JARED HOVIS

                                                               "Rather Leave Loving You" 

                                                               Shasta County Country

Everywhere you turn in Nashville you’re going to find music being performed. However, with so much music being played every hour of every day, finding your niche amongst the very crowded pack can be quite the task for an artist who is trying to get recognized.

For Jared Hovis, a Northern California native who has chased his dreams to Music City, he seems to have found the trick to standing out – great songs!

Hovis is known for his outstanding cover performances at hot spots like AJ’s Good Time Bar and Scoreboard Bar & Grill, but the industry took recognition of the modern traditionalist in 2020 when he released his incredible song “Comin’ Over Sober,” and then followed it with a nod to his 90’s country influences on “Bad Ole Days.” 

He now returns with his brand-new single “Rather Leave Loving You,” and with it, he’s poised to make a huge leap forward on his career path.

While the song absolutely delves more towards a modern country feel in terms of production and melody, Hovis is also very smart to never lose that traditional bent that’s defined him thus far as he continues to showcase his tremendous growth.

The lyrics weave us through a tale we can all relate to - walking away from a relationship. However, where Hovis flips the script in comparison to other songs that focus on this same idea, is in that there’s really nothing to note that’s wrong with the relationship he’s leaving behind. By never really exploring this, Hovis perhaps uncovers a much deeper emotion as the song feels more like someone having their walls up and walking away from something good for fear of potentially being hurt.

He shows off his songwriting abilities several times throughout the song, but most prominently when he uses great comparison lines in the chorus to try and explain his leaving: 

“I’d rather dock this boat before it’s sunk, close out a tab before I get too drunk.”

“Put this fire out before it’s outta control, set us both free and get on down the road.”

“Before I make a mess of the best that we’ve been through, and I’d rather leave loving you.”

With “Rather Leave Loving You,” Jared Hovis does everything right. He doesn’t lose sight of who he is as an artist and songwriter, the melody is catchy, the lyrics are relatable and will connect with the listener, and he uses his vocals to perfectly pluck on heartstring emotions as you can feel his hurt as he’s making himself walk away from someone he describes as somebody who “could be the one.”

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)