Oklahoma Americana singer-songwriter Carter Sampson talks 'Gold,' Rock and Roll Camp for Girls

Brandy McDonnell, Oklahoman
·6 min read

Carter Sampson is feeling as good as "Gold" as she hits the road with her new album.

"I did a five-week European tour at the end of 2019, and I was like, 'I could use a break. I think I'm going to take a month off.' And then that turned into three years," she said.

Before she heads out on her anticipated summer UK trek with Nashville-based singer-songwriter Amelia White, the Oklahoma-born and raised Americana entertainer is releasing "Gold," her first album since the COVID-19 outbreak, April 7 on Tulsa-based Horton Records.

The follow-up to Sampson's 2018 Horton Records collection "Lucky" has already risen to No. 15 on the Americana Radio Albums Chart. To celebrate her "Gold" album, the award-winning Oklahoma City-based singer-songwriter is planning a series of spring home-state shows, including electric full-band dates April 7 at the Blue Door in OKC, April 8 at Old Church Center in Perkins and April 28 at Maggie's Music Box in Jenks, plus acoustic performances in Tahlequah, Muskogee, McAlester and more.

A Citizen Potawatomi Nation citizen and the self-proclaimed "Queen of Oklahoma," Sampson, 42, spoke with The Oklahoman about working with fellow Okie Kyle Reid on her new album, paying homage to her mom on the title track and bringing back the summer Rock and Roll Camp for Girls OKC.

Oklahoma Americana singer-songwriter Carter Sampson is releasing her new album "Gold" April 7 on Tulsa-based Horton Records.
Oklahoma Americana singer-songwriter Carter Sampson is releasing her new album "Gold" April 7 on Tulsa-based Horton Records.

Differences between 'Gold' and 'Lucky'

Q: Let's talk about how different this album sounds than your last one. These songs have more depth and melancholy to them than "Lucky." 

A: Some of those songs were written pre-pandemic off the new record, and then some of them I wrote during it. There's a song called "Can't Stop Me Now" that is very much about feeling stuck. I hadn't felt like that since I was a teenager, just that feeling of, "I'm here and I can't go anywhere. I can't do anything." At the time, it was because I was in control of my parents, but as a grown-up, this was a pandemic, and I was like, "I really hate this."

Oklahoma Americana singer-songwriter Carter Sampson is releasing her new album "Gold" April 7 on Tulsa-based Horton Records.
Oklahoma Americana singer-songwriter Carter Sampson is releasing her new album "Gold" April 7 on Tulsa-based Horton Records.

Yeah, I think there probably is a little bit more melancholy than "Lucky." ... There are a couple of story songs on there. We've got two storm songs, and Kyle and I were joking about, "Is that too many storm songs?" But we decided that we're from Oklahoma and that you should write what you know, so we kept them both on there. (laughs)

Working with Kyle Reid

Q: You've collaborated with Kyle Reid a lot over the years: How was it working with him on this album? 

A: We started working on the record right before the pandemic, actually; the A side was recorded at my house. Then once the pandemic hit, we had to move: Kyle Reid's got a studio behind his house, and we ran cords and cables through doors and windows so we could be socially distanced but still record. He's a wizard for that. ... He's always very positive and willing to work with whatever crazy idea you have, and he's really, really smart.

Writing for her No. 1 fan

Q: What made you want 'Gold' to be the title track?  

A: I wrote that one for my mom. I put my mom through a lot; just being a teenager, I worried her, I know, quite a bit. Then, being a young 20- or 30-year-old woman that was out touring by herself, I know she worried a lot about me then — and probably still does. ... Even when she thought I should stay in college and get a real degree, she's still my No. 1 fan.

What it means to be an Oklahoman

Q: You're the "Queen of Oklahoma," so it seems fitting that you closed the album with a song called "Yippie Yi Yo." Is that part of your Okie pride? 

A: I am fifth- or sixth-generation Oklahoman, and I want to be proud of that. ... I am proud of being from here. It's getting harder and harder by the minute. I've been jokingly calling it my feminist cowgirl song because there weren't any and there needs to be some. It's true (that) it's hard being a woman in this world. And it's even harder being a woman in Oklahoma sometimes. So, I try to stay positive and do what I can to make positive change in my community and in my state, but, yes, it is freaking hard sometimes.

Rock and Roll Camp for Girls at Camp Trivera

Q: You have an exciting summer planned.  

A: We're doing the Rock and Roll Camp for Girls again. It's been three years, mainly (because of the) pandemic. ... This year, we're having camp at the end of July at Camp Trivera, the really cool Girl Scout camp down by the zoo. Applications are open April 3-10 ... and we're so excited to bring it back.

I am the (local) founder and director: I got to go to the original camp in Portland, Oregon, in, gosh, 2006 or something — it was long time ago — and I was a volunteer, just teaching little girls how to play guitar. And I was like, "This is amazing." At the time, I didn't really think Oklahoma was ready for it. But we had done it five summers before the pandemic.

We work with about 50 girls between the ages of 8 and 17, and all in one week, they come to us and they learn an instrument. Most of them have never played before. They form bands with their peers, they collaboratively write a song with their band, and then we have 10 to 11 bands perform an original song. It'll be at the Tower Theatre this year for our showcase, so not bad for some of their first gigs.

It's so much fun, and it's, honestly, my way of making change in this community. I want girls to know that they have a voice, and I want to teach them how to use it, whether it's musically or how to be an ally to someone.

CARTER SAMPSON 'GOLD' RELEASE SHOWS

Electric full-band shows:  

  • 7 p.m. April 7, Blue Door, OKC

  • 7 p.m. April 8, Cimarron Breeze Concert, Old Church Center, Perkins

  • 7 p.m. April 28, Maggie's Music Box, Jenks

Acoustic shows:  

  • 7 p.m. April 14, Too Fond of Books, Tahlequah

  • 7 p.m. April 27, Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, Muskogee

  • 7 p.m. Spaceship Earth Coffee, McAlester

  • 7 p.m. May 5, First Friday Concert, SixTwelve in Paseo, OKC

  • 7 p.m. May 12, Strawberry Festival, Stilwell

  • 5:30 p.m. May 24, Jones Assembly, OKC

Information: https://cartersampson.net/shows

ROCK AND ROLL CAMP FOR GIRLS OKC

  • When: July 24-28

  • Where: Camp Trivera, 2508 NE 50.

  • Showcase: July 29, Tower Theatre.

  • Applications open: through April 10.

  • Information: http://www.girlsrockokc.org.

Brandy McDonnell covers Oklahoma's arts, entertainment and cultural sectors for The Oklahoman and Oklahoman.com. Please support work by her and her colleagues by subscribing at oklahoman.com/subscribe. Contact her at bmcdonnell@oklahoman.com, www.facebook.com/brandybammcdonnell and twitter.com/BAMOK.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Carter Sampson has new album, brings back Rock and Roll Camp for Girls