This week’s episode of “Fire Country” welcomes INK as its latest musical guest, and when she tells the crowd that “there’s no place like playing here at Smokey’s,” she’s speaking more from the heart than the script.
INK tells TVLine that she and her mother are longtime fans of the CBS drama, having “both been locked in from the beginning,” so of course she had to bring her mom to set when she filmed her big guest appearance in Season 5.
“She got to meet the whole cast,” INK recalls. “She was the star of the show that day. They loved her. That was incredible, so thank you to the whole cast, and everybody at CBS. It was love. She had an amazing time.” Even some of the cast members who couldn’t be present on INK’s shoot day still said hi to Mom via the magic of FaceTime.
INK performs two original songs, “All I Got” and “American Reject,” during her visit to Smokey’s, giving the men and women of Station 42 some much-needed musical relief after a particularly hellish day out in the field.
“We tore Smokey’s up that night, baby,” INK says. “We tore Smokey’s off the bone that night. And with that crowd, it felt like I was at a real performance. I could see the cast really vibing with it, and by the time everybody finished, they were like, ‘Yo, our applause was real. We really mean that genuinely.’
INK’s new single ‘American Reject’ is ‘everyone’s story’
INK’s appearance on “Fire Country” coincides with the release of “American Reject,” and she’s grateful to be getting such a big platform to debut her new music. She says it’s an anthem about “everything in this country that we go through, and we’ve been through, and we’re still fighting through.”
“It speaks for itself, and I really want you to think about what comes to mind when you hear those words, because it’s not just my story — this is everyone’s story,” INK tells TVLine. “It’s so powerful and anthemic, like, who says you have to fit in? And it’s the contrast of being in those places where you wouldn’t be expected. Even when I was on the street, people wouldn’t expect this voice to come from this look.”
“American Reject” is now available to stream on all major music platforms, and this week’s “Fire Country” will hit Paramount+ on Saturday. Did you enjoy INK’s first visit to Smokey’s? Drop a comment with your thoughts below.