Hilton moved to Los Angeles to launch himself as a musician. After releasing a self-titled independent CD, he signed to Warner Bros. imprint Maverick Records, which released his major-label debut The Tracks of Tyler Hilton the same year that Hilton made his acting debut starring as the musically talented but totally arrogant Chris Keller on the second season of One Tree Hill. Other roles followed, including playing Elvis Presley in the critically acclaimed Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line, co-starring in the indie film Charlie Bartlett with Robert Downey Jr., and returning to One Tree Hill for its final season in 2012.
Yet while his cover songs appeared on the Grammy Award-winning Walk the
Line soundtrack and his Americana-flavored originals were featured on each
of One Tree Hill’s popular soundtracks, Hilton had yet to release another full- length album of his own. He recorded one, The Storms We Share, in the fall of 2010, but its release was thwarted by a shake-up in leadership at Warner Bros. “So much had gone down at the label and I just wasn’t up for going another round with them,” Hilton says. In December, he was released from his contract, with the label retaining the rights to The Storms We Share. “At that point, I was really down on the music industry,” he says. “I wasn’t even sure I wanted to make another album.”
But, being an artist, Hilton did what artists do and channeled all of his frustrated emotions into a batch of songs, the bulk of which make up his new album Forget the Storm, which Hilton has released on his own label, Hooptie Tune Records. “It was the first time in nine years that I was in a position to make music without asking anyone’s permission,” he says. The result is a spirited and engaging collection that finds Hilton finally representing who he truly is both personally and artistically.
What inspired Hilton to begin writing again was the sheer thrill of playing live. “I was booked to play a residency at the Hotel Cafe´ not long after leaving the label and I was not looking forward to it,” Hilton admits. “I thought, ‘I don't care if anyone comes, I’m only going to play music that I want to play, and if people don't like it, I've got one foot out the door anyway.’" He asked two of his friends, musician/songwriters Dave Hodges and Steve Miller, to join him. “I said, ‘I'm not going to pay anything, but if you guys want to have some drinks and mess around on stage, let's do it. I want to do a lot of covers; I want to do some blues songs."
The Hotel Cafe´ shows were packed each night. “We were doing Stones, Dylan, and Ryan Adams covers and lots of blues, and at the end of it I remembered that I love playing music,” Hilton says. “I thought if I’m ever going to do another record, it should have this vibe. What’s the worst that could happen? I had been playing by the rules and it hadn’t worked.”
Hilton began writing with Hodges (a songwriter who has worked with Daughtry, Carrie Underwood, and Christina Perri) and his guitarist Steve Miller, and over the course of a few months, came up with the songs on Forget the Storm — a title he calls “a direct reference to throwing away my last record and starting over, and also because it’s an album about leaving s**t behind.”
Lyrically, the album is an unflinchingly honest piece of work that finds Hilton reflecting on his relationship with himself, with his loved ones, and even with music — reveling in the good, owning up to the bad, and examining everything in between. “You could probably learn more about me by listening to this album than you could by talking to me for an hour,” he says. “It’s very personal and much closer to who I really am than what I’ve revealed in the past, but it's easier to write from that place when you have nothing left to lose.”
Fittingly, Forget the Storm opens with a song inspired by his heartbreak over the music industry: “Kicking My Heels,” which his fans went crazy over when he premiered it on an episode of One Tree Hill. “That song is the darkest part of the album for me because it’s reminder of how a lot of bad can come out of having time on your hands and not being sure of what you're going to go next. During the months before I started writing I had no focus. I felt rudder-less. The one good thing was having someone I loved in my life, which is what the song is about.” The album’s first single “Prince of Nothing Charming” finds Hilton trying to get to the heart of who he is in a relationship. “Sometimes I don't have it all together,” he admits. “I space out on things, I drink too much. There are a lot of things you could take aim at me for. But I’m drawn to the idea of a couple who really love one another despite all the cracks and flaws.” “Jenny” and “Can’t Stop
Now” also offer a realistic look at love and the compromises one makes, while “I Belong” is the antidote, describing how it feels to be in a relationship that truly works.
Though fans of Hilton’s strummy pop songs will find plenty to like on Forget the Storm, the album also charts new territory with two songs, the rockabilly- flavored, sexually charged “Loaded Gun” (which he wrote with country artist Deana Carter) and the untamed stomper “Ain’t No Foolin’ Me,” both of which Hilton is looking forward to playing live when he hits the road this year. “There are times when you just want to rock out onstage,” says Hilton, who has entertained audiences across the country both as a headliner and with such artists as Taylor Swift, Gavin DeGraw, and Goo Goo Dolls. “I play all kinds of styles of music in my show and the audiences seem to really love the rock and roll moments.”
Most of all, Hilton is excited to finally have a new full-length album for his fans who’ve stuck with him for so many years. “I kept giving them what I called half- assed EPs that were the best I could do in the situation I was at with Warner Bros.,” he says. “But with an album, you have a chance to change direction and try something new rather than perpetuating the sound you already have. This record was the first opportunity I had to say something different. It's a clean slate.”
INSOMNIA
Tyler Hilton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the more I try, the more that I forget
To think of you is a flash to find
To think of you I find my light to pass the time
You want me to be that better one
Time goes slowly with you only
Insomnia my friend
I miss the girl and I lost my light
So I'm stumbling through this hollow room for peace of mind
I find that I am going over everything I've said to you, for you
Insomnia my friend
Insomnia my friend
You want me to be that better one
Time goes slowly with you only
You want me to be that better one
Time goes slowly with you only
Insomnia my friend
Insomnia my friend
Insomnia, insomnia
I miss the girl whose not impressed by
Insomnia and my cigarette light, my cigarette light
Tyler Hilton's song "Insomnia" speaks about missing someone and struggling to sleep at night. The lyrics start off with Tyler expressing his longing for his past love and the comfort he found in smoking cigarettes. He mentions that the more effort he puts into trying to forget her, the harder it is to do so. Thinking about her triggers a spark within him, and he loses track of time in the process.
The chorus, "Insomnia my friend," reaffirms the fact that he's having difficulty sleeping, and he's become accustomed to this situation. He then talks about stumbling in a hollow room trying to find peace of mind, which could mean he feels lost and unstable without his love. He mentions going over everything he's said to her in the past, which shows that he's still trying to process their relationship and what went wrong.
The song continues to emphasize the struggle of missing someone, being sleep-deprived, and wanting to feel better. Tyler mentions wanting to be a better person for his love, but everything seems to slow down when he's alone with her. The song ends with him reminiscing about the girl who wasn't fazed by his insomnia or his addiction to cigarettes.
Line by Line Meaning
I miss the girl, and the cigarettes
I feel a longing for a person and the bad habits we had together
And the more I try, the more that I forget
I try to forget about you, but it only brings back more memories
To think of you is a flash to find
Thoughts of you hit me suddenly and unexpectedly
To think of you I find my light to pass the time
Thinking of you is the only thing that gives me comfort during my insomnia
You want me to be that better one
You want me to improve myself for our relationship
Time goes slowly with you only
Time moves slower when I'm with you, which can be good or bad
Insomnia my friend
I have a close relationship with insomnia as it provides me company and reflection time
I miss the girl and I lost my light
Without you, I feel like something important is missing in my life
So I'm stumbling through this hollow room for peace of mind
I feel lost and aimless without you, and my insomnia is making it worse
I find that I am going over everything I've said to you, for you
I'm replaying our conversations and moments together, wondering what could have been different
Insomnia and my cigarette light
My insomnia and smoking have become habits that are associated with my memories of you
Lyrics © CTM Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TYLER HILTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind