Reuben Bidez ft Molly Parden - What You Really Wanted
LCM Song Of The Day: ‘What You Really Wanted’ - Reuben Bidez ft Molly Parden
We are heading to Nashville today to meet Georgia native folk rock singer-songwriter Reuben Bidez. Reuben is joined on this wonderful live version of ‘What You Really Wanted’ by the very talented Molly Parden, who many might remember joined Sam Outlaw recently on his UK tour. The song is taken from Reuben's latest EP "Something to Say" released in June last year, which is worth checking out. The video was filmed at a great LR Baggs session at Robby Klein’s new studio.
Reuben Bidez grew up in Fayetteville, GA, a small town near Atlanta. He’s been singing and performing for as long as he can remember. “In grammar school, I was always the class clown,” he says. “I’d do anything for a laugh, but I didn’t really hit my stride until I joined the chorus.”
Reuben taught himself to play guitar after landing a job in a small mom and pop music store. “They gave me a job, despite the fact that I didn’t know how to play guitar. I learned on the job and discovered I had a natural musical ability. I started playing for my church youth group’s Wednesday night services. Not everyone would show up each week, so I taught myself bass and drums, to fill in for whoever was missing.”
During his years at Georgia Tech, Bidez started a rock band. They toured the Southeast and put out two EPs and an album before disbanding. Bidez had been writing upbeat pop tunes during his church years, but the songs he wrote for the band had a more personal, introspective tone. After graduation, he stayed in Atlanta, performing at open mics; the songs he put up on ReverbNation won him thousands of followers, but he was struggling to find his place in the Atlanta music scene. After some soul searching, he felt his best career move was to relocate to Nashville. “It was a leap of faith, but I had to do it. The fact that thousands of others are here trying their hardest, makes me want to try harder.”
The move to Nashville gave his career the expected boost. He put out ‘Colors in My Eyes’, a self-produced acoustic EP, released a single called “Learning to Love You,” and landed a video of “Can We Survive” on the American Songwriter website. The magazine praised the music’s “rich, soulful sound.”