The duo chats with The Music Universe as their EP is released
Quartz Hill Records’ newest signing, soulful country-pop duo 2 Lane Summer, have released their debut EP, The Love Songs, available now across all digital retail and streaming partners.
With smooth vocal harmonies, the duo of Joe Hanson and Chris Ray have amassed a fast-growing fan base, including more than 380,000 social media followers, thanks to their heartfelt original tunes and viral covers of romantic classics. The duo’s new EP will no doubt serve as the soundtrack for many a spring romance or wedding.
Hanson and Ray co-wrote all four tracks on The Love Songs, two of which are new stripped-back “wedding” versions of some of the duo’s most popular previously released tracks.
Featuring 2 Lane Summer’s trademark soaring vocal harmonies and warm piano sounds, the EP’s focus track, “Til the Day That I Die (Wedding Version),” is a pledge of lifelong romantic love that feels like a wedding song for the ages: “I’m gonna love you, and hold you, and never let you go / Respect you, protect you, and treat you like gold / I’ll be your man, your best friend, your fire in the night / Thank God for every second you’re in my life / Til the day that I die.”
Joe Hanson and Chris Ray may have taken different roads to Nashville – Joe migrating south from Illinois and Chris heading north from Mississippi – but when they started crossing paths in Music Row writing rooms, the fast friends soon realized how much they had in common. Both were multi-instrumentalists who’d grown up singing in church and with a musical DNA that also incorporated country and soulful pop. When Joe and Chris began to harmonize vocally, the power, precision and emotional impact of that blend quickly revealed that these two men were born to sing together. Converging as 2 Lane Summer, the duo built a strong fan base on social media before now signing with Quartz Hill Records.
We had a chance to chat with the duo via email which can be read below.
THE MUSIC UNIVERSE: What attracted each of you to want to work together professionally on a regular basis?
JOE HANSON: “As a singer and a player, Chris is just so gifted. And when you get around somebody who’s that creative, who’s always dreaming and always creating new things, it’s inspiring to me. You know, as the old saying goes, iron sharpens iron.”
“We both share a similar faith in Jesus, the work ethic was there, and the creative ability was there. So I would say it was those three things that most made me want to partner with Chris.”
CHRIS RAY: “When I first met Joe in the writing rooms around Nashville, what caught my attention was his talent and how easy it came. And Joe could sing really high – into the stratosphere – and I was like, man, it’s a match made in heaven because I’ve got that lower register.”
“It was a God thing, for sure. That’s all I can say because everything was just, like, so easy – nothing was forced. We just started harmonizing and the rest is history.”
TMU: How did you come up with the name 2 Lane Summer?
RAY: “Joe and I were running on two parallel tracks – he was doing the solo career and I was doing the solo career, and it was going pretty great – but we were, like, let’s put our voices together as a duo and do something that hasn’t really been done before, where both of the guys can sing lead.”
HANSON: “And God brought us together in the summer, so 2 Lane Summer just represents the two lanes merging into one and creating something bigger than ourselves.”
TMU: The EP features four ballads, and two of those are “wedding versions.” What are the differences between the original and “wedding” versions, and what was the decision behind releasing all ballads for your first major project?
HANSON: “The main difference with the ‘wedding’ versions is that there’s less production, so it just offers the listener a more stripped-back version. It’s another flavor
of the same song that might be more palatable in more of an intimate setting, like at a wedding, or if a couple is doing a slow dance.”
“And I think the main reason we wanted to put these ballads on our EP is we believe in the songs so much. They’ve gotten so much steam and traction on social media
already, and they’ve connected us to a lot bigger fan base than we had, and I just think there’s a lot left in the tank for these songs that the world needs to hear.”
RAY: “I think Joe hit it right on the head when he said we wanted to give our fans a different flavor of the love songs they already fell in love with. And I think the songs are true to us, you know, with Joe being newly married and me being on the cusp of getting engaged. We’re just in love with our women, man, and we’re in a season where there’s a lot of negativity in the world and we want to spread some positivity and let people know that, you know, there’s still true love out there.”
TMU: What are some of the accomplishments you hope to achieve as a duo?
HANSON: “I think Chris and I both share a similar vision. Our goal is to make 2 Lane Summer an international household name, and we want to put on the biggest and best live show possible. Winning ‘Duo of the Year’ would also be great.”
RAY: “We want to sell out arenas, we want No. 1 songs, and we want ‘Duo of the Year.’ But most importantly, we want to bring people to Christ as a duo. We want to preach to the masses to let people know that Jesus is real and Jesus loves you.”
TMU: Your EP’s focus track is “Til the Day That I Die.” Can you talk about that song’s music video and what it was like shooting on the edge of a cliff?
RAY: “We shot that video on a beautiful property here in Tennessee. I think we got on set at 10 o’clock that morning and shot the entire day. It was really fun and scary at the same time – playing that piano almost hanging off the cliff – but we’d do it again for the fans!”
HANSON: “I remember being glad that I wasn’t the one who had to play the piano that day, because Chris was a few feet closer to the cliff than I was.”
TMU: What’s your favorite song from the EP and why?
HANSON: “I think, for me, it’s ‘Eyes That Ain’t Yours’ because it just has such a strong message of, like Chris said, positivity. I think that song has such a powerful message for not only just women, but everybody who deals with insecurity and who needs to hear that you’re beautiful, and you’re special and God made you perfectly in his image. ‘Eyes That Ain’t Yours’ also holds a special place in my heart because that was the first song Chris and I officially ever wrote, so it kind of started the whole journey, and it was also our first song that ever went viral.”
RAY: “My favorite song? That’s a tough one, but I think it’s got to be ‘Til the Day That I Die,’ just because it hits you that you’re going to be loving this person for the rest of your life. We all have to face the fact that one day, you know, we’re all going to die, but if you can find that one true love you can cherish forever and ever, you’re blessed.”
TMU: When and where can fans expect to see you play live?
RAY: “Right now, we’re in Nashville, writing and recording new music after being on the road with Chapel Hart late last year. But we’re looking forward to getting back out there, and fans can check 2LaneSummer.com for when our 2025 tour dates are announced.”
