EXCLUSIVE: Kinsley on the College Dorm Song That Became Her Debut EP
The rising artist sat down with All Country News to talk about the difficult stories behind Learn To Live, collaborating with Caitlyn Smith and the connection she hopes to build with listeners.
The Song That Started in a College Dorm
Before “Learn To Live” became the title track of Kinsley’s debut EP, it was a song she wrote alone in her college dorm nearly four years ago. She was working through something deeply personal and found that writing it down came more easily than saying it out loud.
“It’s a mental health story that I wrote alone in my college dorm nearly four years ago,” Kinsley told All Country News. “It was a classic case of something that I found hard to talk about was actually much easier to write down.”
“Learn To Live” became the first original song she shared publicly. Now it gives its name to her six-song debut, connecting the earliest piece of her story as an artist to the project she is sharing today.
Kinsley said watching the song take on a life of its own has been “incredible and so fulfilling.” Its place on the EP feels especially fitting: the honesty that helped her write it runs throughout the rest of the collection.
Writing Toward the Hard Feelings
Kinsley co-wrote all six tracks on Learn To Live, including “Pieces of Me,” “Whiplash” and “Cold July.” Bringing those songs together taught her something about the subjects she gravitates toward as a writer.
“I tend to lean into the edgier side of human emotion and weirdly feel safest writing about the things I’m intimidated by,” she said. “I grow the most when I’m uncomfortable with the song concept.”
For Kinsley, discomfort can be a sign that a song is worth pursuing. The feelings she might hesitate to discuss are often the ones she feels most compelled to explore in music. “Learn To Live” began that way, and the process of making the EP gave her more opportunities to turn personal experiences into songs.
Sharing those experiences also leaves room for listeners to bring their own stories to the project. Kinsley hopes someone hearing the EP recognizes a feeling they have struggled to put into words.
“I hope listeners understand that I have been where they are, and that they are never too far gone,” she said. “I hope they feel seen and heard.”
A Collaboration With Caitlyn Smith
One of the project’s standout collaborations came on “Cold July,” which brought Kinsley together with Caitlyn Smith. Kinsley told All Country News the experience pushed her as both a vocalist and a lyricist.
“Trying to keep up with her was the greatest experience,” Kinsley said, adding that Smith “truly brings this track to life.”
It was a chance for Kinsley to challenge herself alongside an artist she admires while adding another voice to a project rooted in her own writing.
The Connection She Wants to Make Next
With her debut EP released and a global publishing deal with Sony Music Nashville, Kinsley is taking in a career moment she describes as surreal. But when she talks about what she wants next, her answer comes back to the people on the other side of the songs: a long run of shows and the chance to meet listeners face-to-face.
“I think of this career as more the service industry than the entertainment industry,” she told All Country News. “I just want to help people the way music helped me.”
It’s a goal that reaches back to the college dorm where “Learn To Live” began. Writing the song helped Kinsley express something difficult. Now she hopes sharing it will help someone else do the same.
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