TA Thomas Embraces Southern Roots on ‘Outside Man’: Listen

TA Thomas is a country boy at heart. On his new single, “Outside Man,” produced by Ray Keys, the Mississippi-born singer celebrates the simple pleasures of drinking good whiskey, hanging out at down-home spots and keeping his eye out for a prospective lover.

“I’m just an outside man / Lookin for an inside woman / Ain’t got no plans / Main goal is to find my honey,” he sings. 

Speaking on his new track, TA Thomas exclusively tells Rated R&B, “‘Outside Man’ dives into the music I grew up on Southern Soul. It’s whiskey on the rocks music at the trail ride type vibe. Different from anything I’ve dropped, ‘Outside Man’ is true Southern Soul — think BBQ smoke, brown liquor, at the hole in the wall.”

He continues, “It’s giving hole in the wall, it’s giving fried fish Friday, it’s giving don’t spill that Crown on my boots. That’s Southern Soul. I made this for the inside woman who don’t come outside often but when she do she leave with a plate and somebody’s son.”

“Outside Man” is Thomas’ first single since releasing his Southern Soul EP in May. The five-track set included the Lucky Daye-penned “Preach,” “Devotion” and “Angry,” among others. 

“Southern soul is the combination of R&B, gospel, blues, maybe a little sprinkle of country, but it’s really just soul music,” the Mississippi native told Rated R&B. “As I started to get older, I started understanding what Southern soul was. One of the things that’s so special about me is I sing with emotion [and] with soul.”

Speaking on the project’s inspiration, he shared, “This Southern Soul EP is really me paying homage to home. I really want to paint an image of who TA is, where he from [and] the stuff that I grew up on.” 

Stream TA Thomas’ new song “Outside Man” below.