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Vancouver, WA-based singer-songwriter Ethan Burdick has had a rocket ship tied to his back this summer, ever since taking the folk-pop scene by storm with his breakout track “I Get The Picture.” 

Released back in April, the tune quickly caught the attention of Jelly Roll, who invited Burdick to open for his summer amphitheater tour (with just two days’ notice), despite having just one full-length song out in the world. His first Spotify release, an introductory voice message of sorts called “Hey, It’s Ethan (It’s All Happening)” and clocking in at just over a minute, was posted earlier this year. First impressions revealed a gifted songwriter with legitimate vocal chops, and the ability to infuse warmth into a phrase at will. When he sings, “He gets the long road watching you grow old… aint thattttt the kicker? But I get the picture,” in its final moments, this writer melts to the floor. 

Prior to the success of “I Get The Picture,” Burdick had been making the rounds on TikTok, and had gained traction with viral covers and snippets of originals. Following his public breakthrough, covers have continued to do him favors, with Ella Langley offering an opportunity to join her onstage for “Choosin’ Texas” after viewing his version. His Sirius XM cover of the summer hit “IloveitIloveitIloveit” by Bella Kay is harsh and tenacious, as he flips the tune from Kay’s slinky, compliant retelling of a messy love affair to his own snarling, mad hatter-type rendition. With his seasoned growl present across much of the verses, and his hands lightly guiding his distortion in several instances, Burdick presented an entirely new side to himself with said performance.

His new tune “Fine” acts as the antithesis of his Kay cover and is far more subdued than the introspective “I Get The Picture.” A letter to his younger self, the mellow and consciously arranged tune sees Burdick ease his worries from past stages of life, and acknowledges the sacrifices it took to get to where he is now: “A whole lot of love and a little bit of pain/ When you give it all you got, that’s the price you gonna pay.” 

The chorus informs his younger self of what expect, and how to survive: “You’re on your own kid/ Try to keep your head and give your heart/ You gotta know kid… all those voices that you hear, they don’t know who you are.” From a vocal standpoint, he moves through the tune without the upper chest voice activity of “I Get The Picture” or the added distortion of his covers, allowing his message to be told with tender care. 

While Burdick likely cannot be classified as country, his storytelling abilities, and the ways in which he executes those stories, are deservedly placing him in those circles, and opening doors beyond them. 

 Listen to “Fine” below: