Priscilla Block Calls U.K. Success 'Surreal' as She Says Justin Moore Duet Was an Easy 'Yes'
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Big Machine
Two years ago this week, Priscilla Block was two weeks into her record deal. Outside of her robust following on TikTok, no one knew her name. She was a curvy blonde 20-something from North Carolina who moved to Nashville to make it big in country music. But social media users discovered her talent before Music Row executives.
Universal Music Group picked up on Block's buzz and won her favor with promises to honor her artistic vision and fast-track her music for release. They kept their word. On this sunny late-August morning, Block is seated in a hotel bar in London, England, bubbling with excitement about her successful U.K. tour and upcoming performance at Nashville Meets London. She's further bolstered by the realization that European audiences knew every word to every song — even the album cuts — from her debut album Welcome to the Block Party.
"It was crazy," she exclaims of a recent U.K. concert. Wearing her trademark neon scrunchie and a Willie Nelson t-shirt rolled up to expose her midriff, Block's distinct style is in stark contrast to the hotel's austere black and grey décor. "We sold out 300 people in that room, and they were singing all the songs. It's kind of surreal. I'm in a new country, and people know me."
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Block's Welcome to the Block Party was released earlier this year, but her duet with Justin Moore, "You, Me and Whiskey," from Moore's upcoming album, just became available Friday. The collaboration is a first for Block and only the second for Moore, who has 11 No. 1 songs to his credit. Moore says that at first listen, the song may sound like a spring break fling. As a married father of four, "You, Me and Whiskey" is about making his marriage a priority.
Block, 27, and Moore, 38, played a show in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Moore reached out to Block afterward to chat about the duet.
"I think I really impressed him," Block says. "He was like, 'Hey, if there's anything that I can do to help you out, just let me know.'"
She got the call about "You, Me and Whiskey" soon after. After she listened to the song, she says it was an easy "yes" from her.
"It was just a song that I feel like I wrote," she says. "It's spot on. I love Justin, and I just thought that it was really fitting. The song is amazing."
The singer/songwriter moved to Nashville eight years ago and wants to prove herself to the rest of the country music community like she did with Moore. Block fears that since she was discovered on TikTok, she'll be branded a social media sensation that can't succeed outside of social media. She spent much of 2022 debunking that myth.
"I wanted to prove to people that I can go out and sell tickets," she says. "I want to add value to somebody's tour. A lot of venue owners were absolutely shocked to see a girl walk through these clubs. If people are going to say I'm a TikTokker, I want to show you that I'm not. If people want to say that only guys play the clubs in the bars, put me in those clubs and bars, and I'll play it. You say that I might not be able to sell beer. I'll sell you out of beer. I think that was a big goal for this past year — proving to people that there's a lot of value here. I think it sets me up really good for the future."
Looking forward, the "Just About Over You" singer hopes to join someone on tour as a support act. Jason Aldean, Jon Pardi, and her fellow North Carolina native Luke Combs top her wish list of people to join on the road.
"I want somebody who has fun and who doesn't take themselves so seriously," she says. "Let's just shoot for them all and see what happens."
Block already has plans for 2023 — her second album. Welcome to the Block Party is rich with relatable nostalgic heartbreak songs, and she says album number two will be her second chapter. Block has already written most of her sophomore album.
"This next album is just the next part of where I'm at, and that's just like living my life," she says. "It's me moving forward."
