Danielle Peck is enjoying some quiet time at her Nashville home before heading into the studio to wrap up her second album.
An artist's sophomore album is usually one of the most important. If the debut disc was a hit, it's imperative to continue the momentum and expand your fan base. If the first album didn't do too well, the second might be the last shot at fulfilling your dream of stardom.
Peck has cut about 10 tracks for her sophomore album, which should be in stores by the middle of October. Her first disc wasn't necessarily a big hit, but it wasn't a flop, either. Three singles from it - "I Don't," "Findin' a Good Man," "Isn't That Everything" - landed in the top 30 on radio charts, but none proved to be a breakout hit. Her good looks are definitely a factor in her favor. Open up any country music magazine and you're likely to see Peck smiling back at you. But she knows this album is an important project for her.
"It's kind of, do I stay or do I go," Peck says. "I'm praying I stay. I have a really good feeling about it. I feel this album is going to be more of me. I'm going to dive into more of me - the serious side, but also show that I like to have fun. It's a whole new baby. I'm excited to stick it out there and show people how things have been coming along for me."
The first single, "Bad for Me," fits her perfectly, Peck says. It was written by her good friend Sherrie Austin. At first Peck thought she might have been the inspiration behind it.
"I was kind of disappointed when I heard it was just a song she wrote," she says, chuckling. "I thought it fit me to a T. Every line in it is me."
She breaks into the opening verse: "I like chocolate, but my hips sure don't. I like drinkin' red wine, but tomorrow my head sure won't."
"Everything in life is good in moderation, but this song is about throwing moderation out the window and indulging," Peck says.
The song would have been even more Peck if it included a verse about drinking coffee, which she recently gave up. Talking to her last year, she was a bundle of energy, chattering away after downing a cup of coffee. She's still bubbly and energetic, just not quite as bubbly and energetic.
"I had to quit drinking [coffee]," she admits sheepishly. "I couldn't sleep at night. I used to drink four cups a day. Now, it's about one a month."
Call it a learning experience, one of many since her self-titled debut album came out last year.
"This all never gets easier. You never have a day when you can just coast," she says. "But you need to pace yourself. You can't stay awake for 24 hours. You need to sleep. I actually take catnaps. That's something Jo Dee Messina told me I needed to do."
When she plays at the Lucas County Fair Saturday night, fans will see a natural entertainer. She's been performing since she was 16, when she played in clubs near her Coshocton, Ohio, home. Music has always been a part of her family. Peck's grandmother and grandfather played in clubs long before she did, and her great-grandfather was a championship fiddler. Her bubbly personality works well with fans. She has a tight band, and she enjoys interacting with the crowd.
"I love going into a town and having people sing along. It's flattering when you have a record out and you hear people sing along," she says.
Almost two years into her professional music career, Peck is experiencing the highs and lows that all new artists experience, but she wouldn't trade it for any other job in the world.
"I want to keep on writing my music and keep growing and showing people who I am," she says. "Really, I'm just living my dream."
Danielle Peck will headline a concert at the Lucas County Fair Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5, plus an $8 gate admission, and are first come, first served.
Contact Brian Dugger at: bdugger@theblade.com.
First Published July 26, 2007, 12:03 p.m.
