By: Anne Powter

Throughout his career, Jeremy Parsons has written songs that feel like rooms you can step into—familiar, lived-in spaces where the walls hold stories long after the people have left. He’s an artist whose work hums with sincerity, shaped by a Texas childhood, a restless creative spirit, and an ever-present desire to understand the human condition. With his new EP Life, Parsons doesn’t simply add another chapter to his discography—he opens a window into who he’s been, who he is, and the winding path that connects the two.

Parsons first drew attention with Doggondest Feelin’ in 2010, a debut that showcased his knack for turning small personal moments into universal truths. He followed it with Things I Need to Say,  a contemplative album steeped in questions of purpose and transformation. Songs like “Burn This House Down” and “Why Is the Bluebird Blue” found international chart success, while his 2021 single “Tragedy” introduced a more introspective edge. Parsons toured relentlessly, cultivated a devoted global fan base, and developed a reputation as a songwriter who could cut through noise with emotional clarity rather than volume.  His next LP, Things To Come, featured five more radio and sales chart hits.

Life, however, is something different. Written during the pandemic—when stillness became a kind of crucible—it captures the essence of that moment: the forced introspection, the unearthed memories, and the uncomfortable reckonings that surfaced when the world paused. For Parsons, the silence became a canvas.

The opening track, “Tickin’,” is a meditation on time, but not in the abstract sense. Parsons sings with the voice of someone who has felt time pressing on him—someone who has examined his choices, his detours, his lessons. “It’s not wasted if you choose to learn,” he offers, turning what could be a lament into a gentle challenge. The arrangement is unadorned, leaving space for the lyric to breathe. Parsons has always understood the power of restraint; here, he lets quiet revelation do the work.

“The Garden” is one of the EP’s emotional anchors, a song rooted in personal history and rendered with poetic simplicity. Parsons’ father was a horticulturist, and the imagery of tending, weeding, and nurturing becomes a metaphor for emotional resilience. The refrain—“I hope that means you are too”—is empathetic, almost pastoral. One might describe this as music that invites rather than insists, encouraging listeners to consider their own seasons of growth and decay. Parsons’ gift lies in making such reflections feel intimate rather than lofty.

If “The Garden” offers grace, “Who Was I” provides candor. Here Parsons excavates his younger self: wandering, high, avoiding the daylight while his parents followed the traditional rhythms of adulthood. Instead of romanticizing those years, he examines them with tenderness. “Sometimes I wonder who’s chasing who, me or the dream,” he confesses—one of the most striking lines of his career. It speaks to the restless ambition that has both propelled and haunted him, a tension familiar to anyone who has pursued a calling without a map.

The EP widens its lens with “Humanity,” a commentary on the fractures exposed by global unrest. Parsons is not a firebrand; his critiques arrive gently but firmly. “I saw that humanity was dying inside them,” he sings, mourning the erosion of empathy. Yet the song never collapses into cynicism. Instead, it acknowledges our shared responsibility, reminding us that compassion requires intention. Parsons’ approach echoes Ann Powers’ belief that music can be a bridge across cultural divides, offering space for reflection without condemnation.

“Life Worth Dyin’ For,” the closing track, feels like Parsons stepping into the light after years of shadowboxing. The song is neither triumphant nor resigned—it is reconciled. He lists the joys and failures that shaped him, landing on the simple truth that a meaningful life is one lived with presence. “Oh I lived a life worth dying for,” he repeats, not as a boast but as a benediction.

What Life ultimately reveals is not merely an artist chronicling a moment, but one synthesizing a lifetime of searching. Parsons has always written from the heart, but here he writes with hindsight—and that makes all the difference. The EP is both a distillation of his past work and a signpost for where he’s headed: toward even greater vulnerability, sharper insight, and deeper connection.

In Life, Jeremy Parsons doesn’t reinvent himself. He refines himself. And in doing so, he invites us to consider our own stories with the same courage.