Josh Norrad is a country/rock performer from Upper Miramichi, New Brunswick Canada. Since the release of his debut album, he has been nominated for 6 MNB awards including 2x Country Artist of the Year. In 2017, Josh was one of only 25 in Canada to get the popular vote in the CBC Searchlight competition after netting the most votes in his region. The following year Josh was named the winner of the nationwide “Country Liberty Cover Contest” which landed him a performance spot at Cavendish Beach Music Festival!
As we hit 2020, Josh is ready to explode onto the Canadian country scene like never before. He had the honour of working with multi-award winning and multi-platinum selling producers Jason Barry, along with members of Dean Brody’s award-winning band, to record a brand-new single, “To The Wind”,written by Doug Folkins and James Hoppe.
Josh first met Barry at the MNB Awards in 2016 where, after showing him a few of his songs, they decided to work together. SOCAN connected Josh with songwriter Doug Folkins for a co-write, but it was while he was going through Folkins’ demo tracks that he came across “To the Wind”.
“The song immediately captured me, with the lyrics painting images in my mind, pulling me into the story of the song. The energy steadily climbed as the song went on. I remember getting chills when I first heard the powerhouse chorus and I sat there saying ‘this is the song; this is the song’. “ says Josh of the single.
Since Barry performs in Dean Brody’s band, he suggested that his fellow band mates perform on the track as well. Being a long time Dean Brody fan, it was an opportunity Josh couldn’t pass up.
“What I love most about the song is that it is real. It really captures the feeling of young rebellious passion, but it does so in such a simple way. I have been a car guy forever so the mention of a speeding car burning down a dirt road also caught my attention. Since I grew up in the country along the banks of the river, I can very much relate to every lyric. This song talks about 2 people who are living in the moment, and that is something we tend to not do enough of these days. I hope this song will inspire people to step back from the chaos of their lives and live in the moment; soak it up, spend it with someone who is important to you, and throw caution to the wind” explains Josh
For Josh, this song marks a turning point in not only his life but his career. It will be his first professionally produced release but definitely not his last.
“TO THE WIND” debuted at #11 on the iTunes Country Charts during the songs pre-release on April 6th, 2020. Josh was the only other Canadian artist along side Dallas Smith to have ranked in the top 11 on the iTunes Country Charts on that day. “TO THE WIND” reached #54 across all Canadian genres on the iTunes Charts during the pre-release.
“To The Wind” is now available worldwide on all streaming networks and can be requested at Canadian Country radio as of today! You can listen to the track on the network of your choice here: https://www.joshnorrad.com/listen
You can also find the song in our exclusive Canadian Country Playlist on Spotify here:
For more on Josh be sure to visit him online at www.joshnorrad.com
