June Divided is Melissa Menago, Chris Kissel, Keith Gill and Lenny Sasso. They’re a rock band from Philly and they’re currently co-headlining a tour with Shane Henderson — and they’re coming to Music City.
The tour hits Nashville on Aug. 29 when they play The Local. Nashville Noise sat down with Menago about the tour, the show and what they like about Nashville.
Nashville Noise: Your co-headlining tour is just a few weeks away. How are you feeling now that it’s so close?
Mel Menago: Pretty excited! We always have fun on the road. Right now, we’re just getting all of our tour ducks in a row, so to speak.
What’s it like co-headlining instead of being on a solo tour or just being tour support? Are there any big differences?
MM: This co-headliner is a little special. We’re actually playing with [the] other headliner, Shane, for his set so we have long nights of playing music ahead of us. He’ll be playing a few shows with us, too. It’s a lot of work for all of us, but it makes the traveling arrangements pretty easy with only five individuals in the entire tour package. It’ll definitely be an experience.
How did you guys decide to hit the road together?
MM: Shane’s old band, Valencia, was a Philly band, and through the years, we’ve ended up on shows with Shane’s various projects (Promise of Redemption and Shane Henderson & the Future Perfect). Last year we toured together too, so we wanted to do it again. Artists in the Philly scene are supportive of each other like that. Philly pride!
You’ll be playing Nashville’s The Local later this month. What can fans expect from your live show?
MM: Energy, mood and some unexpected twists.
Have you played Music City before? What do you like about playing in a music-centric city?
MM: Yes, we played Nashville quite a few years ago. The live sound in Nashville is great — everyone seems to care a little more, from our experiences. There’s an extra sense of pride in what you do in venues down there and it certainly rubs off on the artists in a great way. It’s also just one of my favorite cities to visit with a killer nightlife… and vintage shops. Honestly, I can’t wait to come back!
Also just released your new single, “Firestarter.” What’s the story behind that one?
MM: It’s the first song on the record and it started off with Keith playing that drum beat you hear in the beginning. I loved what he was doing, and ran with it, and the rest of the band did too. “Firestarter” is about someone who is ruining something good or causing more problems than there needs to be.
Grab tickets to see June Divided and Shane Henderson at The Local here. Stay tuned for more news about the band ahead of their Aug. 24 release of Body Wars. For now, you can check out their four singles from the release on their Spotify.
