Something Like This

Last updated
Something Like This
SomethingLikeThisCover.jpg
Studio album by
Ben Rector
ReleasedSeptember 13, 2011
Length38:16
Label Good Time
Producer Ben Rector and Chad Copelin
Ben Rector chronology
Into the Morning
(2010)		Something Like This
(2011)		 The Walking in Between
(2013)

Something Like This is the fourth studio album released by American singer-songwriter Ben Rector. It was his first album after graduating from the University of Arkansas and relocating from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Nashville, Tennessee. It peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Top Independent Albums charts and No. 41 on the Billboard 200, and charted 1st on the Singer-Songwriter chart on iTunes and 4th overall.

Contents

The album had minor advertising, mainly covers and a street interview for his YouTube channel. The songs "Let the Good Times Roll" and "She Is" released ahead of the album as singles, following the full independent release on September 13, 2011. Rector had a promotional live tour for the album, The Good Time Tour, spanning 5 weeks and over 25 cities. Lady Antebellum would also cover "She Is" in 2014 for their album 747 .

Background and production

"When I started out, I had my hands on everything, and now I can't really do that anymore just because there are too many moving parts. I had a really strong hand in the production of those records, and that's a great part of my creativity. But I realized that you don't get any bonus points for writing all the parts or playing all the instruments." [1]

Ben Rector, 2013 Charleston City Paper interview

Rector in 2010 Ben Rector (cropped).jpg
Rector in 2010

Something Like This began production shortly after both Rector's graduation from the University of Arkansas and his relocation from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Nashville, Tennessee. This was the first album were Rector received a large portion of help from others relating to performing instruments, producing music, and booking concerts; it had come to the point where the task had become too difficult for him to do on his own. [1] Half of the album was recorded in Dallas, Texas. [2]

Promotion and release

Promotion for Something Like This, according to Rector's manager Paul Steele, was purposefully kept minimal. Steele wanted to focus marketing efforts on people who were already familiar with both him and his music, including those who have seen him live or follow him on social media. "A couple hundred dollars" was spent on a Facebook ad, and other advertising efforts included two placements on iTunes and four YouTube videos. [3] One YouTube video included a cover of "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" by Whitney Houston, recorded at Blackwatch Studios. Although it was suggested by a friend as a joke, Rector selected the song because of its simplicity and popularity. Houston died shortly after its completion, and Rector feared people would see the cover as him taking advantage of the opportunity. He also covered "Something in the Way" by James Taylor in the same session. Although he had a lot of content on his channel it was generally low quality, and he wanted something professional on his account in case people looked him up when he was touring. [4] Another YouTube video saw Rector stopping people in the streets and asking them if they are excited for the release of Ben Rector's Something Like This; everyone responded by telling him they don't know who Ben Rector is. [5] The promotional efforts saw his Facebook account increase from 5,800 followers to 26,200, and his Twitter account from 2,500 to 13,900 in the span of one year. [3] Rector attributed the increasing success, which had been a steady increase without spikes, to word-of-mouth communication from his fans. [6]

Something Like This released on September 13, 2011, with "Let the Good Times Roll" and "She Is" releasing prior as singles. [4] [7] The gap between the album and the album prior was only one year, which Rector found "ridiculous" in retrospect, although he simply wanted to get more music out because he was excited to write more. [1] Following the release was a supporting headlining tour, "The Good Time Tour", [4] starting on September 25, 2011 and spanning five weeks and over 25 cities. [3] [8] Over half of the shows sold out in advance. Shortly afterward he opened for Needtobreathe during The Reckoning Tour in 2012. [8] "She Is", the seventh song on the album, would be covered by Lady Antebellum on their 2014 album 747 . [9]

Commercial performance

Something Like This debuted at 41 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Album Sales chart. [10] [11] It also debuted at 15 on the Top Rock Albums and Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts, [12] [13] 39 on Top Current Album Sales, [14] 11 on both the Independent Albums and Digital Albums charts. [15] It charted at 1st on the Singer/Songwriter album chart on iTunes, [16] 5 minutes after its release. [17] It peaked 4th on iTunes overall, behind Lady Antebellum, Coldplay, and Adele and surpassing Tha Carter IV by Lil Wayne. [4] [16] Rector was spotlighted by Amazon via their "Artist On The Rise" program throughout October and November in 2011. [17] The success of the release and Rector's increasing fame helped see his staff grow, and Steele began looking for supporting partnerships. According to Steele, "We've proven he can sell records; last week is a good testament to that." [3]

Track listing

Something Like This track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Let the Good Times Roll"3:08
2."Song for the Suburbs"3:40
3."Never Gonna Let you Go"3:15
4."Without You"3:40
5."Hide Away"3:20
6."You and Me"3:57
7."She Is"3:24
8."Wanna be Loved"3:27
9."Way I Am"4:08
10."Falling in Love"2:44
11."Home"3:36
Total length:38:35

Charts

Chart (2011)Peak
position
US Billboard 200 [18] 41
US Digital Albums (Billboard) [19] 11
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [20] 11
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [21] 15

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lady A</span> American country music group

Lady A, known until 2020 as Lady Antebellum, is an American country music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006. The group is composed of Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley, and Dave Haywood. Scott is the daughter of country music singer Linda Davis, and Kelley is the brother of pop singer Josh Kelley. The band abbreviated the name to "Lady A" in June 2020 during the George Floyd protests in an attempt to blunt the name's associations with slavery and the Antebellum South, inadvertently causing a dispute with Black blues and gospel singer Anita White, who had been using the name Lady A for more than 20 years.

<i>Lady Antebellum</i> (album) 2008 studio album by Lady Antebellum

Lady Antebellum is the debut studio album by American country music trio Lady Antebellum. It was released on April 15, 2008, through Capitol Nashville. The production on the album was handled by Victoria Shaw and Paul Worley. The album was supported by three singles: "Love Don't Live Here", "Lookin' for a Good Time" and "I Run to You", which became the group's first number one on the US Hot Country Songs chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breathe Carolina</span> American electronic music duo

Breathe Carolina are an American electronic music duo from Denver, Colorado. The duo formed in 2007 consisting of David Schmitt and Kyle Even. They later expanded to a full band whose best-known lineup included Schmitt, Even, drummer Eric Armenta, keytarist Joshua Aragon and DJ Luis Bonet. In 2013, Even left the group, while Tommy Cooperman joined that year. Breathe Carolina is currently composed of Schmitt and Cooperman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hillary Scott</span> American country singer (born 1986)

Hillary Dawn Scott-Tyrrell is an American singer and songwriter who rose to fame as the co-lead vocalist of the country music group Lady A. She is signed to Big Machine Records.

<i>Life Starts Now</i> 2009 studio album by Three Days Grace

Life Starts Now is the third studio album by Canadian rock band Three Days Grace. The album was released on September 22, 2009. It was produced by Howard Benson. It was the second time in a row that the band has worked with him, after the commercially successful One-X. Life Starts Now expresses a lighter lyrical mood compared to the previous album. It is the first Three Days Grace album to be released by Sony Music Entertainment and the last to be released by Jive Records, as Sony disbanded the label in 2011.

<i>Smoke & Mirrors</i> (Lifehouse album) 2010 studio album by Lifehouse

Smoke & Mirrors is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band Lifehouse. It was released on March 2, 2010, by Geffen Records. Lifehouse began to work on the album with record producer Jude Cole in the fall of 2008 at Cole's Ironworks Studio. The band collaborated with American singer-songwriter Kevin Rudolf and Chris Daughtry of the band Daughtry while working on the album.

<i>Need You Now</i> (Lady Antebellum album) 2010 studio album by Lady Antebellum

Need You Now is the second studio album by American country music trio Lady Antebellum. It was released on January 26, 2010 through Capitol Nashville. It is the follow-up album to their 2008 self-titled debut album. The production on the album was handled by Paul Worley and Lady Antebellum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Haywood</span> American country musician and songwriter (born 1982)

David Wesley Haywood is an American country musician and songwriter. He is one-third of the American country music band Lady A, in which he plays guitar, piano and mandolin, and sings backing vocals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Kelley</span> American musician

Charles Burgess Kelley is an American musician who is the co-lead vocalist and founding member of the country music trio Lady A, which was formed in 2006 and are signed to Big Machine Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lady A discography</span> Discography

Lady A are an American country music group composed of Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood. They have released nine studio albums, two extended plays, two box sets, and 23 singles, not counting guest appearances or digital-only releases. The lead singers are Charles Kelly and Hillary Scott. All ten of their full-length releases have debuted in the top ten on the Top Country Albums chart, including five number-ones. They have sold 10.2 million albums in the US as of February 2016.

<i>Into the Morning</i> 2010 studio album by Ben Rector

Into the Morning is the third full-length studio album released by Ben Rector.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Rector</span> American singer-songwriter

Benjamin Evans Rector is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer based in Nashville, Tennessee. Rector is an independent artist, and releases music under his own label OK Kid Recordings. A self-taught instrumentalist, Rector began songwriting and learning guitar at age 16, and began performing locally in high school. While attending college at the University of Arkansas he would tour within an 8 hour driving radius on the weekends. An early success saw him being the youngest grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting contest in 2006 with the song "Conversation" from his self-titled extended play (EP). He released his first studio album Twenty Tomorrow in 2007, followed by Songs that Duke Wrote in 2008. 2010's Into the Morning would peak at No. 11 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart. The year following saw Rector debut on the Billboard 200 with Something Like This.

<i>Golden</i> (Lady Antebellum album) 2013 studio album by Lady Antebellum

Golden is the fifth studio album by American country music trio Lady Antebellum. It was released on May 6, 2013, through Capitol Nashville in Europe and South Africa, and on May 7, in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The production on the album was handled by Nathan Chapman, Paul Worley and Lady Antebellum. The album is the first former EMI title to be fully rebranded as a product of Universal Music. The only reference to its old parent is its UPC. On November 12, 2013, a deluxe edition was released, featuring three new songs and acoustic versions of three hits from previous albums.

<i>The Walking in Between</i> 2013 studio album by Ben Rector

The Walking in Between is the fifth studio album released by American singer-songwriter Ben Rector, released in 2013. It was partly produced by Jamie Kenney and Charlie Peacock, and partially self-produced. It is the first release by Rector on his self-founded label, Aptly Named Recordings. In recent years, Rector found his high levels of success to be overwhelming. He expected the success to satisfying, though found it instead in "walking in between" moments of daily life. This would inspire the direction of The Walking in Between. The album was built around accessibility and honesty in Rector's feelings.

<i>747</i> (album) 2014 studio album by Lady Antebellum

747 is the sixth studio album by American country music group Lady Antebellum, released on September 30, 2014, by Capitol Nashville. The production on the album was handled by Nathan Chapman, Eric Kinney, Dave Thomson, busbee and Lady Antebellum. The following three songs were released as singles from the album: "Bartender", "Freestyle" and "Long Stretch of Love".

<i>Brand New</i> (Ben Rector album) 2015 studio album by Ben Rector

Brand New is the sixth studio album by Ben Rector. It was released on August 28, 2015. It is the second album he has released under his own record label, Aptly Named Recordings. The first single "Brand New" which was produced by Ed Cash & David Hodges, debuted at number 94 on the Billboard Hot 100 and then peaked at number 9.

<i>Magic</i> (Ben Rector album) 2018 studio album by Ben Rector

Magic is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Ben Rector, released on June 22, 2018 through OK Kid Recordings. Rector co-produced the album alongside Tony Hoffer, John Fields, Chad Copelin, Jeff Pardo, and Konrad Snyder. It was the longest gap between one of Rector's releases due to the success of the previous album, Brand New. After completing tours for Brand New Rector found time to reminisce on the progress of his music career, being overwhelmed by feelings of nostalgia. Themes of nostalgia and reminiscing would, as a result, be the theme of Magic.

"Old Friends" is a 2018 song by American singer-songwriter Ben Rector. It released as a single alongside "I Will Always Be Yours" on May 18, 2018, and is the fourth song on Rector's seventh studio album Magic, released on June 22, 2018 via OK Kid Recordings. The song is a reflective piece reminiscing on old friends and memories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Rector discography</span>

The discography of American singer, songwriter and record producer Ben Rector consists of eight studio albums, three live albums, one compilation album, three extended plays (EP), sixteen singles and seventeen music videos. He has been featured on five songs and has credits on eight others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Biggest Tour I Have Done So Far Tour</span> 2016 concert tour by Ben Rector

The Biggest Tour I Have Done So Far Tour is a 2016 concert tour from American singer-songwriter Ben Rector. Aptly named, it was his largest tour at the time.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Paper, Chris (2013-04-03). "Ben Rector isn't in a hurry to release his new album". Charleston City Paper . Archived from the original on 2023-03-28. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
  2. ↑ Farrell, Riley (2021-06-01). "How Musician Ben Rector Fell In Love With Dallas". People Newspapers . Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Mitchell, Gail (2011-09-25). "Ben Rector Is a Gimmick Free Pop 'Nobody'". Billboard . Archived from the original on 2024-01-19. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Hizer, G.K. (2012-03-22). "Urban Tulsa Weekly". Vol. 21, no. 39. p. 40. Archived from the original on 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  5. ↑ Alley, Rob (2021-10-06). "Old Friends (w Ben Rector)". The Good Song Podcast. Archived from the original on 2023-06-04. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  6. ↑ Schlansky, Evan (2013-10-14). "Ben Rector". American Songwriter . Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  7. ↑ Wippsson, Johan (2011-11-18). "Ben Rector Confirms Tour + New Song". Melodic. Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  8. 1 2 Carter, McKenna (2015-04-30). "Now Spinning: Ben Rector". Cardinal & Cream. Archived from the original on 2016-01-28. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  9. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (2014-09-24). "Story Behind The Song: Lady Antebellum "She Is"". Roughstock. Archived from the original on 2024-01-03. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  10. ↑ "Billboard 200: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2023-07-09. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  11. ↑ "Top Album Sales: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  12. ↑ "Top Rock Albums: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2024-01-05. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  13. ↑ "Top Rock & Alternative Albums: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  14. ↑ "Top Current Album Sales: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  15. ↑ "Independent Albums: Week of October 1, 2011". Billboard . 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2022-12-30. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  16. 1 2 "All American Speakers: Ben Rector". All American Speakers. Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  17. 1 2 Wippsson, Johan (2011-10-04). "Ben Rector Debuts At #41 On Billboard Top 200 & More". Melodic. Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  18. ↑ "Ben Rector Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  19. ↑ "Ben Rector Chart History (Digital Albums)".[ dead link ] Billboard.
  20. ↑ "Ben Rector Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
  21. ↑ "Ben Rector Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.