Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Dalton Mauldin

Balancing his time between student life, athletes, and his work as a musician, Dalton Mauldin is a fantastic example of how hard work and passion really pays off. His debut single, “Nights Without You,” was an instant hit and had fans clamoring for more. Luckily, he just released his first EP, gray., last fall—and just announced the release date of his follow-up EP (February 9, mark your calendars!).

We spoke with Dalton about making the transition from sports to music, his biggest influences, and his new single “deja vu.”

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
Dalton: I discovered my passion for music when I began playing guitar. I’ve always loved music and loved to sing, but I was always too shy to do it in front of anyone. In fact, nobody really knew that I liked to sing until they heard I was trying to learn how to play the guitar. They were like, “Dalton, you’ve been playing guitar. Do you sing too?” So I was, in a way, forced to tell people I enjoyed it! [laughs]

After learning how to play guitar from YouTube, my confidence began to grow and I began to find myself playing guitar more than doing anything else. As cliché as it sounds, playing guitar was a way for me to get away and enjoy alone time. My passion for music really began evolving once I started my songwriting. That’s where I truly understood that writing songs was all that I wanted to do in life.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Dalton: My biggest influence has been my friends, family, and fans. I have the most supportive group of people around me. I am constantly receiving phone calls, messages, etc. full of encouragement from everyone around me. I can’t go a day without someone saying supportive or encouraging things to me about my music, and that’s what pushes me to want to keep doing what I’m doing.

PC: You grew up playing sports. What has been the biggest lesson you’ve learned from athletics that you’ve been able to apply to your music career?
Dalton: As I make the transition from a college athlete to a full-time musician, the biggest lesson I have learned is to work hard. Baseball has been my entire life since I was five years old up until now.

All I’ve ever known was baseball until I began to find another love in music. I truly feel like the work ethic that I’ve instilled into my day-to-day life in order to reach my goals in baseball has been transitioning into my music.

I know that when I graduate in May and become a full-time artist, the work ethic I’ve put into baseball will continue to transfer over into my music career. I feel like it’s in my blood to carry those characteristics into the next journey of life.

PC: Throughout the years, you’ve experimented with your sound. How have those experiences impacted the artist you are today and helped you zero in on your sound and message?
Dalton: With making music, the road is endless. I believe the reason I’ve been experimenting with different sounds is because every day I am constantly growing in all aspects of becoming an artist. If I was to sound the exact same a year from now as I do today, I wouldn’t be happy about it. I want to continue to try to hone in on my own path with the music I am making but also constantly evolve as I learn and create.

PC: Tell us about your new single, “deja vu.” What inspired the song?
Dalton: I wrote “deja vu” about someone that I admire. The idea came from hanging out with this girl and developing feelings as we continued to hang out. As time went on, I kept catching myself thinking about her a lot more than I normally did. Times like when I would wake up in the morning, when I would listen to songs that she liked, late at night watching TV, etc. I kept having these déjà vu moments that reminded me of her. The real catch here though was that I had no idea if she had feelings for me. I thought she did, but I wasn’t sure. So I wrote this song with the idea of what it would be like to be together while at the same time explaining that there was no way that I was the only one having these déjà vu moments about us.

PC: You’ve got a new EP coming out in 2021. What can fans expect from this body of work?
Dalton: I’m really excited to get the new EP out! I was hoping to have the project completed and come out towards the beginning of 2021 to start off the new year, so that’s what fans can expect of it. There are a lot of new sounds that I haven’t released to the world that can be expected out of the upcoming EP.

PC: If you had to select one song off of the new EP that best encompasses who you are as an artist, what would it be and why?
Dalton: I listen to all of the songs off of the new EP, so my mind is always changing. Some days I feel as though “deja vu” encompasses who I am as an artist; some days I feel as though “run” is; somedays I feel like it’s one of the others.

There are so many different dynamics that I like about each song. Since you’re asking today, I feel like “deja vu” is it for me. This song encaptures the idealistic story that I want in life: someone that I think of all of the time, imagining living life together, living a life full of happiness, and most importantly, just living.

Life is all about enjoying the small things and finding your happiness in each day that we’re here. The song is fun, groovy, and ambient, in my opinion. I like to think that’s the way I look at life and the reason behind a lot of the reasons I am influenced to create as a songwriter.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Dalton: I love ’70s and ’80s rock. AC/DC and Boston are two of my faves. Shoutout to my dad for putting me on to them when I was little!

PC: First album you bought?
Dalton: The first album I ever bought was a CD for my handheld CD player. It was the Confessions album by Usher. I still have it and listen to it in my truck often. [laughs]

PC: First concert you attended?
Dalton: The first concert I ever bought tickets for was Sam Hunt down in Tampa, Florida.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Dalton: There’s an album that will always stick with me. I have no idea why I love it so much or why it always crosses my mind, but it’s the COSMIC album by Bazzi.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Dalton: I have two! A dream of mine would be to sell out Madison Square Garden, or play a sold-out show at Red Rocks!

PC: A must-have on the road?
Dalton: Doritos. Any kind!

To keep up with Dalton, follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify.