Nick Behnan knows when to trust his intuition.

The Detroit artist and guitarist sings about finding his purpose and following his own path on “When It’s Right, It’s Right.”

“I’ve always had the most success in life and in my career when I follow my own nose, so to speak,” said Behnan about his latest garage rock-funk single.

“I guess ‘following your heart’ is a better way to put it, but it’s focusing on what I know I’m good at and was put on this planet to do.”

Backed by fiery electric guitar and thunderous drums, he sings, “I said go ahead and squeeze me / I tell you, when it’s right, it’s right / But you won’t get nothin’ outta me / I tell you, when it’s right, it’s right.”

“The song was definitely inspired by that mentality that I have, but also I thought the lyrics were fitting for these days with so much left-versus-right division between everyone,” Behnan said. “There does come a point where regardless of your political views, what is right is right. It kinda started there and then moved closer to [the song’s overall theme].”

To learn more, I spoke with Behnan about his latest projects and upcoming plans.

Q: What have you been working on lately?

A: Life is great—thank you! I’ve been working on a few projects for TV and film sync licensing and playing live with several artists lately. One in particular I work with often is a killer band called Saxappeal and The Crü, and we’ve been doing some touring lately. We went to Atlanta and Columbus, Georgia, and we’ll soon be in Boston and St. Louis.

Q: “The Line” explores relationship dynamics and the desire to take it to the next level. How is the song reflective of navigating relationships in today’s world?

A: This song isn’t autobiographical; I’m happily married. When I first played it for my wife, I’m sure she thought I was up to something—ha-ha! But yeah, it’s kind of about the point where you can ride the line between harmless flirting and allowing something bigger to blossom. I think all marriages, good and bad, face this temptation all the time.

Q: “When It’s Right, It’s Right” and “The Line” reflect a variety of genres, including garage rock, indie rock, funk, and soul. How do those genres continue to influence your songwriting and music?

A: I try not to follow musical trends too much, especially now with AI being able to instantly rip off and steal every written song that exists. It can make generic crap better than any of us can now, so I try to write stuff I like, which tends not to stick to one genre. I like rock when it has some funk and groove along with some soul. Using the kind of fuzz [effects] I do on the guitar lends itself more toward the Detroit indie-rock sound.

Q: What shows do you have coming up this spring and summer?

A: With Saxappeal and The Crü, we do a concert series called Flowers, and each performance highlights the work of one legendary artist. We’ve done The Isley Brothers, Michael Jackson, Sade, Babyface, and many others. We’re doing Prince next, and we have shows booked in Detroit; Windsor, Ontario; Boston; St. Louis; and Chicago.

Nick Behnan performs with Saxappeal and The Crü for “Flowers: A Tribute to Prince” on May 22 at Aretha’s Jazz Café in Detroit at 7 pm and 9:30 pm, May 23 at Soothing Tunes Room in Flint, and May 24 at Walkerville Brewery in Windsor, Ontario.