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Leigh Nash recently asked her blog readers to suggest titles for her upcoming solo debut. One fan's idea—Onepence Still the Richer—seemed an appropriate summary of Nash's last two years. Now a solo artist—that's the "onepence" part—Nash wondered how things would turn out after her band, Sixpence None the Richer, broke up in 2004. She still laments that loss, but she's found new wings by flying solo—starting her own label (One Son Records), writing her own music, and now, releasing her own album, Blue on Blue, due August 15. Add to that a strong marriage and the joys of motherhood (she and husband Mark, PFR's drummer, have a 2-year-old, Henry), and Leigh Nash is one happy person—that's the "richer" part. All of that in the wake of a difficult season in which Sixpence's old label, Squint Entertainment, fell apart, leaving the band in a lurch and delaying their next album, Divine Discontent, for two "horrible" years, as Nash says. By the time Discontent released in late '02 (Warner/Reprise) with little fanfare, Sixpence was essentially done. "[The situation] was just bad," Nash told Relevant magazine recently. "People were unhappy." And that's the "still" part of the fan's suggested title—despite those painful memories, Nash is still content. In our recent conversation, we skipped those difficult topics and focused on what's happening today—going solo, the new album, her family … and how she really feels about Christian music.

I'd like to start by saying that I'm not going to ask a bunch of questions about Squint, record labels, contracts, and stuff.

Leigh Nash: Thank you! Oh, that's like a Christmas gift!

You've talked about that painful time, and how it still hurts to think about it. But these days are good times for you—a happy family, the joys of motherhood, and now a solo album. And yet, the title of your new album sounds like a downer: Blue on Blue. So, Leigh, where are you really?

Nash: (Laughing) Well, I think maybe the album title is somewhere in between. I definitely would not say that I'm sad; I am extremely happy right now. I can't believe how great this situation is, having my own label—not having a contract, owning my own masters, no publishing deal. I just feel like I'm more in control of the business aspect than I ever have been before. And I'm really blessed that the folks at Nettwerk are looking out for me. There's all this newness with that, and of course motherhood.

So there's all this great stuff, but then I think with my history, with the success of Sixpence, I just have some doubt—you know, not exactly being sure. I'm a pretty anxious person. I guess all this newness has made way for new anxiety as well. Like, what's going to happen?

Going solo after Sixpence can't be easy. Do you miss it?

Nash: I don't think I have regret over Sixpence, but I still mourn a little bit, 'cause that was such a huge part of my life. So if there was any area of sadness, that would be it—and wondering about our breakup, Was that what we were supposed to do? Over 13 years, people kept telling us—and I believed it—that God put Matt [Slocum, founder of Sixpence,] and I together for a reason. So now I'm thinking, Well, was that reason fulfilled? Are we supposed to still be together? I probably shouldn't have just said all that (laughs). But that's the way I feel.

But at the same time, I'm still excited about what I'm doing, and I think it's just a matter of me burying that in the past and moving on. Maybe that's the healthy thing to do. I know that God is with me, and I'm in his will and I know he's leading me.

So, after that nice happy speech, why a title like Blue on Blue?

Nash: One of my favorite songs on my new record is called "Blue," and I just thought it sounded beautiful. I don't think of it as being this super melancholy, unhappy sounding name. I guess other people might. That's their problem (laughs).

Music is sometimes a melancholy thing. I'm a big fan of old country music and that melancholic kind of feeling you get listening to George Jones and Patsy Cline. But there's so much happy stuff on the rest of the record.

You were a young teenager when you started with Sixpence, so that's almost all you've ever known. Has it been difficult making the switch to going solo?

Nash: Yeah, it has been. It's a little bit tumultuous right now. I'm seeing everything through different eyes now; creatively, I don't have a filter. There's nobody else there—like Matt or other Sixpence members—speaking into situations. It's just me. But I'm loving it.

I was in Sixpence forever, because I'm 29 now and started at 15 or 14. Yeah, it's really strange. And I miss Matt, but we still see each other and talk and are on great terms. I think we're both enjoying this a lot, just enjoying the space and getting to do our own thing.

Are you confident? Or does part of you say, "Man, is this going to work?"

Nash: I'm confident about the work that was put into this record. And I am so confident about this record. But before I started this project, I remember saying to everybody, "There's no way it's going to be as good or I'm going to be as proud." But I really am. So I feel very thankful for that.

Has that all come from within, or have there been people around you, including your husband Mark, who have been part of that process?

Nash: I think it's come from within. A couple months ago, after listening to the record, I turned it off and said, "Mark, just so you know, no matter what happens and no matter what people say, I am really proud of this body of work." And he was like, "That's so nice to hear you say that." So I made that statement before I heard what anybody else thought.

Is Mark part of your creative process at all?

Nash: Yeah, he is. I would often sing him melodies and show him lyrics to make sure, "Now, I'm not going to make an ass of myself if I show people this, right?" He's definitely my first filter.

Did he ever say, "No, that ain't working"?

Nash: Very rarely, so I'm not sure if that's a good thing. He's not that harsh of a critic!

Blue on Blue is more about love and everyday life than a ton of "Jesus lyrics." This would be a logical time for you to break away from Christian music and say, "I'm going mainstream." Or are you trying to have feet in both worlds, like Sixpence did?

Nash: I think it makes sense to not focus just on mainstream. But this record, if the Christian community likes it, that's fantastic, 'cause I'm a Christian. But I've never really been a big fan of segregation with music; I don't really want to play to either market. I just want the record to come out, and then whoever buys it, buys it. In my head, that makes perfect sense, but I know it's a little more complicated than that.

I don't want to completely turn my back on the Christian market. But I'm just not sure if there's anything on the new record that [Christian music fans] are going to like. It's written from a Christian perspective, and I think there's a lot of beautiful themes in there, but it's not overt. But neither was Sixpence's stuff, and over the years, we weren't really accepted until we had a hit ["Kiss Me"] in either market.

I really don't think the Christian audience liked us much before that, and then half of them didn't like us much after that either, so we were kind of damned if we did and damned if we didn't. I got really, really tired of that.

Damned by whom? And tired of what?

Nash: I think Sixpence kind of overdosed on playing churches in our first eight years, and I got a little bit bitter about the way people will talk to you when you're not doing what they want you to do. You're out there, and you feel like you're doing what you're supposed to do, and you're trying to stay as close to God as you can, and you still have people in your face yelling at you because you're not "Christian" enough, or you're too Christian, or whatever. That got really old, so I just kind of like to keep it like this: Whoever likes the music, buys it. But I certainly have nothing against having my records in Christian bookstores.

Isn't it "Christian" to write songs about love and family, even if you don't drop the name of Jesus?

Nash: That's what we thought! In my daily life, I talk about God all the time with my friends, and I'd be happy to talk to people and to fans about it. But I like to sing about my life, and God is my life. But I think he shows us all this other beautiful stuff to sing about and to ponder. That's what I choose to sing about. I never think, Hmm, I think this will sell more records.

Part of that is just my influence; the stuff I've listened to has never been real overt. That's not what I enjoy listening to. And that probably makes me Satan to some people. But…

Well, Matt was pretty much on the same page, wasn't he, when you guys wrote for Sixpence?

Nash: Absolutely, and Matt's a poet, a genius writer. I want to hear him write about what he wants to write about. And that's all he ever did—and he managed some of the most profound Christian lyrics I've ever heard. But he did it when he felt like it, not because he thought it was going to please one market over the other.

Has motherhood affected you as a writer and your creative process?

Nash: It has. I didn't know what was going to happen [to my creativity] when I found out I was pregnant, but I was so excited. I was on the road with Sixpence for the first seven months of my pregnancy, and then we broke up and I had Henry. And then, everything just kind of stopped, and I was with him every day.

About four months after he was born, I found this incredible drive to write and to make music again. But I thought, I don't know. I was prepared to never do it again, but I was certainly hoping it would work out. And then, four months in, I was like, I've got to make another record—not out of boredom or that crazed look you get when you haven't slept, but just, I need to get this mapped out onto a record so that we always have it. I just felt like I had so much to say.

Read up more on Leigh Nash's history with Sixpence None the Richer by visiting our artist page for the band. Look for our review of her solo debut, Blue on Blue, to run the week of its release, August 15.

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