The Things You’ve Done: From a New Release to Hearing My Song After Cody Johnson
October 2026
When I released The Things You’ve Done on October 2, I knew it was one of my favorite songs I’d written and recorded. It’s also the closest I’ve come so far to the sound I’ve been working toward: Texas Country storytelling with ’90s country influence and a darker, guitar-driven rock edge. The song explores the damage left behind when a relationship falls apart, and I wanted the recording to carry that same weight.
I believed in this song, but I couldn’t have predicted what the first few days after its release would bring.
One of the biggest moments came through Red Dirt Proud, a syndicated radio show reaching 57 stations. The first time I heard The Things You’ve Done on the show, it played right after a song by Cody Johnson. Then JB Cloud introduced me by name, and my song came on.
It’s hard to explain what that felt like. I’ve spent years writing songs and developing my sound, often doing the work behind the scenes while funding my music career independently alongside my job as a registered nurse.
Then, suddenly, I was hearing something I’d written in my own home coming through the radio after an artist I’ve looked up to for years.
For a moment, all you can think is, This is really happening.
More Than Just a Spin
That first play was exciting enough, but The Things You’ve Done was subsequently selected for full rotation on Red Dirt Proud, giving the song an opportunity to reach listeners across the show’s network week to week.
I’m incredibly grateful to JB Cloud for giving the song a chance and believing it belonged on the show. That kind of support means a lot, especially when you’re building a career independently.
I don’t have a promoter or publicist working behind the scenes for me. For now, I handle the outreach, build the relationships, fund the recordings, and take care of as much of the business as I can myself. Sometimes that means emailing 30 radio stations and hearing nothing but crickets. You keep going because you believe in what you’re doing, even when you aren’t sure who’s listening.
I wrote The Things You’ve Done in the little spare room of my house and held on to it for years. When I finally brought it into the studio with Jesse Shirts producing, the recording came together in a way that captured the sound I’d been hearing in my head. Seeing that vision become a finished song was rewarding on its own. Hearing it introduced by name on the radio, playing after an artist I’ve admired for years, took it to another level.
I know one radio placement doesn’t make a career, and there’s still a long way to go. But moments like this are a reminder that the work can lead somewhere, and that the songs you believe in might find an audience you never could have reached on your own.
Building This One Song at a Time
The sound I’m developing brings together the storytelling I grew up loving in country music, the spirit of the Texas country and red dirt scene, and the harder edge of country rock. I want to write about real relationships, mistakes, regret, and the things we carry long after a moment has passed. I want the recordings to have grit and emotion, too. Not everything in life sounds polished, and I don’t think every country song should, either.
I’m still building, still learning, and still working toward what I want this career to become. The goal is to keep making music that feels true to me while earning the opportunity to share it with more people.
For now, I’m grateful for this moment, for everyone who has given the song a listen, and especially for JB Cloud for helping make it happen.
I won’t forget hearing The Things You’ve Done on Red Dirt Proud after Cody Johnson. It’s a pretty incredible feeling to hear something that started in a spare room at home find its way onto the radio.
And it makes me ready to get back to work on the next song.
Listen to “The Things You’ve Done” and follow along as I continue building this thing, one song at a time.
Awesome!