Listen to Magnolia Park Unplugged with I-Rock 93.5

Take 5 guys (4 from Florida, 1 from Germany) with different musical tastes.  Put them together.  Shake them up.  And you get Magnolia Park.

The guys from Magnolia Park stopped by the studio on their day off from their tour to chat with us and play their Top 10 hit "Shallow" live.

The podcast below has it all for you if you weren't one of the lucky ones to win a seat for the exclusive interview and performance.

Magnolia Park: From The Beginning To Selling Out Shows On Tour

Magnolia Park is on tour and selling out venues across the country.  Before stopping by to hang with us on a Thursday at noon, they sold out Wooly's in Des Moines on a Wednesday night.

But that's not where they started, of course.  They said, "We were a small band with just our parents watching us for about a year.  And we worked very hard to get here, and we're so thankful that people care about our music."

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And while many people are just discovering the band, they've been doing things their way for 8 years now and have 5 EPs.  And while there are many non-album singles, they also have concept albums.  "We get the story outline.  Then we get the songs.  Then, as the songs get finished, we get the story."

But just because they are doing concept albums doesn't mean they are going to make over-the-top, 10-minute-long songs. "People want to connect to something.  And if you're so far gone you can't connect."

Magnolia Park has a Top 10 Hit with "Shallow."

I could have used a lot of pictures from the Listener Live Lounge, but that would be unfair to choose one listener.  But if you want to see them all, you can on our Facebook page.

Shallow has become a smash hit for the guys.  After releasing the song in 2024, it started to get noticed at the end of 2025.  And if you haven't listened closely to the song, it's dirty!

"Shallow was all flushed out between Tristan and me (Freddie).  So I guess we're horny." That got a good laugh from the crowd.  But then he went on to say, "It's more than a horny song.  It's about a toxic dynamic.  Both people are bad.  One person is toxic, and then the other person enables it cause they can't handle being on their own.  The more simplified version is that shit's too good, you can't let it go."

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Lyrically, it definitely tells a story.  Musically, the guys said, "We were just trying to make something unique.  It blends the R&B and rap samples at the intro.  Josh has such an amazing voice that we wanted to do a really cool R&B thing for him."

We also talked about the video for the song and how they felt about creating an acoustic version.

The guys from Magnolia Park talked about a lot more.  In fact, we hung out for 30 minutes, taking questions from listeners.  This is why, when we do these things, you should try to win your way in.  So you can ask your questions.  Below you'll hear them talk about road hilarity and horror.  Their influences and who they are listening to.  And going all the way back...how they chose to call themselves Magnolia Park.

You can listen to the full Live Lounge Experience below.  But if you are rushed for time, they treated us to the acoustic version of "Shallow" at the end of the chat.