Shinedown is currently out on their Dance Kid Dance tour, named after one of two singles the band dropped earlier this year; the other, “Three Six Five,” is still climbing the pop chart. And while it’s a powerful song about loss and grief, Shinedown singer Brent Smith says the track also offers a glimmer of hope.
“Three Six Five” was inspired by the fact that Shinedown bassist Eric Bass lost his father and his aunt, and Eric’s wife, Kellie Bass, lost her sister, all in the same year. Brent says the song addresses that, but also talks about your loved ones remaining a presence in your life, even if they’re not with you anymore.
“Me and Eric were having so many conversations about, you know, his dad and what his dad taught him and his aunt and Kellie and her sister. And they were trying to reflect on all of the good times versus any of the bad times,” he says. “And it’s reflecting on that, and how that hurts and can sadden you.”
“But at the same time, you have to think about that person from beyond, when they kinda wink at you in your own everyday life — even when they’re gone,” he adds. “That they’re reminding you that they see you and they’re telling you to keep going.”
The song also carries an important reminder to not be permanently weighed down by loss, Brent says.
“Time is precious, but it’s not promised,” he notes. “So it’s about going after the things in your own life that mean something to you, [and to not] hold back and to live every day to the fullest.”
Shinedown’s tour wraps Aug. 30 in Memphis. They released a new song, “Killing Fields,” in July, but there’s been no word on a new album.
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