Charles Esten doesn’t just play a singer on TV.
The “Nashville” star is a singer and songwriter in real life who loves making music so much that he went on a mission to release one single a week for an entire year. Esten’s song No. 52, “Long Haul,” came out on July 7.
“I wanted to get my music out, so it suddenly occurred to me — put your music out,” he told People. “Don’t wait for somebody. Don’t wait for permission.”
Esten plays singer/songwriter Deacon Claybourne on “Nashville,” which now airs on CMT.
He said he decided to launch #EverySingleFriday to share his music with his sizable fan base and in July 2016 announced the project on Facebook.
Esten recorded most of the songs in Nashville. They can be found on Apple Music and on Spotify, where his single “Through the Blue” has amassed 5.5 million streams, according to People.
He said he’s enjoyed producing the music, all of which has a country flavor.
“There were many times [in the studio] … where I’d look at my watch and go, ‘Aw, jeez, I gotta go to work’ — like I was heading toward some coal mine!” Esten said. “So I think that might speak to the place [the project] has in my heart and my life,”
Esten celebrated the release of “Long Haul” with a free concert on Wednesday in Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s CMA Theater.
To underscore his love of music and performing, Esten released a 53rd song, “I’m Coming Home,” on Friday, and said he plans to end his project with the release of a final song this week.
