Ethan Letter

I’m a 19-year-old native New Yorker. I write songs about people. Even songs of mine that seem to be more about societal issues (songs I’ve written about the environment or about people I’ve never met) are still about people who’ve affected me or whose stories have affected me. My philosophy about country music can be summed up by two quotes. One, by Jewel, is: “Music isn’t a race you belong to; it’s colors you paint with, and you can use any colors you want to make a painting.” The other is b...

I’m a 19-year-old native New Yorker. I write songs about people. Even songs of mine that seem to be more about societal issues (songs I’ve written about the environment or about people I’ve never met) are still about people who’ve affected me or whose stories have affected me. My philosophy about country music can be summed up by two quotes. One, by Jewel, is: “Music isn’t a race you belong to; it’s colors you paint with, and you can use any colors you want to make a painting.” The other is by Harlan Howard and is, “Country music is three chords and the truth.” I’ll accept with a straight face anyone telling me I’m not a good musician or songwriter. Taste is taste. But I refuse to compromise honesty in my songs. VOTE FOR MY SONG 'SANTA CRUZ' IN THE KEITH URBAN CONTEST!