It’s always a good Friday when you see Shane Smith & the Saints on your New Music Friday playlist.
Shane Smith & the Saints are releasing their second single of 2025, after reimagining their 2015 fan favorite “Lord Bury Me In Texas.” While I will always love a band revisiting a song that deserves some extra TLC, nothing hits like a brand spanking new song, and that’s what Shane Smith & the Saints gave to fans today.
Shane Smith has been teasing a new single they created for Turtlebox speakers over the last week, and although this might be seen as a “brand” anthem for the outdoor speaker company, that doesn’t mean it’s not a heater.
Shane Smith & the Saints do not miss, and “Live Free (See Me Running)” is no exception. The single perfectly encapsulates the free spirit and Smith’s love for the outdoors. The fiddle-soaked single truly feels like summer, with a slow introduction that amps up and a rocking melody that instantly captures listeners’ attention.
Of course, that attention is held when frontman Shane Smith’s raspy vocals come in, singing lyrics about living free and living the American Dream (no matter what that might look like to some). According to Turtlebox, their “Live Free” motto is about being bold and unafraid:
“Back when we lived together in a house on the Buffalo Bayou in Houston, we used “Live Free” as a motto for our lives. It was printed on a sign that hung over the back door as a reminder to Live Free when we went out into the world. The basic idea is to be unafraid of what others might think. The Bible describes it as letting go of your fear of man, to instead consider what God would think. So, we became unafraid of the disapproval that more close-minded people in our lives might have of our actions and decisions.”
Given that the brand Shane Smith & the Saints penned this album for is rooted in the outdoors lifestyle, you can evidently hear that philosophy in the lyrics as they sing about how the city isn’t fit for them. They belong where the trees grow tall and the rivers and oceans roar.
“City lights, in my mind, hold me back from where I belong
The riverside, mountains high, ocean calls me like a song
By the time that you see me running (it’s like it calls to me)
By the time that you see me running
I’ll be living that American dream
By the time that you see me running (it’s like it calls to me)
By the time that you see me running
You’ll know I’m living free…”
Going into the warmer months, I can already tell this song will be my summer anthem. It feels like fresh air and salt water splashing on my skin.
The Turtlebox team dug through countless hours of outdoors footage, captured across 100+ locations throughout the U.S. to create the breathtaking music video. Of the song, Turtlebox co-founder Jonathan McKenzie calls it stunning:
“Shane’s song is a perfect embodiment of the ethos of Turtlebox. We have always been and will continue to be a brand that chooses to LIVE FREE and encourages our customers to do the same. When you layer his song over the visual assets we’ve gathered, the results are stunning. I get chill bumps every time I watch this video and listen to this song.”
Fire it up.
