[Cover photo credit to Charlie Ward]

Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist ZZ Ward has released her latest single, “Mother,” which kicks off a new chapter in her career with Sun Records. This Blues track tackles Ward’s own experience of motherhood, a topic not often explored in the genre.

ZZ Ward explains of the song:

That’s a mother’s cry. It’s that feeling of being weighed down with this new situation. I never expected men to hear it and relate, but I’ve heard more than a few feel it, too.

I didn’t plan to make a blues song about motherhood, it just sort of happened naturally. I’ve always written to get through things in life. Suddenly, I was faced with a new job that’s 24/7 with no breaks, and that’s what I wrote about. But when you get tested, you discover who you are, and this song comes from a feeling of empowerment.

The song is imbued with the Blues influences that have been a constant in Ward’s life. Growing up surrounded by the Blues, Ward was deeply affected by her father’s extensive record collection. By the time she was 12, she was already performing blues music.

Ward’s early career was a blend of Blues and other genres, but as a professional female musician, she often felt pressured to compromise her Blues roots to meet industry demands. With the birth of her children, her priorities shifted, and she “returned to the authenticity that has always driven her artistry.”