Parachute - The Way it Was: 15 Year Anniversary

There's always been a subtle power to the music of Parachute, the Charlottesville-bred pop-rock band behind hits like the platinum-selling, chart-topping "She Is Love." With open-hearted songwriting and unforgettable melodies, the band has long had a rare ability to pack deep emotion into instantly memorable pop songs. That gift was never more apparent than on their sophomore album, The Way It Was, a collection that explored love, loss, hope, and regret with extraordinary attention to life's most nuanced moments.

That intimacy traces back to the band's earliest days, when Will Anderson, Johnny Stubblefield, and Kit French were still in high school. Spending countless afternoons writing songs in Anderson's basement, the trio developed a sound rooted in classic pop, heartfelt rock, and blue-eyed soul. After building a local following in Charlottesville and at the nearby University of Virginia, Parachute broke through with their 2009 debut album, Losing Sleep, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Digital Albums chart and reached No. 40 on the Billboard 200.

Over the following years, the band released The Way It Was and Overnight—which climbed to No. 3 on the iTunes chart—while touring alongside artists including Kelly Clarkson, Gavin DeGraw, and Mat Kearney. They also completed three sold-out headlining tours, cementing their reputation as one of pop-rock's most beloved live acts.

Now, in celebration of the 15th anniversary of The Way It Was, Parachute is releasing the album on vinyl for the very first time and performing four special shows featuring the album in full alongside many of their biggest hits.