Parker Millsap

BIOGRAPHY

It’s been a time of intense, worldwide change over the past few years … or maybe it all depends on scale. Zooming out to a geological timeline, maybe not much has changed at all. On his sixth album Wilderness Within You, acclaimed singer/songwriter Parker Millsap explores this flux between the here and now and the big BIG picture, while reckoning with questions about humanity’s place on this planet. The result is a study in contrasts: the personal versus the cosmic, sparse acoustic compositions sitting next to lush psychedelic improvisations. Above all, Wilderness Within You is an understanding of darkness while expressing an abundance of gratitude for life itself.

Born and raised in Purcell, OK, a tiny town with a huge sky, Millsap learned early on how to express gratitude through song while playing gospel in the church band. At the same time, he absorbed the honest lyrics of Townes Van Zandt, Mississippi John Hurt’s fingerpicking, and classic albums like Graceland and Rumors. Millsap’s early career recordings like the critically lauded Parker Millsap (2014) and The Very Last Day (2016) displayed these influences through character-driven storytelling and minimalist instrumentation. Be Here Instead, Millsap’s 2021 release produced by John Agnello, hinted at the wildness to come while exploring newer, more personal songwriting styles. Wilderness Within You is a natural step in Parker's evolution which interweaves threads of his musical past and influences to gorgeous effect.  [FULL BIO]