Groundbreaking musician Orville Peck has been in the news for all sorts of reasons lately.
The openly gay country singer has released his duets album, Stampede Vol. 1, which features collaborations with acts such as Noah Cyrus, Midland, Elton John and Willie Nelson. In conjunction with that release, Peck has embarked on a tour of the country that will bring him to Chicago on June 13. Also, Peck recently received the Vito Russo Award at the GLAAD Media Awards; the organization has previously honored him as Outstanding Music Artist (2023) and Breakthrough Music Artist (2021).
Peck recently talked with Windy City Times about working with John and Nelson as well as what that most recent GLAAD award means to him.
NOTE: This conversation was edited for clarity and length.
Windy City Times: You’ve worked with Elton John and Willie Nelson. You must be pinching yourself.
Orville Peck: [Laughs] I know; that’s pretty surreal. The Willie Nelson duet [“Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond Of Each Other”] came about almost two years ago. The Elton John one [a cover of John’s “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)”] came soon after that. I had a hard time keeping those duets [secret]. I wanted to shout it to the world that I was working with these legends.
WCT: Having worked on these duets, who would you love to collaborate with in the future?
OP: Hmmm… I don’t want to give away too much, but there are some people on the next album [Stampede Vol. 2] as well. I’ll leave a little mystery there.
WCT: Fair enough—although I noticed you didn’t ask me to duet with you.
OP: [Laughs] Well, maybe you can be on Vol. 3!
WCT: Yes. I’ll be in the background—way in the background [Peck laughs.] But going back to the Willie Nelson duet, I don’t know if a lot of people are familiar with the history of that song. [Note: Country musician Ned Sublette originally recorded it in 1981. Nelson covered it in 2006, and some consider it the first gay-themed song from a major country artist; Nelson’s manager—David Anderson, who had just come out as gay—allegedly inspired him.]
OP: I know; it’s amazing. I, myself, only found out about it when Willie covered it in the 2000s; I wasn’t aware of Ned Sublette. It was something to bust it out and play it for country-music fans—including Willie Nelson fans—who didn’t know it existed. It blew people’s minds—the way it blew my mind when I first heard it. Knowing Willie as an artist, it’s less and less shocking to me that he wanted to do that at the time—and that he wanted to do it now, because he’s just such an incredible activist. He’s such a beautiful, beautiful human being.
WCT: My favorite song on your newest album is “The Hurting Kind,” with Midland. You mention “wicked games” in the lyrics. Was that an intentional tribute to Chris Isaak [who had a hit with the song “Wicked Game”]?
OP: Oh, yeah—of course! I’m a huge Chris Isaak fan. It’s a very deliberate reference.
WCT: I described your singing voice to someone as “a little Elvis, a little Randy Travis and a little warm cocoa.”
OP: I’ll take that as a compliment. That’s amazing! My voice has had an interesting journey, but that’s lovely.
WCT: I’ve listened to country music for a while, including Juice Newton and Barbara Mandrell back in the day.
OP: Yes!
WCT: So I thought it was interesting how you said in a previous interview that the country-music lifestyle is stereotyped but that country music itself is quite diverse.
OP: Yeah. If we want to go to the brass-tacks facts of instrumentation, the banjo is an African instrument that came over with slaves to America. The thoughtfulness of the songs had a huge influence on country music. You have Black culture with cowboy hats, and the whole setting of country music [has roots in] Mexico and Latin America, although some instruments came from Europe. There have been all of these cultural contributions over the years. Country music is one of the most diverse genres of music, and it’s deserved to be enjoyed and interpreted by people from every walk of life.
WCT: Tell me what getting the Vito Russo Award means to you.
OP: It’s so incredible, honestly, to have the honor of receiving something like this. It’s really important to me because I decided to be normal and authentic in my songwriting. The fact that it’s resonated with so many people in the community really means a lot to me. If I had seen someone like me in country music when I grew up, I would’ve felt empowered, esteemed and acknowledged.
WCT: And considering how divided we are in this country, music is one of the few things left that can bond people together.
OP: Absolutely. I’ve performed in red states and one of the biggest surprises for me is seeing the people who I had preconceptions about actually enjoying my music and the story I have to tell. I think music can be a beautiful [bond]; at the end of the day, we have a lot more in common than we realize. Music has the power to tell these unifying stories that we all can relate to.
Orville Peck will be performing at the Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence Ave., on Thursday, June 13, at 7 p.m. To purchase tickets, visit this link.