Megan Miller debuts country rock EP

When a hometown girl breaks into the music business, Baton Rouge knows how to rally.

The city rallied around singer Megan Miller both times she competed on American Idol, in 2012 and 2013. When she returned in December with a homecoming show at Uncle Earl’s and a debut EP, the support poured in once again.

“I’ve gotten so much response [to the EP release] already,” Miller says. “I’ve been overwhelmed with the support from back home. When I came back to Baton Rouge for the unofficial release party, it was amazing. Not just did we get a big crowd, but people around town personally went out of their way to come up to me and tell me how much they support me. I’m so thankful.”

An Ethel native and LSU alum, Miller created and fine-tuned her EP, Aspire, for about a year, working closely with musicians and songwriters in her new home of Nashville. Much of it came together on the road, as Miller tested new songs between her raspy country and rock covers on stages from New York to Florida—even selling out Nashville’s famous Listening Room Café. She wanted her debut to be “just perfect,” though she admits she wasn’t sure what genre she’d land in until the project was finished.

“It ended up with kind of rock country, but the songs each have their own personality … One flirts more with pop, and the next one’s more rock,” Miller says. “One—‘Eyes Closed’—is more country and talks about back home in my very small town growing up. They all flirt with a little of every genre.”

Miller says she will be back in Baton Rouge for more shows this summer, but she’s hoping her hometown supporters will be spinning her record in the meantime.  meganmillermusic.com