Grady McAuliffe is 'On the Edge' of Country and Rock with New Single and Music Video

Pilot Light Records is proud to release "On the Edge," a country rock single and music video from recording artist Grady McAuliffe.

NORWALK, CT, UNITED STATES, March 4, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Introducing “Northern Country” singer-songwriter Grady McAuliffe, a country rock artist with a new single “On the Edge,” being released worldwide by Pilot Light Records on March 7, 2025.

Grady McAuliffe is a country artist with a unique story and a set of influences to match. He was a rocker in his formative years, who cut his teeth on everything from the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Cream and The Doors, while playing in a number of local Connecticut bands.

“When I first picked up the guitar and started playing music I was playing rock songs from the 60’s and 70’s. Then I got into the grunge era with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Alice and chains. I’ve never really had one idol or band that I gravitated towards, just depended on what I was going through in my life at the time for that defined what song or artist I was connecting with,” said McAuliffe.

He began writing songs at 15 years of age, inspired at an early age by his mother and grandmother.

“My grandmother had a deep love for music, I recall her always singing or humming old Irish songs or melodies from the 40’s and 50’s. As for my mother she had a deep love as well, I recall as a child listening to her sing every Sunday in our church choir. My Grandmother's uncle Morton Downey was a famous Irish tenor in the 20’s and 30’s so music and melody runs through my blood….

I just love and appreciate really good quality songs with not only a good hook but really good witty and creative lyrical content whether it be country, rock, pop, hip hop or whatever, I just love and appreciate great songwriting,” McAuliffe said.

McAuliffe's appreciation for well crafted melody and lyrics is clearly apparent in his latest song "On the Edge," telling a story of "over-thinking, and over-drinking," amidst the break up of a romantic relationship. It was perfect fuel for a country rock song, in the classic storyteller tradition. Yet listening to the song, there is no question that McAuliffe is singing from a place of experience and honesty.

“My journey as an artist is one of resilience, rediscovery and authenticity. I started writing songs as way to process life’s ups and downs. But after years of performing, I stepped away to focus on family—but the music never left me, it was always waiting for the right time to return. Writing music has always helped me work through my emotions.

“Two events in my life that come to the forefront of my mind are the passing of both of my parents. They were two separate events, but both were equally as difficult to digest and deal with emotionally. They both passed at far too young of age and were both so full of life with so much more living to do. Songwriting definitely helped to process those feelings and helped me navigate very difficult times in my life,” he said.

Though there were earlier successes in his songwriting career, including his song “All Time Low” being featured in "A Heartland Christmas" film (2010), it's clear that 2025 is the year for McAuliffe to reemerge as songwriter, recording artist, and touring musician at an entirely new level. He has spent the past year recording with producer Ethan Isaac at Isaac's Norwalk, CT-recording studio Factory Underground.

Isaac tapped several players he has worked with over many years to help develop McAuliffe’s new sound, including guitarist Joel P Kelley of the band Edisun, guitarist, pedal steel and banjo player Tim Cole, and bassist James Cruz of Jesse Malin and Gavin DeGraw. “On the Edge” is the first of many songs they recorded that will be released by Pilot Light Records this year.

“This chapter isn’t just about making music—it’s about reclaiming my voice, reconnecting with my roots, and proving that some stories are never finished. I’m not just chasing a career, I’m following a deeper calling,” he said.

About Grady McAuliffe's blending of country music with hard rock, Marc Alan of Pilot Light Records stated:

“I love the rock influences in Grady’s songwriting, that are making his style of “northern country” feel both fresh and original, and in my opinion, ready for the mainstream. He has musical and vocal traces of country artists like Whiskey Meyers, Post Malone, Morgan Wallen, Hardy, Cody Jenkins, Jason Isbell, Koe Wetzel, Blackberry Smoke, Chris Stapleton, Eric Church and the Osborne brothers, just to name a handful. Then there are really cool moments where you can tell he has a love for grunge bands like Pearl Jam and vocalists like Eddie Veddar -- those moments flip what you think you know about Grady McAuliffe on its head.

And so you arrive at what I already know, which is that Grady McAuliffe is truly an original artist with his own unique style," Alan said.

Pilot Light Records will release Grady’s single “On the Edge” to worldwide streaming platforms on Friday March 7, 2025. Kickin' Kountry 101 with DJ Shannon Steele, one of the largest internet country stations in the United States will add "On the Edge" to its roster at the time of its release.

An official music video, directed by John Shylsoki, filmed at Factory Underground Studio in Norwalk, CT, will be released to YouTube and VEVO also on March 7. In the meantime, the video can be seen on the All Country Radio website, a European-based network of country music stations which offered an exclusive premiere.

Celebrating the upcoming release "On the Edge," Grady is set to perform at Daytona Bike Week in Daytona, FL on March 3 and 5, 2025, on behalf of sponsor Rock Rage Radio. He will return to perform at Factory Underground on the evening of March 7, 2025. He will also begin production of an original podcast he has entitled “Grady’s Grit and Grind," and looks forward to touring throughout the summer.

Marc Alan
Pilot Light Records
+1 203-275-8672 ext. 107
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On the Edge (Preview)