“Understanding the order of time is important to anyone hoping to manifest a dream,” says Valerie June. “There is a time to push, and a time to gently tend the garden.”

Since the release of her 2013 breakout Pushin’ Against A Stone, June has been patiently at work in the garden of song, nurturing seedlings with love and care into the lush bloom that is her stunning new album, The Order Of Time. Some songs grew from seeds planted more than a decade ago, others blossomed overnight when she least expected them to, but every track bears the influence of time. See, time has been on June’s mind a lot lately. It’s the only constant in life, even though it’s constantly changing. It’s the healer of all wounds, the killer of all men. It’s at once infinite and finite, ever flowing with twists and turns and brutal, churning rapids that give way to serene stretches of placid tranquility. Fight against the current and it will knock you flat on your ass. Learn to read it, to speak its language, and it will carry you exactly where you’re meant to be.

A trusted troubadour for hot summer nights and cold beers, Owen is now in his forties, tangling with separations from lost lovers, raising kids, and growing out of the fresh-faced kid that headed down to Nashville 20 years back with a six-string and a dream.  Case in point: Dreams to Dream, Owen’s long-awaited, Shooter Jennings-co-produced foray into classic, honky-tonk country, out November 7 via Good Company Entertainment. Dreams to Dream, Owen’s first independent studio album, featuring 10 original tracks and two stellar covers, tells the tale of a man at a crossroads — and what it takes to set out a new path. 

Owen wasn’t expecting much when he commented on one of Shooter Jennings’ Instagram posts, half-jokingly suggesting that they make a honky-tonk record, but the producer called his bluff. Two days later, Owen’s manager had Jennings on the line and, soon, Owen was on his way to L.A. and Jennings’ Sunset Sound. It was a cozy yet electric scene: Jennings and Owen cracking jokes in the sepia-toned studio, creativity crackling as they collaborated with the likes of songwriters Ben Chapman and Kendell Marvel, as well as long-time shooter pal, guitarist/harmonic player Leroy Powell. 

“All my friends who have heard my stuff have gone, ‘Dude, Jake, this is you man. This is who you've always tried to be,’” Owen says. “Sometimes you need to get outside what's comfortable, what people think you are, or think you should be, and take a risk.”

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