Melissa Etheridge celebrates release of ‘Rise’ during Brookfield Zoo Chicago concert Sunday
Melissa Etheridge knows talent when she hears it.
About 10 years ago, the Grammy and Academy Award-winner heard fellow singer/songwriter Chris Stapleton for the first time.
“That’s my kind of singer,” Etheridge thought.
Years later, she reached out to Stapleton and proposed a collaboration. They met for the first time last year in Nashville, where they bonded over kids and music.
“He said, ‘Melissa, you talk in song,’” recalled Etheridge. His observation became a lyric in “The Other Side of Blue,” a duet that ideally pairs her raw, soulful alto with Stapleton’s rough-hewn baritone.
“It was a magical, spiritual experience writing with him,” said Etheridge, who included the song on her 17th studio album “Rise,” which dropped in March.
The musicians developed a kind of mutual admiration.
“We both have respect for each other and we have a certain vulnerability,” said Etheridge, who shared with Stapleton her grief over the loss of her 21-year-old son.
“He was my greatest teacher,” she said of Beckett Cypher, her son with ex-partner Julie Cypher, who died of an opioid overdose six years ago. Etheridge established the Etheridge Foundation, which funds research into alternative treatments for addiction in his memory.
“It’s one of my favorite things I’ve ever done,” she said of the song, an examination of loss and acceptance, whose chorus includes: “There’s such a thing as dreams that don’t come true/But it’s brighter on the other side of blue.”
Etheridge will likely include “The Other Side of Blue” during her Sunday, June 7, concert at Brookfield Zoo Chicago. The show is part of a “minitour” she and her band are making before she embarks on a co-headlining arena tour with Wynonna Judd later this month.
In addition to songs from the new album, Etheridge says the show will include a few deep cuts along with the chart-toppers “Bring Me Some Water,” “No Souvenirs,” “I’m the Only One” and “Come to My Window,” which have defined her nearly 40-year career that includes her Oscar-winning “I Need to Wake Up,” a song she wrote for the 2006 documentary “An Inconvenient Truth.”
“I’ve been blessed with a number of hit songs,” she said. “People want to hear those songs and I’m grateful. I enjoy it every time.”
Etheridge says Chris Stapleton once called her a “road dog.” She considers it a compliment.
“I do love taking my show to people,” she said. “It’s the band I’ve had for years now. We rock and we play the songs you know and love.”
While she may slow down at some point, Etheridge can’t imagine she’ll ever stop touring: rolling into town, playing fans’ favorite songs and rolling out again.
“It suits me very well,” she said.
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Melissa Etheridge
Showtime: Doors open at 5:30 p.m., showtime is 7 p.m. Sunday, June 7
Where: Brookfield Zoo Chicago, 8400 31st St., Brookfield
Tickets: $65 at brookfieldzoo.org/events/roaring-nights-concerts