As busy as they’ve been, Rachel Beauregard and Bryan Dawley — who make up the pop-country duo Native Run — are making an effort to enjoy their budding success.
“This is so unprecedented for us, as we’ve never had a song go to radio. We’re just trying to relish the moment,” Dawley tells Billboard. “It’s been a really crazy couple of weeks. To me, it feels like it’s getting so real.”
Beauregard says this summer was stacked with memories they will never forget. “When I think of the summer of 2014, I will think of lots of traveling and the milestone of all milestones — hearing our song on the radio. It’s unbelievable for us, but also for our families, too. Everyone is so excited,” she says with a smile.
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One of those milestones has been their very first radio tour, which Dawley says went better than expected. “You hear the scary stories from other artists who have been through it before, but for us, it’s been a cool experience. If you want to be an artist, this is what you set out to do — play your music for people, and the radio tour is a microcosm for that. It sets up the ability to play live shows, and gives you a platform for your music to be played. It’s been great for us to get out there and meet everyone at country radio, and get out there and forge relationships with them.”
Hailing from the same area in northern Virginia, the two have known of each other’s talents for quite a while.
Dawley shares with Billboard how the two came to the attention of Show Dog-Universal. “A couple of years ago, we did the BMI Songwriters Festival in Key West. We were slated to play a couple of times there, and at the second show, Cliff Audretch from Show Dog was there. He had some really awesome things to say about our music and about us as people. That started the snowball of us getting signed to a label.”
The single definitely qualifies as a collaborative effort. “We wrote the single with Steve Moakler about a year and a half ago. He opened the first show we performed in Virginia. It was just an easy write. We all knew it was going to be a fun song.”
Native Run’s harmonies have received acclaim from industry insiders — and comparisons to some of the biggest duos of all time, including the Everly Brothers. They recently made their debut on a show where Don and Phil were members once upon a time — the Grand Ole Opry.
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“My heart was beating so fast. I decided to wear a corset that night, which was probably a very bad idea,” Beauregard says. “I was having difficulty breathing. But it was worth it. It was one of experiences that you live for in this business. I remember we had our whole team there beside us, and our friends were backstage with us. Everything we had done just descended into that moment. It was so intense. We went out there, did our thing — it flew by.”
Native Run will soon hit the road as the opening act on David Nail‘s upcoming I’m A Fire tour. “We’re super excited to be out with him and see what he does every night,” says Dawley. “He’s one of the best around.”