Courtney Nord Connects with Us to Talk About the Bold Release of ‘wild’ and the Raw Journey Behind It
- STAFF
- Sep 22
- 6 min read
By: Staff
Courtney Nord’s ‘wild’ is a captivating masterpiece, blending haunting vocals with electrifying emotion.
Get ready to dive deep into the mind of an artist who’s breaking all boundaries with her new album, ‘wild’. We recently spoke with the force behind this raw and electrifying collection of tracks, Courtney Nord. If you’ve already heard the title track, you’ll know that the heavy undertones of classic rock are reimagined through a modern lens, paired with vocals that are as haunting as they are powerful. But ‘wild’ is more than just an album, it’s an emotional journey, one that speaks to everything from heartbreak to self-discovery.
As we delved into the heart of this project, Courtney opened up about the making of ‘wild’, how it started with a spark from a Led Zeppelin film night, and how it evolved into a deeply personal exploration of her relationship with her past, her sound, and her own identity. You’ll hear about the “rejected” songs that found new life, the moments that define the album's wild spirit, and what it feels like to bare it all in a world full of judgment.
We also uncovered the influences that helped shape this distinct musical style. From collaborations with artists like Adam Teller and Jessy Covets to the striking visual concept inspired by photographer Jane Hilton’s work, this interview takes you behind the scenes of an album that is anything but ordinary.
But it’s not just the music, Courtney’s reflections on vulnerability, rawness, and emotional complexity will leave you thinking long after the conversation ends.
Ready to discover what it really means to be ‘wild’? The journey starts now.
Here’s how it went:
Begin Interview:
Hello Courtney Nord, we’re thrilled to have you here for this interview! We've had an amazing time exploring your music and diving into your creative journey. Now, we’re even more intrigued to get a deeper look into both your brand and your personal and professional inspirations.
Q. Ok, we are crazed over ‘Wild’. The Led Zeppelin influences on the title track were definitely there, but your contemporary restructuring and amazing delivery blew us away. On top of all this, your vocals left us breathless. After experiencing this, we want to know: when did you go from making music in your own world casually, to realizing this wasn’t just a passion, but the path you were meant to take as a professional artist in the music industry?
A. As a professional artist (self-proclaimed title somewhat) we have the purpose and opportunity to not only monetize and find sustainability out of our art, but we can also actively choose to seek larger audiences for the art. When we do this, we can begin to define what our artistry truly looks like and what our goals are. Being a professional musician and shifting from hiding myself to showing myself allowed me to expand in the quality of the art itself. When we take ourselves more seriously, we start to move differently. The more we invest in ourselves the more we see we are capable of.
Q. Let’s dive right in, what’s ‘Wild’ all about for you? What’s the essence of the album?
A. The essence of the album is about unrestrained expression and freedom. I mention thing that are censored and banned on most online spaces, things like suicide and depression. We might get so used to seeing highlight reels online and consuming affirming content that when we hit an inevitable low we might feel extra detached from it. My intention to making sad girl music is to create space where space has been eliminated. This space invites imperfection, sadness, being okay with not being okay, and raw expression. I want other newer musicians to hear my demo songs and realize that we all start somewhere and that even unpolished demos can have value. Even more, they can really invite the audience into the creation process. Wild is about being human, it’s about not forgetting what that means. I think this is an important message in an era such as the one we are in. We seem to get further from this emotional connection to ourselves and others- I want to revive that.
Q. The title ‘Wild’ is bold and powerful. What made you land on that specific word to encapsulate the entire vibe of the album?
A. Wild represents this humanity, this connection and this realignment with the fact we are animals in a way. We are instinctual and we are not designed to be robotic consumer- producers. It also represents self-discovery and that raw expression of emotions we might shame.
Q. "In Memory of…” creates such a captivating, almost haunting sensation. It’s like a mood you could almost taste. How does that song land in terms of its purpose and deeper meaning in regards to the album overall?
A. This song was originally called homecoming as in I was coming home and I was welcoming the new. In the same breathe it represents grief and saying goodbye. I chose in memory of… as a reminder that we can change we can redefine ourselves at any moment. We are always in limbo with who we were and who we will become. The song opens cinematically, and I never felt too comfortable with the introduction personally. I wanted to change it so many times but this feeling of uneasiness and uncertainty is exactly what the song was about, so I kept it. The lyrics in the first half of the song mention falling into a type of faith and coming home to ourselves. This also represented me falling into depression and wishing I could just jump into it all and disappear. In the second half of the song, it opens to more conceptual imagery about a larger view of the world and a widespread feeling of detachment. I think we are in a type of detachment epidemic and we do need to seek to come home to ourselves and remember that one day we won’t have another day, we need to start living NOW.
Q. Tell us more about that night when you were inspired by the Led Zeppelin film before creating ‘Wild.' What was it about that evening that brought this album to life?
A. Hearing vintage and unique guitar riffs in the film helped us step into a different perspective of being a musician. We come from a lineage and are only here in the rock (or adjacent) genres because of these people. Going to live music shows has the same impact on me and probably other artists as well. We get inspired by each other and feel the energy they put into their work, it makes us want to create. There wasn’t one event in the film or in the bad exactly that inspired any part of the lyrics or the album itself. Just being inspired by their passion and their commitment to music, everything worked out so synchronistic for them. I identify with that myself. Many times in my childhood I was pulled in and out of music and tasting what it would be like to maybe one day be a musician as an adult. Here I am now, doing the thing.
Q. We know Wild is deeply tied to the end of your relationship with Adam, but beyond the personal side, how do you think the dynamic between you two as collaborators influenced the album’s sound and energy?
A. We had worked together for years and at the point of the album wild we were comfortable with or own system of creation. Neither of us were ever creating for our breakup album or intentionally making some of the last songs we would make as a couple. But the music knew before we did. The lyrics and my own inner voice was saying what I knew would happen. The energy became somber it became conflicted and it became uncomfortable at the end. I felt wild before the catalyst of the breakup.
Q. After experiencing this whole album and sound, it’s clear you’ve cultivated something really distinct. Is this particular musical style something you’ve always embraced from the very beginning, or has it evolved over time from different influences or genres you’ve experimented with?
A. There is a specific sub-genre that lies subtly in all my songs and all the genre bending goodness. Guitars, dreaminess, ethereal and conceptual themes. I like to think its magic I am capturing in a way. I might call it more psychedelic or more whimsical or alternative. I think all my songs are connected by this brooding or soothing dark lullaby energy.
Q. Courtney Nord, we can’t thank you enough for sharing these intimate details! So, what’s next? Can you give us the inside scoop on your upcoming projects and what fans should be excited about? We’d love to be the first to share the news!
A. There is nothing I am ready to announce yet. I am working on my second poetry book and am currently getting back into music slowly but surely. I am not sure where it will lead but it will be different than anything I have done recently. When I produce and mix my own songs they have a certain sound to them. I look forward to sharing it soon.
Courtney Nord, thank you so much, we appreciate you taking the time to talk to us!
End Interview
We’re happy to have shared Courtney Nord’s exciting journey with you and uncovered such inspiring insights about their creative process.
