Single Review: Rick Brantley's "Hurt People"

Rick Brantley was unknown to me until this spring when I stumbled across his music through Rolling Stone Country. Featured in the article in question was his new song, "Hurt People." Curiosity won me over and, like many times before, I had to take a listen. I was exposed to a composition so powerful I couldn't shake it for days. It was like hearing Jason Isbell's "Elephant" for the first time all over again. What songwriters aim for when dealing with heavy material is to a convey a message that resonates with listeners and in some way changes their lives. "Hurt People" is that kind of song.

The tune begins with a soft piano line that we've heard before, which initially disappointed me, but once Brantley's vocals come in and start telling the story, it becomes clear that the arrangement was never meant to stand out, anyway. The first verse details a bully from childhood that the narrator eventually gathers the courage to confront. He rides his bike over to the adversary's house only to find him sitting on the porch with his arm in a sling and a welt in the shape of his "daddy's high school ring" on his face.

"Then it hit me," Brantley sings before launching into the chorus that simply states, "Hurt people hurt people" twice. What stands out most about this song is how the power of language is displayed with simple lyrics that get to the point. To convey such a tangible message with less than ten words is not easy, but Brantley and co-writer Ashley Ray found a poignant theme and maximized it with incredible songwriting that resulted in a powerful narrative.

The second verse details the narrator's first breakup experience, the result of a relationship with a girl from an abusive home. "Well her mama popped pills, and daddy drank like a sailor on leave/Neither ever had two kind words to say to Marie" is a line that jumps out of the song and forces listeners to trace their memories back to people they know from similar situations. Later on, the narrator states "She taught me a lesson about pleasure and pain/If you don't know the difference, well it's all the same/maybe that's why" before the second chorus comes in and the simple but hard-hitting refrain captures listeners all over again.

"Hurt People" finds its high mark when Rick Brantley raises his voice for one of the most powerful bridges I've heard in a long time. "Your blood is my blood/Your bruise is my bruise/Your skin is my skin/When you lose, I lose/When you fall, I fall too," he wails, pleading with each of us to think about our words and actions and the consequences they create right now and in the future.

Brantley quiets down again for a third verse that's shorter than the first two but eloquently sums up the theme of the song. "Everybody's got a reason for losing faith/I guess everybody's got a scar they just can't erase/You live a little while, you're gonna have one too/You live a little longer, I bet you'll leave a few." Once more through the chorus and the song eases to a stop to give listeners time to collect their emotions and process what they've just heard.

At just over five and half minutes, "Hurt People" takes its time to convey a tangible message that we can observe in every day life. Hurt people might hurt people today, tomorrow, and ten years from now, but that's no reason for us to shrug and let it go, especially considering that we're all "hurt people" at some point or another in our lives. Hopefully that message reaches as many people as possible. 10/10