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<\/a>This dedication to staying true to themselves and to their roots is a big reason The Glorious Sons appeal to such a wide audience, but Emmons says the path hasn\u2019t always been an easy one.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think more it\u2019s been the decision to stop drinking a bottle of wine on stage every night, to stop staying out until four in the morning every night partying, to pare your friend group down, to see your parents more, to be a good boyfriend,\u201d he says. \u201cAll these things, they\u2019re conscious decisions that you have to make, and it\u2019s a little harder to make them when you\u2019re on the road constantly, and away from the people you love, and surrounded by\u2014I don\u2019t want to use the word, but\u2014temptation.\u201d<\/p>\n
While this may be a different attitude compared to a lot of rock stars, it\u2019s one that comes across strongly through Emmons\u2019 lyrics, and it lends the band\u2019s music a raw honesty. Rather than contradicting it, Emmons\u2019 message about showing love and loyalty\u2014both to oneself and others\u2014adds a powerful complexity to the wild intensity of his stage performance.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe it\u2019s not as cool, or maybe it\u2019s not as exciting for the fans to hear, or for people to think about, but it\u2019s what keeps me healthy and motivated and happy. I\u2019ve realized I\u2019m not willing to risk losing myself and losing the things I love and the people I love for this whole thing,\u201d he says. \u201cAt the end of the day, I love to write songs, but I don\u2019t necessarily love the lifestyle, and I definitely don\u2019t love it as much as I love my girlfriend, my family, my brother at home. I don\u2019t want to lose those real things that are important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emmons\u2019 passion for songwriting can be heard clearer than ever on the band\u2019s most recent album, Young Beauties and Fools<\/i>; Emmons says it\u2019s that passion that motivates him, especially when he finds himself struggling with the realities of fame.<\/p>\n
\u201cBelieve me, I have to songwrite. It\u2019s what I love to do; it\u2019s my favourite thing in the whole world. But songwriting is a totally different thing than being famous or putting on a persona; that\u2019s not what songwriting is. You don\u2019t sign up for the rest of it,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m a songwriter; that\u2019s what I love to do. That doesn\u2019t mean that I don\u2019t want to be famous, that I don\u2019t want to play in front of the biggest crowds that I possibly can; it just means that I don\u2019t want to mortgage my entire self for that situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether they\u2019re ripping out blistering rock for a crowded stadium or slowing it down for a nostalgic ballad in an intimate club setting, Emmons says the most important thing is that their audience come away from shows feeling like they had a real, meaningful connection with the band.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want them to feel connected to us,\u201d he says. \u201cI want them to feel like they just saw a man be vulnerable, and be himself, and exciting, and sad, and psychotic, and sweaty, and dirty. I want them to feel the emotion that goes into performing in front of people.\u201d<\/p>\n