Bask in the “Moonlight” With Cujo Moon’s Lush New Single

Nashville-based acoustic-folk artist and singer-songwriter Cujo Moon shares his pleasant post-COVID thoughts in his sweet new single, "Moonlight."

Born Barry Trevor Willmott, Cujo Moon writes self-reflective and healing lyrics. His tunes are often accompanied by calming, intimate, and serene instrumentals. Fans have adored his sound so much that he's proudly racked up over 9 million streams across all platforms. His song, "With You," even landed a feature on NBC's This Is Us.

The Nashville-hailing artist did what he does best, bless our ears with his warm and comforting stylings in a lush new single, "Moonlight." Cujo Moon explains that he wrote the song after his partner and he took a trip to a friend's wedding, the first real vacation since the pandemic. A sense of relief came with that realization.

"And though we can't predict the challenges of the future, we can be happy knowing we have each other at the end of the day," says Cujo Moon.

Listening to "Moonlight," the smooth listening experience begins with a serene acoustic guitar alongside gentle folk piano melodies that lift us into the first verse. As Cujo Moon's delicate vocals start floating through our speakers, he sings of life's perpetual state of change and how we've been waiting for things to get better.

However, living in a world that's always changing means we cannot take our days for granted. Cujo Moon brings that theme to life in his passionate lyrics, where he thanks his lover for being by his side no matter what and allowing him to rest his head when the day is done. It's a wildly compelling song that lets us realize how all we can do is live in the moment and appreciate the moments we have with loved ones.

Comfort the mind, body, and soul with Cujo Moon's sweet-sounding and passionate new single, "Moonlight," now available on all digital streaming platforms.

Welcome to BuzzMusic, Cujo Moon. We truly appreciate a delicate and sincere single like your recent release, "Moonlight." What does this song mean to you, and why did you want to bring it to life?

I appreciate the kind words. This song was written mostly in one sitting sometime last fall when we were all starting to re-enter "normal" life post covid. I think the song was steeped in that feeling of "waking up" but was also inspired by a romantic daydream regarding my partner, Rachel. So I was writing from a place of "hey life is crazy, but we're dancing our way through, and I want you by my side no matter what happens."

Could you give us a glimpse of your creative process when creating "Moonlight?" How did you lay the foundation and work your way up?

It simmered in my voice memos for a while (as many songs do), but it felt special when I wrote it, so I figured it might be a keeper. Once I chose to move forward with it, most of the production and mixing happened in a week. I typically start by recording the acoustic guitar and scratch vocals, then build from there. With this track, I added the synth string sounds with my Yamaha SK20 and those 8-bit vocal sample sounds (the breathy-sounding keys you hear throughout) with my beloved Yamaha VSS-30. From there, I'm pretty sure I threw down the tambourine (proud to say I recorded every single hit through the whole song with zero loops! …though it probably didn't make much of a difference, lol). I didn't think drums were going to have a place on this song, but it felt stagnant after the second verse, so I decided to throw down a simple kick/snare pattern (again, for this EP, I was obsessed with trying not to use any MIDI/software sounds, so I recorded real drum takes here). That changed the vibe and made it way more fun to finish the track and lay down the bass line. Aside from vocals, I think the final touches were the slide guitar parts, electric guitar harmonies at the end, and shakers (which took FOREVER, my god, those things triggered my OCD). There's also a little clave I recorded near the end, but you have to lean in as it's pretty subtle. That's probably more than anyone cares to know aside from my fellow studio nerds out there, but that was my process roughly.

What was the most rewarding part about creating the sweet new tune, "Moonlight?"

Honestly, I think the instrumental vibe that comes in after the second chorus was a nice surprise. It's where those electric guitar harmonies start playing, and the bass, drums, and percussion parts find a little groove together. I really enjoyed listening back to that when it first started coming through the speakers. Makes me think a band could take that jam and run with it in a live situation. This is not something I can say for most of my music, but I want to head in that direction a little more.

What impact do you hope to leave on listeners with "Moonlight?" What do you want them to feel or take away from the song?

Honestly, if it helps someone feel a little less anxious about the challenges they may be facing in life, that would be amazing. If it's taken more literally and there's someone, or a couple (or trio or whatever) out there romantically slow dancing to the song under a starry night, that would be cool too. :) All in all, I write music as a kind of therapy for myself, so if it provides that in any way to someone else out there, then it's more than worth the effort, it takes to create these tracks.

What's next for you?

I'm already working toward releasing more music, hopefully by later this year. I'd like to do a full-length album sooner than later, so we'll see what happens. I'd also love to put a live set together with a small band. I'm experimenting with new ideas to make it a little more captivating for larger venues. Got a ways to go, but I'm hoping to someday play live shows and have a set list that ranges from folk songs on acoustic guitar to soft psych full-band jams (kind of like Foxwarren or Jonathan Wilson). Not sure if "soft psych" has been coined a genre yet, but that's what I hear in my head…like if Nick Drake were to have collaborated with Tame Impala. I'm still dreaming, haha. Anyway, cheers and thanks for listening!

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