About That Song: Dan Rodriguez
About That Song #108
In our special series, singer-songwriter Sarah Morris interviews artists about the songs that shaped them.
Hi! I’m Sarah Morris. I’m wildly in love with songs and the people who write them. There have been a few songs in my life that have been total gamechangers—songs that made me want to be a songwriter and songs I’ve written that made me feel like I am a songwriter. About That Song is a space where I can learn more about those pivotal songs in other writers’ lives.
In the 108th installment of this series, I connected with soulful Americana singer-songwriter Dan Rodriguez, who’ll be playing Lutsong Music Festival this year! We had a great chat about the songs and experiences that impacted his songwriting and musical journey, and how he manages to pour so much emotion into his lyrics.
Dan Rodriguez. Photo courtesy of the artist.
Sarah: Hi Dan Rodriguez! For the last two decades, you’ve toured the country, bringing your music to your incredibly devoted fans that exist … everywhere, while also building a life and a home (actually IN the country). You’ve shared the stage with an impressive list of artists such as The Civil Wars, Andy Grammer, Drew Holcomb, and Sister Hazel. Your songs have lived big lives in movies, television shows, AND on a Super Bowl ad.
Last year, you released Wander, an 8-song collection that is “...meant to be uplifting and hopeful in a time where everything feels chaotic and divisive.” (Spoiler alert: it IS uplifting and hopeful.) Pretty soon you’re set to wander up north to Lutsong Music Festival. Would you be willing to pause in between wanders and answer a few questions about the songs that have made a difference on your musical journey?
Do you remember the song you heard that made you want to be a songwriter? Tell us about that song.
Dan: I remember hearing Jeff Buckley’s “Lover You Should’ve Come Over” and realizing how clearly I was hearing his emotions. I was so drawn to the idea of communicating something inside of me so clearly and beautifully. I started exploring then.
Sarah: Oh yeah, that’s a great one to launch from. I love that the dream from the beginning would have some element of “communicating clearly AND beautifully.” A worthy aim, forever and always. Once you began writing, did you feel like a writer immediately? It took me a few years of writing before I believed it—was there a song that gave you that “a-HA! I AM a songwriter!” moment? Tell us about that song.
Dan: My first song came to me quickly. I lost someone dear and I was able to set my emotions down in a song. It truly was for me … for grieving. And I found that crafting the song into a structure (verse/chorus/etc) added parameters that I was then allowed to explore within. And that gave me lots of freedom and I enjoyed it deeply while also giving my emotions somewhere to live other than inside of me.
Dan Rodriguez. Photo courtesy of the artist.
Sarah: I too find constraints to be so creatively beneficial, and I appreciate how you also mention they can be emotionally supportive.
“And like a breeze meets a fire and gives flight to an ember …” This lyric, from your irrepressible love song “I’ll Be Waiting,” gained the widest possible audience as part of a Budweiser Super Bowl ad. I have to imagine many a couple has since claimed this song as “their song.” Can you tell us about THAT song?
Dan: Sometimes it’s about emotions I’m purging, other times it’s about business. I wrote that song for that ad. ADVERTISING! A soulless venture based on manipulating masses into participating in capitalism and greed. And the best way to do that? Touch their hearts. That’s where the music and storytelling play a role.
It was just business. But that didn’t mean my part had to be soulless. In fact, if it were, it never would have gotten the placement. In the end I wrote a song about a love and friendship so deep that just watching them light up the sky was a thrilling existence. And the commitment to be waiting for them to pick up where they left off when the time is right.
Sarah: I think marrying those two elements with such soul is no small feat. So … big big bravo to you! Now, the last time I saw you, we were passing like ships in the grocery store at a co-op that neither of us actually lives by. You were holding your youngest kiddo. In 2022, you released the album Troubadour Family Man. In the title track you sing of being at both “a downtown stage singing out of tune, and a blanket fort in the living room.” (um, unlikely that you are out of tune!) What can you tell us about that song?
Dan: In 2019 I played 152 shows, almost exclusively out of town. I was living tour life one day and changing diapers the next. Two completely different worlds. One common denominator: no sleep. But that didn’t stop me from enjoying every minute of it all.
Sarah: That IS the common denominator. Perhaps rock stardom prepares one for parenthood, and also the other way around! Has parenting changed your songwriting in any way?
Dan: I maybe have gotten more honest, more than anything.
Sarah: I can relate to that. In 2025, you released your latest album, Wander. It opens with the catchy and invitational “As Long As I'm With U.” Immediately upon listening, I was flooded with these thoughts: Holy heck, what a voice! Goodness, what a swanky groove! Listen to those players! But more importantly, maybe? I had the feeling of … let's roll … the windows down! My shoulders back! And enjoy! Good work, songwriter! Can you tell us about THAT song?
Dan: I was lying in bed reading and suddenly a melody came out of nowhere… with the opening lyric. “Do you wanna come over and smoke weed?” I’ve ignored these moments many times, or I’ve told myself I’ll remember it later. I’ve always lost the song. I’ve learned now to grab on when the train is rolling by or it’s going to leave without you. So I chased after the caboose. I got out of bed, sat in the living room, and carved that one out in about 40 minutes. Choo choo, baybee.
Sarah: Ah! Way to get on the train! Do you have any upcoming Midwest shows where we might hear you sing THAT song?
Dan: I’m playing Lutsong Festival in Lutsen MN!
Sarah: Yeah, you are! I can’t wait to listen to you amidst all that northern beauty! To anyone reading, come on up to Lutsen and listen to Dan with me! Dan—thank you so much for stopping by to talk with me about those songs. All the very best to you! Have a marvelous summer!
Get your tickets to the 5th annual Lutsong Music Festival, an amazing weekend of music, art and community on the North Shore, happening July 9–12, 2026, in Lutsen, MN!
Listen to “As Long As I’m With U”
Wander Album Credits
Composers: Dan Rodriguez, Susan Sandberg, Noah Needleman
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Morris. Photo credit: Tom Smouse.
Sarah Morris is a superfan of songs and the people who write them, and a believer that certain songs can change your life. A singer-songwriter / mama / bread maker / coffee drinker who recently released her fifth album of original material, she’s been known to joyfully sing with people in her Big Green Bathroom.
