Oklahoma’s very own John Moreland is definitely a talent that everybody’s been sleeping on. With honest lyrics and a deep rasp that rattles his emotion-filled voice, the Americana artist has made a name for himself as a force to be reckoned with.
There’s just something very devastating and raw with how he writes his lyrics. And when he sings his songs, the manifestation of those emotions are felt to the very core of his listeners, and he admits it too. In an interview with Rolling Stones, he admitted that he was ‘so damn good at sorrow.’
John Moreland’s Cherokee
The singer-songwriter has three albums currently out, and one of the most poignant, tongue-in-cheek records is in his sixth track on his second album High on Tulsa Heat – an unassuming song entitled “Cherokee.”
In an interview with GQ Magazine, Moreland referred to High on Tulsa Heat as his way of making sense of his experiences and ‘examining the idea of home.’ “Cherokee” is a facet of a part of him that he lost along the way and is dealing with the feeling of loss.
The lyrics of the song is kind of a push and pull, just like when a person is fresh from a loss. In the first verse of his song, he projects the empty feeling that the person has left him with. But, the second verse has some anger in the undertow of the song. It’s completely understandable, grief is coupled by both the feeling of emptiness and anger – and this song captures just that.
“Cherokee” is generalized. That means anyone can attach someone they knew and they lost and instantly latch onto what Moreland is singing.
Moreland refers to the trilogy as a journey for him. From bleary-eyed heartbreak and tearjerkers, he culminates the experience in his third album and shows that at some point, he found where he belongs.
Check out the emotional music video of “Cherokee” here!
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John Moreland