Charly Reynolds is making waves in country music with her heartfelt storytelling and undeniable charm. Fresh off the independent release of her debut album Off the Record, the rising singer-songwriter is keeping the momentum going with a string of acoustic releases and a unique tour experience alongside fellow artist Kelli Belles.
In this exclusive interview at Country Radio Seminar 2025 (CRS), Charly opens up about the making of her “Off The Record” music video, the excitement of going on the road, the challenges of being an independent artist, and the deep emotional connection she shares with fans through her music.
I loved seeing your music video for “Off The Record”. What was your favorite part about filming the video?
Oh my gosh. That was my favorite music video I’ve ever done. I think it’s my favorite because I got to play a character and not just myself. I’ve never gotten to play like a crazy woman and get to eat cake either in one of my music videos, so that’s a big plus. But I just really loved getting to channel also a different era with sixties dresses and hair and makeup, which we did all myself. So that was kind of fun getting to kind of experiment with that kind of makeup and stuff. But it was just such a fun video. I mean, we shot it all in three hours. It was very fast. Yeah, low budget. So we shot it very quick, and the first take that she sent me or the first draft, I was like, that’s it we’re done. It was so good. But definitely my favorite. It’ll take a lot to top that video for me, and I got all my friends in it, so it was just such a fun day. Yeah, it was really fun. I enjoyed it.
I wish you could see the behind the scenes. I don’t even have behind the scenes, but just the shots that she was having me do to act crazy. It was just hilarious. We were all just laughing the whole day. I swear.
I heard you’re now in the process of recording an acoustic version of the album. What made you decide to do this? What has the process been like?
I released the album in September and I was like, I don’t want it to be over. I want to keep the momentum going a little bit longer, which is kind of hard to do when Christmas hits because then it feels like a new year, new everything. But I really wanted to keep the ball rolling with the album and promoting it. And I thought, what better way than to do an acoustic live version of all the songs. I’m going to drop one or two a month and just till the end of the year till whenever they run out. But it was really fun. We shot all of them in one day, all the live videos and audio obviously, but we shot all of that and it was really fun. It’s cool to hear them broken down. Some of them were written on just a guitar, but some of them were written with tracks so it’s interesting to hear how they sound with a fiddle guitar. And it was fun. We enjoyed it. I love how it turned out. But definitely something different for the fans to listen to with a new sound to the album.
You’re going on tour with Kelli Belles, what are you most excited for?
Me and Belles always have the best time. We toured together last year too, and so we were like, ‘let’s do it again this year cause it went so well and it was so fun.’ She’s one of my best friends, but we always look forward to seeing the fans and meeting people and creating new fans because we go to places where we might not have fans there. We try to hit the main targets, but also go to smaller towns like the Woodlands, Texas and just try to make a new fan base wherever we go. And so it’s really fun. We love traveling together, rooming together. We just have fun times, two best friends, traveling, playing music. It couldn’t be any better.
How did you and Belles meet?
Oh, she’s going to kill me for not knowing. I think we met through a mutual friend, Haley Mae Campbell. I think I have the worst memory. I literally ‘think I have dementia,’ I told my doctor, so I really don’t know where we met, but I think it was through our mutual friend a while back. So honestly, I don’t know, but we’ve been friends for four years now.
Does the tour have a certain theme or aesthetic?
The tour is called “Behind the Guitar” and it’s full acoustic, just me and my guitar, just her and her guitar. And we kind of just tell the story behind the songs. It’s more of almost like a writer’s round vibe, but it’s not a writer’s round. I go first and she goes after me and it just feels more intimate so it’s kind of cool to connect with the audience and tell the stories a little bit more than we would with a full band and then just play them acoustic. So yeah.
What makes these acoustic shows more special? Do you feel like you are able to connect with the audience on a deeper level?
Yes, it’s definitely more intimate. Just being able to feel free to talk to the audience as much as I want is really nice. Because when I have a band, not that I can’t do that, but I can do it a little bit longer and really switch up the set however I want to. If I want to play a different song, if the audience requests a song, it’s easy for me to be able to play an original that they want to hear or whatever, which I have a feeling is going to happen this weekend. I have some fans coming that I got to prepare for, but I just think it is fun to be able to talk and have a conversation on stage with the fans.
I love that you’re pretty open about the struggles of being an independent artist. Can you talk about the pros and cons of that and how you navigate your career as an indie artist?
I would say some pros are definitely creative control, song control. Literally everything is in my control, which is fun, but it also gets very tiring. I love having the control and with the album, I got to pick every single song. I got to do the branding and everything how I want, which was great, and I’m so glad that I got to do that, especially with my first album. But a con to it is definitely not always having clear direction. You just kind of got to figure out what you think is going to work, try to have a strategy without having the experience like an experienced team behind you. I would also say just the connections is definitely a con. Having a full record label with all the connections is something that’s really huge as well as playlisting and stuff like that. But the biggest pro of being an independent artist is really just being able to do it your way. And I really think that’s important because it’s also more authentic when it’s your ideas. I don’t know, I just feel like it’s way more authentic that way because you’re allowed to pick and choose whatever you want to do, but there’s pros and cons to both, obviously. And I would love to have a record label one day, but it would have to be the right fit and the right team.
Your song “Visiting Hours” continues to connect with people. Do you ever get emotional performing it? Is there a story that a fan has told you that impacted you?
You know, for a while I kind of learned how to block out my feelings when I’m singing it and kind of just sing the words and not think about what I’m singing. But every so often, it just hits and I can’t help it. It’s the second verse that gets me every time. It’s when I lose it almost every time. But there’s also times where I think of other people. Like at my album release show, my grandma was there the year before for my show in Orlando, but then that year she wasn’t because she passed away. And so I was more so thinking of my grandma during that, so it just depends on the show. It does get to me sometimes, and there’s honestly been so many stories. I can’t pinpoint one of the people that have come up and talked to me after, just whoever it is, if it’s their brother or their husband. I remember this lady talked to me for quite a while in Florida about her husband had just passed away, and she just needed that as a healing moment for her and a good cry while she was there. And so I just love that I’m able to do that. It’s just something special on stage to be able to connect with, unfortunately, everyone in some kind of way because everyone’s lost someone. And so I feel special to have written a song that can really connect with so many people and bring some healing to them.
You have a great group of female artists who are your friends here in town. Can you talk about the ways you all support each other as you navigate your careers together and why you feel it’s important?
Yeah, I mean, I’ve always had a great experience with women here. Now there’s a few that maybe not…but we all really just try to support each other, whether that’s going to their show or just liking and sharing their posts or favoring it or reposting it so it gets views and shares. And we all have had struggles. We all share those, try to help each other learn from things. I know that if I hear something that I think is really beneficial and I’m like, ‘hey,’ especially Kelli, I’m like, ‘hey Kelli, this is what I heard. Maybe this will help.’ Vice versa. She’ll do it too. And I think it’s just important to find the girls who are really not selfish and who do want to help each other. It’s not a competition because there’s room for everyone. I really think that. And so I think it’s important to surround yourself with the girls who are really championing each other because sometimes it’s hard to find. You might think somebody is like your friend and then all of a sudden they’re not. But I’ve been really blessed to find a great group of girls and women who really try to help each other and it’s healthy. Healthy group with no drama. So very glad.
What are your goals for 2025?
I hope to be playing a lot more shows. I want to play more in Nashville too. I kind of went and played everywhere else last year, other than Nashville, and I just want to start playing here a little bit more and being on the road doing shows, and obviously releasing new music at the end, more towards the end of the year to let the album have its moment for a little bit longer. But yeah, performances is the main thing for me right now.
Fans can keep up with Charly Reynolds on Instagram.
The post Charly Reynolds On Her ‘Crazy’ ‘Off The Record’ Music Video, Acoustic Album, and Life as an Independent Artist appeared first on Country Now.
