Chris Ruediger, Nashville-based musician and co-creator of the viral TikTok account “The 615 House,” is looking back on his college memories in his new single, “Only So Many.” The upbeat track finds the May 2021 Vanderbilt grad reflecting on the special moments experienced during college and coming to terms with the fleeting aspect of those experiences. Throughout the tune, Ruediger sings of those fast-paced college days while encouraging others to soak in those moments while they can.
“There’s only so many midnights in your life when you’re burning down your 20s / Street lights going off at the parking lot at Denny’s / Where she met me, and we swore we would never leave,” sings Rudiger in chorus.
“Only So Many” was co-written by Ruediger, Frank Legeay, and Casey Derhak, and the singer says it was inspired by a conversation he had with a friend during school.
“I was inside studying for a test one night and a friend of mine was begging me to come out and I just remember him saying a line along the lines of, ‘There’s only so many nights that we’re going to be able to do this,’” Ruediger told Sounds Like Nashville. “I was thinking as the world was shutting down and I had that title in my phone for a while and wanted to write a song based off of what was going on in my life and my college experience.”
The song’s nostalgic and visual lyrics are paired with hip hop infused country instrumentation, which was inspired by artists such as Sam Hunt and Jordan Davis as well as by Ruediger’s upbringing in Boston, MA. Among the pop and hip hop pieces are banjo, mandolin and other country elements which work together to create Ruediger’s modern country sound.
“With this song, we noticed that the melody and the chorus were very upbeat and moved around a lot, and we were like, ‘This has a lot of energy to it. We should look to find a way to make this have a little bit more of the hip hop undertone,’” Ruediger says of working with producers Legeay and Eric Torres. The new single will be included on Ruediger’s upcoming, four-song EP, Kid Anymore, out October 15th. The singer has been previewing “Only So Many” and other original songs on his social media accounts. He is also active on “The 615 House,” a TikTok account boasting more than 985K followers which features upcoming Nashville singer/songwriters who share and promote their music. Other artists featured on “The 615 House” include Priscilla Block, Ashley Cooke, Cooper Alan, and more.