With massive fan appeal, not to mention record sales in excess of 13 million units sold over the span of their career, 3 Doors Down surely leads the rock and roll pack these days. With their first new single, “It’s Not My Time” blasting off as the #1 Greatest Gainer when released last month, the band is eagerly awaiting a summer tour in support of their fourth and eagerly anticipated self-titled album that comes out in the end of May.
Formed in Mississippi in 1994 and now based out of Nashville, 3 Doors Down is made up of Brad Arnold (vocals and drums), Matt Roberts (guitar) and Todd Harrell (bass). The band was snatched up by Universal Records in the year 2000, who released their first CD called “The Better Life” which included not only the chart-busting single “Kryptonite”, but “Loser” and “Duck and Run,” tipping the sales of their freshman release to over six-times platinum!
I had the chance to sit down recently and have a great conversation with the bands singer, Brad Arnold, who is full of both southern charm and plenty of rock and roll chops.
AAM: Are you excited about the new “3 Doors Down” CD?
Brad Arnold: I am.
AAM: You guys play out almost every night. I read last year you played something like 300 shows!
Brad: If we’re touring all year we can play 280-300 shows. I just moved up to Nashville and I’ve got a lot of buddies who are country guys. They play like 3 nights a week and come home; they play like twelve shows a month. I’m like ‘what, I’ve got twelve shows this week!’
AAM: You have always had like a grass-roots approach; you just take it right to the streets and to your fans.
Brad: You know we enjoy getting out there and playing, that’s what it’s all about. A lot of bands kind of look at it as sort of like going on tour to promote a record, we look at it as making a record so we can go out on tour I believe!
AAM: When you were writing this CD I’ve heard it was during a time when you were doing a lot of soul searching. What is that about?
Brad: So much has changed for us in the last couple of years and we went through a lot of changes in our lives. We toured so much the first six years out, and the seventh year we pretty much took it off. Last year we spent the whole year writing and recording this record. And you know just a lot of changes went on. After all of it I think everybody in the band is in a better place than they’ve been in a long time in their lives. And I’m so happy for everybody.
AAM: So it’s like to get inspired to write new songs you have to get out and live your life.
Brad: You so do. You live your life in a bubble and you never see anything, you know?
AAM: How do you balance your home life and your musical life?
Brad: You know it was kind of out of balance there for a little while. I went through a divorce and stuff like that, and so did my bass player. It’s all for the good, but it takes a little while for you to find yourself after that. And the last year I have an angel, I have my girlfriend, and we’ve been together this last year. She’s my angel and she helped me put a lot of things together in my life. And just made me feel alive again, you know? That’s where I kind of searched my soul and found it. Sometimes it takes some back roads to get where you want to go. Everybody went through so many changes that I think we’re all just in good places and we’re just happy to be where we are.
AAM: How do you like Nashville now that you’ve moved from Mississippi?
Brad: I love it, it’s a cool place. I mean I love Mississippi; it will always be my home. But at the same time up here in Nashville you can surround yourself with great artists and great writers and just generally great people. It’s a good quality of life; it’s easy to have a good day in this town!
AAM: Tell me a bit about these new songs.
Brad: You know, the new songs, I couldn’t be more proud of them. They’re just good songs and having the time to sit there and reflect on your life in the songs and not have to hurry through them. Having the time to write them, listen to them, let them grow, and find things about them that you can change.
The time that we had to spend on this record was a blessing, and it shows in the songs, the time we put into them. And I’m really proud of them. They really express where we are right now and we’re really excited about them.
AAM: When you first started out, could you have ever imagined your huge success with sales of over 14 million records and counting? Is it beyond your wildest dreams?
Brad: Most definitely! I remember, and I’ve said it before, but I remember when the label, when we put out our first record. We were just worried about selling 50,000 records so we could make another record. Everything after that was gravy!
AAM: The song “Kryptonite,” one of your biggest hits to date, is a totally contagious and wonderful song! What was going through your head when you wrote that?
Brad: Algebra problems! I wrote that when I was actually in high school algebra. We wrote that song like four years before it came out. You know what; it’s just about my friends in high school. It’s just about, you know, unconditionally would you be there for me? Like you said, it’s just one of those songs that sticks in your head.
I was so bad in math. I used to sit in class and write songs, I just didn’t like math!
AAM: I used to do the same thing in math class, except I wrote poetry!
Brad: Well you know what, that’s basically what I did too. The folder I have that’s full of songs are poems. Because all a song really is is a poem that has a repetitive theme in it.
AAM: You have won so many awards. What were you thinking and who did you thank first?
Brad: I thank God first every time. Then the fans second. Everyone that’s important to us, it takes a lot of people to make it happen. But above all of them, I always thank God.
All Access Magazine would like to thank Brad for sharing his thoughts and time with us. AAM congratulates 3 Doors Down on their new single; “It’s Not My Time” and look forward to reviewing their self-titled album in stores, May 20th
For more info: www.3doorsdown.com
