Runaway June will soon have new music, with a new band member. The trio includes founding member Jennifer Wayne, along with Natalie Stovall, who joined in 2021 to replace Hannah Mulholland, and Stevie Woodward, the most recent addition, who announced in April she had joined the group, replacing Naomi Cooke, who left the trio to pursue a solo music career.
As Cooke sang lead vocals, Woodward will do much of the same, although she says it’s important to her to highlight the voices of Wayne and Stovall as well.
“That was important for me coming in,” Woodward tells Everything Nash. “Natalie is such a star on her own and obviously so is Jen. I think it’s important to give them both that light, too. If it’s a trio, then we all are equal in it. And so I think so there’s some new music where we’re switching some lines. It’s really, really cool.”
Wayne has plenty of history making music with Runaway June, who released their first single, “Lipstick,” in 2016. With six years working with the trio, Wayne says she’s never, ever enjoyed making music as much as she is now.
“It’s just been so fun, actually spending time with it and not just going in in one day and cutting the song,” Wayne says. “We’re actually spending time creating, and creating a sound. And it’s a vocal group this time. It’s actually a true vocal group. Natalie and I both love The Beach Boys. We’re just huge fans of The Beach Boys. I had come in, and they had worked on one of the songs. I was hearing all the parts that they did, and all the background parts. I’m like, ‘This is so cool.’ With all the stacked harmonies and different voices, they’re trading verses. It’s just really cool. All the voices are heard this time. It’s not like a lead and background singers. It’s a vocal group.”
When Stovall joined Runaway June, she knew she would be providing the background vocals, along with Wayne, to Cooke’s lead. But now, the veteran performer says she is eager that they can all highlight their own unique talents.
“All three of us have such different strengths within what we do, and the talent that God gave us,” Stovall says. “And so, we’re able to lean into those and pull from those, and whatever’s right for that moment, then that can shine. It’s really about what’s best for the song. That’s what we care about. We want to be a unit together. And I think Jen and I have craved that for a while now.”
Runaway June is hard at work on new music, which they are already excited and eager to share with their fans. While the trio had success in the past, including a Top 5 hit with “Buy My Own Drinks,” Wayne hints the way they are writing and recording their new music is unlike anything they have done in the past.
“We’re doing it differently,” Wayne reveals. “We’re not going in and just cutting the songs in one day and they’re done. We’re actually spending time. The girls have been there a lot more than me, ’cause I’ve got baby time, but they’re going in and playing on everything. The two girls are actually playing on all the songs, and they’re going in and experimenting.”
Woodward had no idea her musical journey would include being part of Runaway June. But now, there is no place she would rather be than making music with Wayne and Stovall.
“It’s incredible,” Woodward boasts. “For me, it’s been one of the best journeys I’ve had creating music and it’s special. It feels special, and it feels like we’re putting our heart and soul into it because we are. I hope it translates, and I think it will. It’s just been an incredible journey.”
Keep track of music and tour updates at RunawayJune.com.