Mind Reader

Album: Where It's At (2014)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Written by two of the three Peach Pickers - Rhett Akins and Ben Hayslip - this track finds Dustin Lynch paying tribute to an intuitive woman. He explained: "'Mind Reader' is about a girl knowing what she wants and what her guy wants even before he does."
  • This was released as the third single off Where It's At. "It's got a great groove to it and melodically is incredible - and I love the message behind it," Dustin Lynch told People regarding why he chose this tune. "It's encouraging the girls, 'Hey, it's okay if you guys make the first move.'"
  • The Mason Dixon-directed video was shot in downtown Nashville at night. The clip opens on a girl reading tarot cards; we then see her having a fun night out with Lynch. The singer explained: "The whole time that she's turning these cards over, she was predicting the night that was about to happen. I love the twist to it. I thought it was really fitting for the lyrics of the song and it was a lot of fun to make."
  • The lyrics are based on a real-life incident that actually happened to Rhett Akins. Ben Hayslip explained to. Taste of Country: "Anybody who knows Rhett knows Rhett loves the ladies. The night before we wrote the song, I don't know if he'd been on a date or he'd been hanging out with some girl he didn't know very well. He'd just kinda met her. And Rhett doesn't really like to be tied down; he's one of those guys that wants to do his own thing.

    We came in the next day, and we're just trying to figure out what to write, and he's telling me about the night before, and he's like, 'Man, this girl last night, she scares me. You ever had a girl who just knows what you're thinking every second and just almost reads your mind?'"
  • Rhett Akins recalled the date that inspired this song to The Boot: "I was thinking about where to take her to dinner, and she said, 'Kentucky Fried Chicken,' and I was like, 'She's reading my mind, buddy'. Somehow, the title of "Mind Reader" got thrown out, and that's where we took it."
  • The "Baby, you're a little mind, baby, you're a little mind reader" at the end of the chorus wasn't originally in the song. Akins explained: "That came up in the studio when we demo-ed the song. The chorus doesn't end with, 'You're a mind reader;' it still doesn't. We didn't want to say 'mind reader.' It was hard enough to do it once; we can't end it with 'reader.' That's just hard, so we just ended it with 'reading my mind.'"

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Amanda Palmer

Amanda PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Call us crazy, but we like it when an artist comes around who doesn't mesh with the status quo.

Janis Ian

Janis IanSongwriter Interviews

One of the first successful female singer-songwriters, Janis had her first hit in 1967 at age 15.

Producer Ron Nevison

Producer Ron NevisonSong Writing

Ron Nevison explains in very clear terms the Quadrophenia concept and how Heart staged their resurgence after being dropped by their record company.

John Waite

John WaiteSongwriter Interviews

"Missing You" was a spontaneous outpouring of emotion triggered by a phone call. John tells that story and explains what MTV meant to his career.

Protest Songs

Protest SongsMusic Quiz

How well do you know your protest songs (including the one that went to #1)?

Keith Reid of Procol Harum

Keith Reid of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

As Procol Harum's lyricist, Keith wrote the words to "A Whiter Shade Of Pale." We delve into that song and find out how you can form a band when you don't sing or play an instrument.