Florida Georgia Line's Brian Kelley captures 'Sunshine State of Mind' in debut solo album

For a split-second last summer, Brian Kelley thought about canceling the writing session that creatively kicked off what would become his solo debut album. 

It was the day before his 35th birthday and slipping into "party mode" sounded a lot easier than his first try at writing songs with collaborators via Zoom. 

"It's just fear," said Kelley, who's known as the "Florida" half of hitmaking country duo Florida Georgia Line. "I literally go, BK, if you want the songs to sing, you gotta go freaking write 'em and show up. 

"I wanna share my story, my life, my love. I had to kick myself in the a** a little bit," he continued. "Once I realized that, I feel like it was wide open." 

Kelley's kick in the rear paid off to the tune of a 17-song solo album, "Sunshine State of Mind," out Friday via Warner Music Nashville/Nashville South Records. 

A native of Ormond Beach, Florida, Kelley spins a collection that captures barefoot beach parties, logs nautical miles and takes listeners to sandy Sunday morning services — all from a singer who promises with the album's last song to be a "Florida Boy Forever." 

A solo record wasn't top-of-mind when COVID-19 derailed virtually all touring in 2020, Kelley said. But after a summer of "soul searching" and a writing session — the same one he almost canceled — that lit a spark, a storm of ideas began brewing. 

"I made a deal with myself years ago that if the songs were there ... then I'd go for it," Kelley said, adding: "It needed to be more intentional and just me. Have my penmanship on it." 

'A creative high' 

One writing session swelled into a handful of songs and, eventually, a wave of 17 co-writes from Kelley on the album.

He enlisted Florida Georgia Line collaborator Corey Crowder to co-produce "Sunshine State of Mind," which features a rotating cast of collaborators from singer-songwriter Canaan Smith to Grammy-nominated Nicolle Galyon, Music Row hitmaker Jimmy Robbins, Jake Rose and Blake Redferrin, among others. 

Some co-writers decamped to the Florida panhandle — Kelley's home since relocating from Nashville in late 2016 —for days in the "BK ringer," he said. He didn't want sessions to be an eight-hour work day, instead opting to chase songs when it made sense. 

"To me it was important to not feel like it's a job," Kelley said. "I want to spend my time wisely, intentionally. We just all dove in deep." 

As a result, Kelley said the album shows "a creative high I don't think I've ever been on." Listeners hear the result in songs like the light-hearted earworm "Beach Cowboy,"  banjo-tinged "Highway On The Water" or loving, laid-back getaway "Say The Word." 

Still, not all of "Sunshine State of Mind" revolves around Kelley's time on the Gulf Coast. He takes listeners to Georgia with "Savannah," a fiddle-and-guitar tune about a landlocked narrator looking for a "good place to get lost." 

He sings, "Take me down to Savannah/ Somewhere on the river and I'll show you what a happy man looks like in real life." Kelley began the song after a trip last October to Savannah that left him inspired. 

"I was in Nashville when I started writing it," Kelley said. "To me, that's still that 'Sunshine State of Mind.' Wishing you were somewhere else but still carrying that place with you." 

And Kelley chased songs up and down the coast, recording a handful of tracks on a trip to Key West, Florida. 

 A fishing trip in the Keys turned into Kelley capturing a song — "Fish All Day" — that nods to key lime pie and Hemingway stories. 

"We were just living it down there," Kelley said. "If the weather was good, we went fishing. ... When the weather was (expletive), or whatever, we'd knock vocals out or write." 

What's next? 

After "Sunshine" drops, Kelley hits the road later this year for a Florida Georgia Line arena tour with Russell Dickerson, Lauren Alaina and Redferrin. 

He's "excited about the possibilities" of performing solo material when not on the road with FGL, but no plans have been set in stone. 

"I'm gonna see what comes in," Kelley said, adding: "Maybe routing around FGL stuff, meeting up on tour — I don't know how that looks. The fact that somebody (would) want me to come play this record live would be a dream come true, and I'd love to do that." 

As for more music? It's possible, Kelley said. He's billed the "Sunshine" release as "Season One" of the project, leaving the door open for a beachside encore. 

"I think so," Kelley said with a laugh when asked about season two. "We'll see. Hopefully." 

'Sunshine State of Mind' tracklist 

(songwriters in parenthesis) 

1. “Boat Names” (Brian Kelley, Parker Welling, Casey Brown)
2. “Made By The Water” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Randy Montana)
3. “Sunburnt Barefoot & In Love” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin)
4. “Highway On The Water” (Brian Kelley, Blake Redferrin, Jake Rose)
5. “Real Good Day” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Chase McGill)
6. “Party On The Beach” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin, Canaan Smith)
7. “Don’t Take Much” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Canaan Smith) 
8. “Fish All Day” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin, Canaan Smith)
9. “Boat Ride” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Canaan Smith) 
10. “Beach Cowboy” (Brian Kelley, Blake Redferrin, Jake Rose) 
11. “By Boat” (Brian Kelley, Jimmy Robbins, Nicolle Galyon)
12. “Songs For You” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin)
13. “Say The Word” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Chris Loocke, Blake Redferrin, Joe Clemmons) 
14. “Horses On The Beach” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin, Jake Rose)
15. “Savannah” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin, Canaan Smith) 
16. “Sunday Service In The Sand” (Brian Kelley, Blake Redferrin, Canaan Smith, Jake Rose) 
17. “Florida Boy Forever” (Brian Kelley, Corey Crowder, Blake Redferrin, Canaan Smith, Jake Rose)