Allie Colleen may live in Nashville, Tennessee, but the country artist has been building a fan base by touring to national and international venues.
The songwriter, who released the single “Boys Like You” in July, returns to The Lyric Theater in Blue Island, where she performed in January, for another intimate concert on Oct. 20.
“We actually enjoyed the stage. We enjoyed the layout,” said Colleen about the venue with the tagline “Where events become memories.”
“We never forget venues that treat us really well.”
Colleen, who sings and plays some acoustic guitar, is backed by guitarist Will Beeman, bassist Logan Hatcher and drummer Brian Russell Collins.
“We are releasing an EP in the early months of 2025 and we are going to debut a lot of that EP. We’ve never played most of this stuff live,” said Colleen, an Oklahoma native.
Recorded in Nashville, the “Sincerely” EP features five songs including the single “Grass on the Grave,” which was released in May.
Colleen’s Southland tour stop along with another headlining gig Oct. 26 at Roof Garden Ballroom in Iowa offer a rarity.
“Those will be the only two places anyone can hear the EP. I’m excited to share that with these two venues,” she said.
“We do have a single that we’re also debuting here that is coming out before the year is up,” said Colleen about the standalone single “Outlaw,” which is planned for a November release.
The show’s opening act is Nashville-based singer/songwriter Carter Winter, who released the single “The Otherside,” which was co-written with Colleen, in May.
The Ohio native then teams with Colleen for an acoustic set, which includes his 2021 single “Love Like I Drink,” which features Colleen, as well as unreleased material they wrote together.
“When it comes to writing for other artists, it’s always a big privilege for me to learn about the artist and learn about phrasing and their way of telling stories. As a songwriter, you sit back and give ideas,” said Colleen, who wrote Winter’s 2023 EP “The Cold West, Pt. 1” with him.
“My last year of writing has been very personal so I haven’t been writing for too many other artists.”
Colleen, who started writing songs at age 8, called Stephen Hunley and Eric Dodd, who are both from Nashville, her dream team writers.
“Those are two writers that have worked really hard (to find out) how a 28-year-old feels about things,” said Colleen, who added that she also enjoys writing with singer Carly Rogers.
Colleen composed “Halos and Horns,” which she cited as one of her favorite songs, with Dodd and Hunley. The 2022 single was produced by Lee Brice (whom she featured on her popular single “While We’re Still Friends,” which was released in February), Jerrod Niemann and Cody LaBelle.
“‘Halos and Horns’ really launched us into this cool sonic place. It took everything a step up for us. It was my first millionth Spotify face tat,” said Colleen, who had a horseshoe permanently inked on her face after the track hit 1 million streams on the digital music service.
After she performed the song on the music podcast “The Bobby Bones Show” in 2022, red-hot singer and rapper Jelly Roll reached out to Colleen and that resulted in her being booked to open more than 15 dates on the final leg of his The Beautifully Broken Tour.
“It’s such a privilege. ‘Halos and Horns’ has done a lot for me. It’s one of the most authentic songs I had,” said Colleen, who started getting tattoos when she was 18 years old and now sports sleeves on each arm.
“I am so excited for that opportunity. That’s going to be so insane. It’s really cool. We have 30 minutes every night.”
Colleen plans to introduce “Outlaw” to Jelly Roll’s audience during her set, which also likely will include material from her debut album, “Stones,” which she released in 2021.
“I love ‘Stones,’” said Colleen about the 11-track release, which includes “Playin’ House,” “Stones (I Don’t Give A),” “Don’t Give Your Heart to a Cowboy,” “Make Me a Man,” “Pink Lemonade,” “Only Oklahoma” and “Blame It on the Weather,” one of the few songs she has written on her own.
“The narratives of ‘Stones’ really matter to me. ‘Stones’ reflects Allie Colleen as a songwriter really well. I’m still very proud of ‘Stones.’”
If you go: Allie Colleen
When: 7 p.m. Oct. 20
Where: The Lyric Theater, 12952 Western Ave., Blue Island
Tickets: $30-$39.95
Information: 708-972-0700; lyrictheater.com
Jessi Virtusio is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
