Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Danny Gokey returns to the new music scene today with “Second Hand Heart,” the lead single off his sophomore album.

As usual, Danny sounds great on the song.  And it sounds radio friendly.

It also seems to fit his personal story since he lost his wife, Sophia, to heart disease just before starting an Idol run that landed him in third place in Season 8.

And, as you can tell from the title, it’s a love song.

That will be a focus on his second album.

“I look at Brian McKnight and I love how he writes love songs. I would love to be the Brian McKnight of country music, and be known for a lot of great love songs,” Danny told the Boot in a recent interview about his new music. Go here for the full interview.

The new song is “country, edgy and soulful,” which also plays into his plans to work a more soulful sound into his new music, Danny said.

Danny’s first album debuted at number three on the country album chart and produced two top-40 country singles (“My Best Days Are Ahead of Me” and “I Will Not Say Goodbye).

But, oh, the challenge of a sophomore album.

Before Danny, Josh Gracin and Bucky Covington graduated from Idol and enjoyed even more singles success with their debut albums.

They’ve yet to duplicate that success.

Bucky, from season five, has yet to release a second album; Josh hoped to release album number three last year, but has yet to do so.

Danny will have this advantage — a wonderful showcase for his new music. He’s touring with Taylor Swift for part of the summer, including four dates in New Jersey. You can check out the tour dates here.

Meanwhile, here’s “Second Hand Heart,” now available on iTunes.