Interview: William Hinson, an Ascending Beatles Historian & Prolific Musician, Unveils "Give It a Day (It's Alright)" and Teases Upcoming Full-Length LP

Hitting play on a William Hinson song or record for the first time offers a refreshing dose of nostalgia with a modern twist, though he is certainly not even in his prime as of yet. The musical virtuoso will surely, one day, be known as Dr. Hinson, likely teaching a rigorous Beatles course at an esteemed university, but, for now, he remains focused on his journey as a full-time musician, songwriter, and producer.

“Give It a Day (It’s Alright)” – William Hinson

Two-hour interviews are not common for most artists.

William Hinson, the Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based singer/songwriter known for his catalog both directly inspired by, and an homage to, the music of acts like The Beatles, Hall & Oates, and Huey Lewis, and as the social media manager and frequent guest of the popular Beatles-themed podcast Nothing Is Real, is not like most artists.

Hinson, in addition to being an incredible orator, is an arranger, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, is cautionary and respectful of performing arts etiquette, and adaptable to current trends on the music business side. He is also wildly, and readily, self-effacingly humorous. A two-hour interview over Zoom is merely scratching the surface.

His latest project, Live! At The Flat Iron, consists of live recordings of songs from previously released studio albums, Everything Will Be Ok (2020), and Turn Your Frown Inside Out (2023), as well as select covers, from recent performances at Greensboro, NC venue, The Flat Iron, more affectionately known as The Flat. Highlighted by tunes like “Onetwothree,” “Why Won’t You Be My Girl?,” “George Harrison,” and “Funemployment,” among others, along with his Beatles-on-Ed-Sullivan-themed visuals, also displayed across his Spotify banner, Hinson’s artistic vision is clear.

Hinson’s latest release, “Give It a Day (It’s Alright)” is out now.

The Flat, a hub for rising centralish-North Carolina acts that, to Hinson’s (as he put it) limited understanding, was put on the map by well-known musician Charlie Hunter (John Mayer, Frank Ocean), is his home base. A standard 250ish-capacity room, the space also provides musicians with recording, mixing, and mastering opportunities via Hole In The Wall productions. When Hinson first stepped foot in the place, it had not yet been acoustically treated, but that soon changed.

“Now, it’s just this little dive bar, but it’s one of the best sounding venues ever,” he says. “On top of that, there’s a little hole drilled into the wall to the recording suite next door, and all of the cables for recording run through it. Anything that’s recorded on that stage goes directly into the computer next door… in the William Hinson Memorial Green Room. It’s ACTUALLY called that. There’s a plaque ON the door. I’ll send you a picture.”

Jokes aside, Hinson acknowledges its communal feel. “It really is the meeting space for the scene,” he continues. “The owners are aggressively pro-artist, and pro-creativity in a way that is also very accessible. And, because it’s in Greensboro, you have people from Winston, from Durham, even from Raleigh. It’s not pretentious, it’s not exclusive, it’s FUN, because everyone does something different, and I think The Flat really honors that.”

Hinson’s vocal tone, both on record and in a live setting, is low and floaty yet rich with character… the kind of easy listening singing that, with prime stamina and proficient technique, could be comfortably executed through a rigorous schedule. While equally distributed across his catalog, “Onetwothree,” a magnetic tune off Everything Will Be Ok, is the best representation of this light as a feather approach. Driven by a tinging looping guitar lick from start to finish, the song showcases his tonal qualities at their best.

The style aides his side hustle as a “potted plant” musician, playing gigs at restaurants and other similar establishments. Hinson, with an extensive repertoire of covers and originals, fits this mold quite well. But, of course, this work can be thankless.

“I went through a period last year where those gigs became very difficult for me because I had repositioned my expectations, which you should never do,” he admitted. ”I lost sight of what it was like to be grateful… that those gigs are literally just getting paid to practice. I could do two or three of those gigs in a day. I just don’t think I’d be as good or as practiced of a musician, if I wasn’t playing them. You can be the best studio artist in the world, but you’re not going to do anything with your life unless you get comfortable… or get UNcomfortable, onstage, and just know what it’s like to DO it.”

Circling back, and adding to, the Beatles-on-Ed-Sullivan visual element, Hinson and his band often take the stage in suits, similar to the Fab Four. He also has two songs aptly titled “Paul McCartney” and “George Harrison,” the latter significantly more appealing due to its smokey jazz club feel and clever hook:

I love it when you say things…
so I can sit and watch you talk
I love it when you say George Harrison
is better in comparison to all three,
minus Paul

While allowing an audience to receive this visual cue is an aspect of Hinson’s presentation, he does not want it to be seen as his entire package. “I think it’s funny, because Billie Eilish is dressing like she’s Juelz Santana,” he says. “Kacey Musgraves is dressing up like Loretta Lynn or Dolly Parton. Harry Styles is just doing Mick Jagger. No one is talking about that. No one is calling a spade a spade. There are countless fucking examples of people wearing suits onstage. Look at The 1975! Everything is about aesthetic… about perception. The thing with the suit is that it elevates the art, and I think my songs are really fucking good. I’d rather be honest about who I am, and I’m just a huge Beatles fan.”

When asked, in simplest terms, why he, as a Beatles connoisseur, believes The Beatles are looked at as the most formative example of what modern music is, six decades into their inclusion in popular culture, Hinson smiled and asked, “How much time do you have?”

“They’re just the best band,” he says, candidly. “I don’t think there is an example of anyone… maybe, but definitely not, Sinatra, Bing Crosby, or Elvis, do you have an act that changes the way that we perceive music, and the way that popular culture is affected by music, but also, on a technical level, they changed the way that we write songs, record songs, and play songs live. We have in-ear monitors because we have onstage monitors. Before we had onstage monitors, we DIDN’T have onstage monitors. The reason we didn’t have onstage monitors is because you could hear yourself playing. The Beatles, because they could not hear themselves over the screams, NEEDED onstage monitors.”

His history lesson continued. “Although there have been bad business decisions made on behalf of the band since the official dissolution of the four of them in 1974, I think, even with that, there have been so many good decisions made to keep the music in the hearts and minds of people,” he says.

“In 1970 and ’71, the biggest pop star in the world with the #1 record, and song, in the US and the UK… was George Harrison. 1972-’74, Ringo was the most successful Beatle, other than George. Then Paul comes along in late ’73. So, you have this pervasive success from solo Beatles, but then, also in the 70’s, they do the Red and Blue compilations, and there’s a resurgence of late 50’s, early 60’s music in the later half of the 70’s. Then you have Paul McCartney working with Michael Jackson, who is the biggest star in the world in the 80’s… blah blah blah. Why are they considered ‘contemporary music’? I think, because, at a baseline level, the songs are… good.”

Give It a Day (It’s Alright) - William Hinson — Give It a Day (It’s Alright) – William Hinson

Hinson’s newest batch of music, beginning with “Give It a Day (It’s Alright),” comes after a year of intense personal losses, professional disappointment, and the most unfathomable daily struggles that come in the wake of these moments.

“‘Give It a Day…’ was written maybe a week before any of this happened,” he admits. “It’s ironic, because everything went to shit, but it’s also a point of solace to have your own words sung TO you… like, ‘Yeah, it WILL be ok. It may not work out immediately, but it’s going to be ok.’” Pulling from the adult-contemporary leaning glittery piano pop sounds of Ben Rector, Ben Folds, and A Great Big World, Hinson is, for a moment, optimistic.

And you say you’re not feelin’ right
Sleeping all day, so you can’t at night
Topsy turvy, feeling quite
unnervy bout’ the state of life
You tried drugs, you tried everything
You tried sex and Costco
just to find a new meaning to life
But you’re gonna be alright
Give it a day, it’ll all go away
Yeah, it’s alright

He has an album title, a fitting one, but is not yet ready to share it publicly. “When these things get taken from you, you realize you’re losing parts of yourself,” he says. “So, your identity… it’s like, ‘Who actually am I?’ Everyone has that question all the fucking time. A lot of people will say, ‘Oh, you’re putting on the mask, or the suit.’ In many ways, I AM the guy that is onstage. I’m him. He is me. That’s the point that the record gets to. The point of it is to say, ‘These are all the parts of you, and you’re going to be ok because you have yourself.’”

Beyond the emotional ramifications of these songs, Hinson used this project as a template to continue to search for fresh motivations, both internal and musical. “It’s all one big experiment,” he says. “With everything in life, you’re just trying to optimize. So much of the way that I work is, ‘Oh, I’ve never made THAT before… I should try and do that.’ Nine times out of 10, it sucks. But, because the record is about finding yourself and trusting who you are, I think that’s one of the things I’m trying to zero in on.”

In summation, Hinson is adamant that he could not, or would not, do anything other than music.

“I’ve never had another job,” he says. “It’s certainly very arduous. The uncertainty of it is equal parts fun and scary, all the time. When I graduated, I didn’t go get a job, I just played gigs. I’ve gotten to do a lot of amazing things in my life BECAUSE I’ve played gigs. I don’t have the most money in the world… but I would much rather do music, and be poor, than not.”

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