Singer-songwriter Nikki Lane visited Minneapolis to perform a solo acoustic set of songs and to share some of the stories behind them, drawing from her latest album, Denim & Diamonds (out on New West Records ) as well as selections from her previous releases — plus a new song that's in the works. This session was recorded live at Icehouse on March 1, 2023. Watch and listen to the complete session above. 

Story Highlights

On the creation of the album Highway Queen (2017)
My last record is called Highway Queen; it sounds real fun until you think about how many miles you have to drive and how many floors of vans you have to sleep in to be able to call yourself something like the Highway Queen and brag. But I wrote a lot of the songs on the road, and a lot of vulnerable moments drove a lot of good songs out of it, and I was thinking about important moments … some of my favorite places I've ever played, and I was thinking about kicking my feet on the foot of the stage at the Fillmore and writing "Send the Sun."

On the origin of the song, “Tennessingle”
I went to a Black Pumas concert at the Ryman [Auditorium in Nashville], and Jason Momoa was standing there on one side, and there was like some other hot guy on the other side, and I was like, "Whoo! This is nice." And we went out honky-tonkin' afterwards and I danced all night long. I went home. I slept alone in my bed, and I woke up the next day and I was like, "… That was so fun! I've never been Tennessingle before." And then I realized that could be a single. …

I messaged Dan Auerbach — I got lucky, he made my record a few years ago — I messaged him, I said, "Holy sh*t, we're Tennessingle in Tennessee. Send me a verse." And he wrote a verse, and I left it out the song so the song's shorter now; it's easier without any solos. … You'll see if it sounds like this by the time it gets to the record.

On making the song, “Jackpot”
"Jackpot" is a fun one. It was the most popular song from my last record [Highway Queen]. I called Joel, my radio guy, and I told him I had a conceptual hit called "Jackpot," and it was gonna be on the record, and then I turned in the record, and he said, "There's no song called 'Jackpot'." I said, "Well Joel, it's a conceptual hit." So I wrote it in the last day in the studio. It was really fun.

On her first visit to First Avenue in Minneapolis
One of the first big shows I ever played — I got a call about two weeks beforehand, 10 years ago, to open up for Spiritualized on a 30-day tour — solo. That just sounds so scary. It was like so many 40-year-old guys with their arms crossed, just watching. And then afterwards, they were like, "You were awesome!" And I was like, "Oh, OK, this is the type … That's what we're dealing with here.” And it was fantastic.

But the first show, we pulled into the garage at First Avenue, and that was the beginning of tour, and I was spoiled from there on out, and I was like, "I will get a star on this wall before they're all full." I wanted a gold record, too; that sh*t ain't never gonna happen, so my friend got me a gold record from a thrift store, and I super-glued my CD to the front of it. It hangs in the living room; I hide it when an electrician comes over so that the price [for electrical repairs] doesn't skyrocket.

On the music video for “Denim & Diamonds”
My new record is called Denim & Diamonds. … I just made a new music video [for the title track]; it is amazing. The idea stemmed from the fact that my manager has a four-year-old daughter who asked for a Nikki Lane dress for Christmas, and she rocks out and sings “Denim & Diamonds,” but they taught her she can't say "sh*t," so she has to go "Shhh!" And so she's the star of the whole damn thing. There's other people in [the video] but nobody's going to notice.

Songs Performed

00:00:00 You Can’t Talk To Me Like That
00:05:00 Send The Sun
00:08:04 First High
00:13:05 Tennessingle
00:16:41 Jackpot
00:21:28 Right Time
00:25:29 Denim and Diamonds

Songs 1 and 6 are from Nikki Lane’s 2014 album, All Or Nothin’; songs 2 and 5 are from 2017’s Highway Queen; and songs 3 and 7 are from 2022’s Denim & Diamonds. All are available on New West Records. Song 4, “Tennessingle,” is as yet unrelased.

Credits

Performer –   Nikki Lane (vocals, guitar)
Video Director – Guillermo Bonilla
Camera Operators – Erik Stromstad, Guillermo Bonilla
Recording – Ryan Mach
Audio Mix – Eric Xu Romani
Graphics – Natalia Toledo
Digital Producer – Luke Taylor

External Links

Nikki Lane - official site

Icehouse - official site