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Stephen Wilson Jr. might be the only former scientist in Americana who can turn a boxing ring, a Pixies classic, and a Temple of the Dog anthem into different chapters of the same existential crisis. The Indiana-born singer-songwriter has been steadily dismantling genre expectations since søn of dad, and his latest run of singles, including “Gary,” “Preacher’s Kid,” “Cørnerman,” and the Miranda Lambert collaboration “Hardwired,” suggests he’s nowhere near finished. Speaking with Kyle Meredith, Wilson reflects on the deeply personal connections running through his catalog, the unexpected musical detours that have shaped his next chapter, and the surreal experience of joining Eddie Vedder onstage at the Ohana Festival to sing Chris Cornell’s parts on “Hunger Strike.” Listen above or wherever you get your podcasts.
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That Ohana performance wasn’t merely a bucket-list moment; Wilson had previously recorded “Hunger Strike” for his Blankets EP, a collection designed to reconnect him with the simple pleasure of making music after the emotional excavation of søn of dad. “I just wanted to record it because it’s like a hymn for me,” he explains. Finding himself alongside Vedder was another matter entirely. “It felt like to me the sky opened up for a few minutes and everything just kind of went still and quiet,” Wilson recalls.
That same instinct to follow a song wherever it leads also explains the unexpected appearance of Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind?” in “Hardwired,” his collaboration with Lambert. ilson says the chorus arrived during his drive to the writing session, and the Pixies connection emerged almost accidentally. By placing Black Francis’ famous existential question alongside lyrics about people working themselves into the ground, Wilson found an entirely different kind of psychological unraveling. “They’re going crazy just from like working themselves to death,” he says. “It’s just a different type of insanity.” For Wilson, borrowing the song was about finding another layer of meaning hiding inside something familiar.
But the deepest connections remain the ones running between Wilson and his late father. “Cørnerman,” he explains, is essentially a sequel to “Father’s Søn,” continuing the conversation begun on søn of dad alongside songs like “I’m a Song” and “Grief Is Only Love.” Its origins stretch back to a performance of “Stand by Me” at Bridgestone Arena, where Wilson felt his father’s presence so intensely that it almost seemed like a final goodbye. Shortly afterward, he transformed the stage at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium into a boxing ring, complete with the well-worn mat from his own gym. Boxing had been his first experience performing in front of people, and the metaphor became a way of confronting the next rounds of a career. “I’m just trying to be a good record keeper,” says the former scientist, who sees his songs as observations rather than declarations. “I’m not really making any particular proclamations with these songs. I’m just showing everybody what I’ve seen and where I’ve been.” And while the songwriter acknowledges that continuing this journey means learning to let go, he isn’t pretending the fight has gotten any easier. “Art has been such a friend and also such an opponent at the same time,” he admits. “It’s quite a wild little fight, but I’m really proud to be in it.”
Listen to Stephen Wilson Jr. talk about his new music, søn of dad, performing with Eddie Vedder, and more in the new episode above or by watching the video below. Get tickets to all his upcoming tour dates, even his sold out November/December East Coast run, here.
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