Big Loud Records’ eccentric newcomer ERNEST has dropped the first taste of his forthcoming debut project, Locals Only. With today’s release of the melodic confession “I Think I Love You” and tequila-drenched “Insane”, the Nashville native is already showing that his music is for everyone.

 

Set to release next Friday (10/11), Locals Only features nine tracks soaked in his signature Tropical Cowboy style. The proven hitmaker – who has scored cuts with Jake Owen, Chris Lane and Florida Georgia Line – co-penned every song on the anticipated project, which shows off his unique hyper-creative lyricism and unpredictable vocal flow.
 
Locals Only Track Listing:
 
1. “I Think I Love You” (Jacob Durrett, Ernest K Smith)*
2. “Insane” (Jacob Durrett, Ernest K Smith)+
3. “Sugar” (Rodney Clawson, Jordan Reynolds, Ernest K Smith)*
4. “All We Need” (Charlie Handsome, Ernest K Smith, Craig Wiseman)*
5. “Keep You Close” (Jacob Durrett, Ernest K Smith)*
6. “Coolin’ (The Island Interlude)” (Brian Kelley, Jordan Schmidt, Ernest K Smith)^
7. “Brain On Love” (Zale Epstein, Ernest K Smith)*
8. “Hard Way” (Corey Crowder, Mark Holman, Ernest K Smith)*
9. “Locals Only” (Brian Kelley, Jordan Schmidt, Ernest K Smith)~
 
* = Produced by Joey Moi
+ = produced by Jacob Durrett, Joey Moi
^ = produced by Jordan Schmidt
~ = produced by Joey Moi, Jordan Schmidt
 
Taking his island-influenced sound coast-to-coast, ERNEST is currently a special guest on Mason Ramsey’s HOW’S UR GIRL & HOW’S UR FAMILY PT. 2 tour this fall, with upcoming shows this weekend in Knoxville, TN (10/4), and Greensboro, NC (10/5). Beginning November 7, he’ll join Chris Lane’s BIG, BIG PLANS TOUR, hitting major cities through February 2020.
 
For more information on ERNEST and upcoming tour dates, please visit ernestofficial.com. Reach out to him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
ABOUT ERNEST:
Adopted at three weeks old and victim to a freak heart attack at 19, surmounting ridiculous odds has always been ERNEST’s gift. He learned banjo and guitar before he was a teen but quickly developed a passion for Hip-Hop and R&B as well, citing Eminem, Ludacris, and George Strait as some of his earliest influences. Discovering an equally powerful love of songwriting, ERNEST began working alongside Nashville songwriting royalty like the Warren Brothers and soon earned cuts from Florida Georgia Line ("Dig Your Roots"), Chris Lane (“Big, Big Plans”), LOCASH, Jake Owen, Mason Ramsey, Morgan Wallen and more. Now set to begin his career as an artist, ERNEST will be unlike anything currently afloat in Music City. Hitting the road this fall and spending endless amounts of time in the studio, the Tropical Cowboy will showcase his distinct sound on his Big Loud Records debut project, Locals Only.