Chris Daughtry, who rose to fame on American Idol in 2006 singing beloved rock covers, has just released a rendition of Journey’s “Separate Ways” (Worlds Apart)” featuring heavy metal singer Lzzy Hale.
“40 years ago today Journey released this song as a single from their album Frontiers,” Chris wrote on Instagram. “It is truly an honor to share this rendition with you. We hope you dig it!!!”
“Stranger Things” inspired Chris to cover “Separate Ways”
The Daughtry front man revealed what inspired him to cover the Journey classic for the People magazine’s Every Day Podcast. “The idea came from watching the Netflix hit, Stranger Things, which takes place in the 80s and has used music from the era on its soundtrack. Gen Z kiddos now know about the sublime English singer-songwriter Kate Bush when her 1985 song “Running Up That Hill” blew up after the show used it in a key scene.
“I was watching the finale of Stranger Things, and they used ‘Separate Ways’ in this incredibly epic scene. It was so moving, and me and my wife were watching,” Chris explained. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is the song we need to cover’ — and, to my knowledge, I don’t think anyone has put a version out.”
He then spoke about how the Halestorm vocalist became involved in the track. “Lzzy and I had been talking for years about working together, and we have so much respect for each other as friends and artists,” he said. “I called her and was like, ‘Would you be interested?’ And she was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s my go-to karaoke song.’ It just felt like it was meant to happen.”
In 2021, Chris dropped his first independent album
The “Separate Ways” is one of Daughtry’s first singles to drop since the release of his last album, 2021’s Dearly Beloved. His first-ever independent project, came after ending his years-long record deal with RCA. It was also a return to the rock-oriented sound fans after fruitlessly chasing after hits.
“…it’s the first record that I’ve done independently without a major record label, and with that comes a lot of freedom. It also comes with a lot of responsibility,” Chris told Pop Culture.com upon the album’s release.
“This was different. I didn’t have all these different voices telling me, ‘Well, in order to get on the radio,’ ‘You need to be sounding like this,’ or ‘You need to be seeing what this band is doing,’” he said. “I kind of shut all that out and listened to the most important voice, which was my own.”
Chris talked about working through grief after the deaths of his mother and daughter
During the episode, Chris also spoke about his grief process following the deaths of both his mother, Sandra, and stepdaughter, Hannah Price, in 2021. His 25 year old daughter died by suicide while under the influence of narcotics at her home in Fentress County, Tennessee.
