The Louisiana-born country artist’s latest single is a celebration of good times and great friends.
It’s easy to imagine “Best Friends & Lemon Drops,” the new single from Louisiana-born singer-songwriter Karen Waldrup, becoming a rev-your-motor anthem for women kicking off an evening devoted to sharing memories and making new ones.
Consider the opening verse: “You showed up here with a bottle of cheer/Said, ‘Girl, we’re fixin’ to forget this year/ Two barstools and a neon sign / That jukebox knew your heart and mine.”
Listen closely, however, and you might catch a drop of melancholy amid the merriment.
Waldrup says “Best Friends & Lemon Drops” “is one of those songs that just feels like home to me. It’s about sitting around with your best friends, swapping stories, laughing about the crazy things you’ve done, and being thankful for the people who loved you through every season of life.
“I hope when people hear it, they call that friend who's been there through it all, pour themselves a drink, and make a few more memories together.”
Fittingly enough, the song came about as a collaboration of two buddies.
“A friend of mine, Darcie Morin, was coming to my shows,” Waldrup told C&I, “and she knew that I liked lemon drop martinis. So it kind of became a little bit of a joke where she would come and before the show she would buy two lemon drops, and then we would do this little thing where we would take a picture with them and it was kind of our little thing.
“And then all of a sudden out of nowhere — I didn’t even know she wrote songs — she pitches this idea to me, ‘Best Friends and Lemon Drops.’ And when I heard it, I was like, ‘That’s a really great idea.’ Because a lemon drop, if you think about the candy, it’s strong and it’s hard like a friendship that can endure difficult times.
“So it’s kind of like an extended metaphor, really. The lemon drop is the friendship — sweet and strong and has a perfect blend. And so when I heard that, I kind of thought that was a really neat representation of what friendship is.”
“I did not expect it to be a crying song. That’s not what I pictured at all.” — Karen Waldrup
All that, and more.
“Whenever we first wrote it, I kind of viewed it as a party song. But the interesting thing about it is that we’ve been out on the road touring this record and playing it live and it makes people cry. They’re crying.
“And I’m like, “That is very surprising.” I didn’t expect that. Because I thought it might make them think of their best friend who may not be there that night, who maybe they miss. Or maybe it’s their mom, who just they haven’t seen in a while. Or a friend that passed away.
“There’s been a lot of people who’ve come up and said, ‘Oh, my aunt used to love lemon drops, and she made the best lemon drops at Christmas. And when I heard your song, it made me cry.’ And I'm like, ‘I did not expect it to be a crying song. That’s not what I pictured at all.’”
Even so, Waldrup appreciates the attention. And yes, the affection.
“There’s so many different layers for the song because how you hear it kind of depends on where you are in your life and what you’re going through. If you’re in a happy place, then it’s a happy, “Yeah, let’s have a lemon drop” kind of thing. If you just lost somebody, it’s kind of like, “Oh, I miss that person. I wish they were here.” It’s got this really unique mix of tones and joy.
“It’s really one of the most connecting songs of my career, and I hope it connects with you wherever you are.”
