The First Day of Summer and What It Means to a Songwriter

Infinity pool with lounge chairs, palm trees, and ocean sunset

Happy Summer Solstice! The longest day of the year. Maximum daylight. The sun at its most full-of-itself.

I love this day. Not just because summer is my season — though it absolutely is — but because there’s something about the turning of a season that always makes me reflective. Every season is a chapter. And the first day of a new season feels like a page turn.

Last summer I was in the thick of writing the Summer State of Mind album, channeling every pool party, every floatie tradition, every “please don’t splash my hair” moment into music. And that album — with songs like Don’t Get My Hair Wet and Floatie Tradition and Sunscreen Rebellion — came directly from living real summer life with real summer joy.

This summer feels different. More expansive somehow. Like there’s more sky.

Part of that is the Texas trip still working its way through my system. Part of it is the sheer volume of creative work happening right now — albums in development, a book in progress, a daily blog streak I’m very proud of, and a July release I am dying to tell you all about. (Next month. SO close.)

But mostly it’s just… gratitude. I get to do this. I get to make music and write words and connect with people through both. That’s not a small thing. That’s actually enormous.

What does the first day of summer mean to you? Is it a relief, a celebration, a beginning? Tell me in the comments.

Follow me on streaming and get ready — summer is bringing something really special from me this year. Stay close. 🌞

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