Drew Parker’s real simple music video concept for his song “While You’re Gone” is also real country. Find the singer-songwriter atop his white Chevy Silverado, whittling down a case of cheap beer to drown his heartache in this clip.
A single stationary camera captures the many scenes and increasingly unhinged moods of Parker as he works through the emotions of his new song, the title track to the While You’re Gone EP, set for a Wednesday release (Oct. 21). At first, the Georgia-raised hitmaker for Luke Combs and Jake Owen is contemplative, but by the end he’s dressed in camouflage and spread across the roof of the pickup truck.
“You’re gonna come back, with your bags packed / Missing me ‘fore too long / I’ll be right here drinking a beer baby, while you’re gone,” he sings to close the chorus.
Parker, a recent SiriusXM Highway Find artist, co-wrote “While You’re Gone” with “Some Girls” singer Jameson Rodgers. He says he likes that the song reminds him of everything he listened to growing up in the ’90s.
“It’s a song that tells a story in a unique way, but also has a slight comical side to it,” he says, “one that is just so fun to sing and relatable to anyone that has ever gone through a breakup.”
Parker’s new EP comes as he continues to gain recognition as a talented songwriter and live performer. He wrote “Homemade,” a No. 1 hit for Owen, and “1, 2 Many,” the song Combs recorded with Brooks & Dunn. In 2021, look for Parker to join Combs on tour, having previously opened the This One’s for You Tour.
His description of the While You’re Gone EP makes a dynamic audio impression: ”I have a good beer drinking, country honky-tonk boot stomper — a song that shows the vulnerability of my music and how I like to tell stories, and then a very personal song that I wrote five years ago, before I ever thought about being a dad, that has now taken on a whole new meaning,” Parker says, sharing that his baby girl is now six months old.
Jonathan Singleton and Ray Fulcher are other writers Parker worked with for his new EP. Recently, he signed a publishing deal with River House Artists.
