had no production schedule and wasn’t even worried about recording something “worthy” of release. He and some friends just drank coffee and picked a few songs from the vault, “not trying to force a square peg in a round hole.”

“When you’re first starting to make records, that’s how it is,” he says. “But then, after a while, you’re expected to just keep putting one out. With this, I was like, ‘I don’t know if I even want to make another record,’ and having that approach was kind of liberating.”

He finally decided that, yes, this was in fact the next Anderson East record with “Never Meant to Hurt You.” A slow-grooving confession, drenched in organ and strings, with East’s vocal rising from the floor to a crescendo of gutsy soul, he says the track felt “three-dimensional,” with all the sonic separation of a live show and a raw, “living” texture.

“I was like, ‘Damn, that’s what I wanted to hear,’” he recalls. “It reminded me of everything I loved, and I just felt really comfortable, like, ‘If that’s what this is, then yes, I’m just going to surrender to whatever is coming out.’”

Tracks like “I’d Do Anything” (co-written with Aaron Raitiere and Ashley Monroe) feel like a quiet, tender plea–but it’s actually more like a pledge to stay in the romantic moment.“If you read it on the page, it does kind of seem like this desperate thing,” East says. “But I take it as this reassuring kind of statement. It’s like, ‘Trust me, I got you. You got me. Let’s just live in this being a good thing.’”

Elsewhere, the title track, “Worthy” (co-written with Dabbs) pairs a throbbing Swampers beat with hot brass and a hint of psychedelia, for an anthem of reclaimed passion. Feeling loose, relaxed, and raw—the epitome of what East has learned from Cobb over their 10 years together—the track became the central spoke of an album “really just worthy to be listened to.”

Tunes like the resilient “Before It Gets Better” (co-written with Hemby and Cobb) explore the positive side of an entropy equation—fans can look back to the pandemic for its inspiration—and “Reasons” burns with vocal fire. And on the Beatles-esque melodic standout, “Fool Myself” (co-written with Dabbs and Maddie Medley), East accidentally put his new revelation to music. It was originally intended for another artist, but captured the way he’d been so tightly wound for so long.

“[I had been] putting myself at the center of everything and thinking I can manipulate the world into how I wanted it to be, instead of just leaning into whatever punch there was,” he explains. “I think it was probably me telling myself, ‘It’s all right to take a deep breath.’”

That breath becomes a therapeutic sigh of relief on the final track, “Right Where You Belong.” Delivered like an intimate musical “secret,” with just a hushed vocal and delicate organ, East reassures himself—and all who listen—of the fundamental right to just be…no matter what others expect. “It is its own life force,” he says. “That resonates with me so much.”

With that wisdom in mind, East is not trying to tell listeners what to think about Worthy. He just hopes it helps lighten the load.

“I don’t really have any advice for that,” he says. “We’re not trying to solve world hunger or world peace or anything. Hopefully, people just find themselves in it.”