Kip Moore is known for his gritty discography and his latest single, “Fire on Wheels,” is no exception. His style is instantly recognizable, yet it brings a fresh sound that illustrates his growth sonically.
Moore chatted with Music Mayhem and other media outlets about the story behind the song, the concept for the playful music video, what fans can expect to hear from him on TikTok, and details about his upcoming fall tour.
Written and produced by Moore with Jaren Johnston of The Cadillac Three, “Fire on Wheels” has a familiar driving rock sound with twists and turns that keep you on your toes.
“A lot of songs start with a very specific idea, a very specific concept, a very specific title,” says Moore. “This was one of those that the music drove everything. We started creating that music in the room and it just had such this infectious, raw energy about it.”
When you listen to the lyrics, it sounds like the perfect anthem for Moore’s life on the road and the special relationship he has with his loyal fans.
“From the get go, it felt like a celebration of us and the fans,” says Moore. “It felt like a celebration of what we’re in together. And so we were trying to capture that in a unique way.” He added, “Even how after the first chorus, the whole verse structure changes in the next one. We wanted to do everything off kilter and not follow any kind of formula.”
Notorious for straying from industry norms and trends, the country rocker pulled an unexpected move this week, joining the social media platform TikTok. He was convinced by his team that using TikTok would broaden the reach of his music exponentially. But, he vehemently emphasized that you won’t see him choreographing dance routines.
@kipmooremusic
“The whole point of the thing is to try to get people to hear what you’re doing,” said Moore. “There’s such a large audience that is discovering music strictly through that. So I’m not gonna use it to do anything other than to play underground songs, to play songs from the record.” He added emphatically, “I’m not gonna try to be something that I’m not, I’m not gonna start making up dances and stuff.”
However, fans can find him cutting loose in the “visualizer” music video for “Fire on Wheels.” Set in an almost deserted vintage bowling alley, Moore shows up ready to have a good time, even if nobody else is on board with his idea.
Reminiscent of the scene in Magic Mike XXL where Joe Manganiello’s character enters a gas station and tries to make the cashier smile with his dance moves, Moore lets loose on the hardwood floor of the alley, while a disinterested employee looks on. Completely uninhibited, Moore slides to his knees with an air guitar and gives his best rock star performance, sans instruments. With his Risky Business-like moves, he catches the eye of a group of senior ladies. As he finishes his dance and the song, he smirks at them and says “you’re welcome” as he walks by.
“It was definitely way outta my element,” admitted Moore. “And it was kind of my idea.” Long-time video collaborator PJ Brown asked Moore for his ideas, which resulted in what fans see in the video. “When you’ve got that many cameras in there, and it’s just you, and there’s nobody else to kind of fall back on, it gets uncomfortable for sure. But I tried to do my best, just letting my inhibitions down and just having fun with it, because the whole point of it was to kind of make fun of yourself, you know?”
Moore revealed that even though he’d announced that his next album was done in early May, that isn’t the case anymore.
“I thought it was done. It’s not done. I’m still going” he laughed. “That’s why you’re gonna keep getting all these songs that are rolling out.” He added, “It could be done. I’ve got a record ready right now, but I’m still writing and because of it not coming out probably till early next year, I still have time to kind of alter it.” He revealed that he’s already had that experience. “I stumbled on something a couple days ago that is one of my favorite things I’ve ever done and it’s probably gonna bump something off. So I don’t know what this thing is gonna look like by the time fans actually get it.”
Moore previously shared that he’s already recorded a track with Ashley McBryde. “Ashley has felt like my sister from day one, since we met, we both have that same thing. We’ve got kindred spirits. She feels like people that I grew up with from Tifton, Georgia. We just kind of have a lot of similarities and our walk through life has been a lot the same. We’ve shared a lot of really vulnerable moments with each other, things that we’ve shared, a lot of stuff, things that we’re not happy about with ourselves. We dove in deep. She’s like a sister to me and there’s no judgment and there’s just this, we have a pact.”
While playing a show together in Alaska, Moore played part of a song for McBryde that he’d written while in Maui. When she asked to sing on it, he was thrilled. “I was ecstatic about it because she’s probably my favorite singer in the business. And so we did it and it came out amazing.” Moore also revealed that he doesn’t want to do a collaboration just for the sake of having one. “If I’m just being honest, it feels like there’s a whole lot of collab stuff going on. And that makes me a little hesitant to be honest, because I don’t really like going with the pack. But she did sing her butt off and I thought that our voices blended really well together… we’ll see what happens with it.”
That was about the extent of what Moore was willing to reveal about his upcoming music. “I can tell you this… There’s a very raw approach to what we did with this record.” He added, “Without me giving too much away, these songs might live in a total entity by themselves. I can tell you that I’ve got a stockpile of about 20 things and I’m still working a whole lot too.”
Fans can hear some of that new music on the road this fall for the “Fire on Wheels Tour” with special guest Boy Named Banjo. While Moore won’t have a full new project out by then, fans can expect to hear three to four new songs in the set, which he’ll be releasing during the coming months. The tour kicks off September 8 in Salt Lake City, Utah and crosses the U.S., along with a stop in Canada, before wrapping up in Cleveland, Ohio on November 12.
Tickets for the “Fire On Wheels Tour” will go on sale beginning July 1 at 10am local time at kipmoore.net.
