Running in Place is about that feeling you get when you’ve been working so hard, yet you feel like you aren’t getting anywhere. I wrote this song during a writing session where I felt like I was slamming my head against a wall just trying to write something. I had some lyrics for two different unfinished songs, and a bunch of melodies that weren’t really working. Then, in the midst of the frustration, I started to play the main chord progression on my guitar with a percussive rhythm and started singing “I’m tired dun dun dun dun dunnn”. That was the genesis of the song. I was able to rework the lyrics from the other two songs to create something that is a little more punchy and straight to the point.

The recording of this song started back in the summer of 2022. I had tracked the guitar and vocal and then I was waiting on a drummer to record drums for the track and that fell through, so the track was in limbo for a while. Once we got back in the studio, I had made a simple demo with some programmed keys and a drum machine. After bringing that to my co-producer, Sean Williams, we worked on a few different variations of the arrangement and landed on the neo-soul / southern rock feel that is present in the final track. I brought in a friend to record the piano arrangement I had made for the demo. But after listening back to it, my arrangement was missing something.

Enter Zach Wilson. I met Zach a few years ago while working at the Otis Redding Foundation’s summer camps. I called Zach up to see if he’d be able to do a keys arrangement for this record. A few weeks later he sends back this soulful performance that just elevated the track to the next level. I had a few tears in my eyes after I first heard it.