WEBVTT

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Hello friends, my name is Keri Cunningham and

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you are listening to my weekly mixtape with Brian

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Coburn. Tonight we are talking about some of

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my favorite amazing country female artists. Get

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ready to get your country on. Yeehaw! Welcome

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to My Weekly Mixtape, a podcast that takes the

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classic mixtape approach to building a modern

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playlist. I'm your host, Brian Colburn. Joining

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me tonight is country music artist Carrie Cunningham.

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Carrie, thank you so much for joining me on the

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show. Thank you. I really appreciate you having

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me on. This is exciting. It certainly is. And

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if I'm correct, the night we're recording, I'm

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going to break the fourth wall here. Today, I

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can also say... Happy birthday, Carrie. Thank

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you. Thank you. Thank you. I thank you for taking

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time out of your day to talk music tonight. Absolutely.

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Absolutely. One of my favorite things to talk

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about. Well, I am going to start by asking you

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the same question I ask all of my first time

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guests. And that is, what does the word mixtape

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mean to you? Mixtape means all my favorite songs

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that I can just jam out to. And it also brings

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me back to, actually, it brings me back to my

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husband because he used to make me little mixtapes

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and send them off to me. I guess they were mixed

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CDs, you know, but the same concept. And so when

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I think of a mixtape, I definitely think about

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when my husband and I were dating. When my wife

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and I were dating, we were a long distance relationship,

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New Jersey to New Hampshire. So anytime one of

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us would travel to the other, we would always

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burn mixed CDs for each other. And a couple of

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times over the last decade, now that we are two

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kids into a 20 something year marriage, a song

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will come on. I'll be like, do you remember?

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When I put this on, she goes, you made me probably

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5 ,000 mix CDs in the first year we were together.

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No, I don't remember every song from them. Yeah,

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right? That's awesome. And I think my favorite

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song on one of the CDs, because he made a couple,

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is probably The Best Is Yet To Come. Well, that's

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how he labeled it. And so it stays in my mind.

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But it was a jazz artist. The best is yet to

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come. And baby, won't it be fine? I can't remember

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who it was. Well, you need to record a version

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of it, obviously, because that sounds great.

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Thank you. I love jazz. I used to moonlight as

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a jazz artist when I was also doing my country

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stuff. But if somebody didn't have room for a

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country artist, then I'm like, well, can I put

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on my stilettos? And they're like, yes, you may.

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Come on in. That is awesome. Well, tonight, Carrie

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and I are going to be creating the ultimate modern

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female country artists mixtape. So as someone

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who is a female country artist, what are you

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looking for in the songs you're bringing to the

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table tonight? Oh, what am I looking for? I love

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music that really resonates either like in a

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storytelling format or in a fun. funky way, something

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that makes you feel good and want to dance. As

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far as like me being a musician, I always get

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trapped in that moment where I want to be either

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going, am I singing this to a theater group where

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they're just sitting there listening to me? Or

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am I singing it to my honky tonk rodeo crowd?

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And so it's a daily battle on what I feel like

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listening to. So it's going to be fun mixing

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it up. with you tonight. Well, let's get down

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to business. Tonight, as I mentioned at the top

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of the show, Carrie and I will be curating a

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modern female country artist's mixtape, and we're

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going to use that old cassette deck approach.

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Carrie, as my special guest, will begin side

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A with her first song choice, and then I'll add

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a song that I feel best follows up that choice.

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We'll then flip -flop choosing songs until we've

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mapped out 10 songs for side A. We'll then give

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our mixtape a proverbial flip, and we'll map

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outside, be only this time I'll kick things off

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with Carrie choosing second. Our overall goal

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for this episode is to craft the best modern

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female country artist's mixtape possible through

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only 20 songs. And at the end of the show, you

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can take our conversation to the next level by

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visiting the episode page at myweeklymixtape

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.com to give our final mixtape a listen. via

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the embedded playlist. And if you like what you're

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hearing on the show, you can help me out by either

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telling a friend, leaving the show a five -star

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review wherever you're tuning in, or becoming

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a Patreon mixtaper at patreon .com forward slash

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myweeklymixtape. And a few of the Patreon mixtapers

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chimed in with songs that they would suggest

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we use to kick things off tonight. So I want

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to give a quick shout out to a few of those.

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David Owens chimed in with Miranda Lambert's

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Gum Powder and Lead, saying it is her first top

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10 single and he feels she's pretty influential

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for female country in the 2000s. Tom Hutchinson

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chimed in with Priscilla Block's Hey Jack. Chad

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LaMassa chimed in with Britney Spencer's Bigger

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Than The Song as he recently saw her open for

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Grace Potter and enjoyed the fact that she pays

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homage to all of her inspirations. And Chad also

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chimed in with Jamie Wyatt's Neon Cross. And

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Philip Bergman chimed in saying this is not a

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kickoff track, but maybe song two on side two

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can be the Secret Sisters' Tennessee Me. He loves

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the rustic feel to that one. So with that out

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in the atmosphere, Carrie, I'm officially pressing

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the record button on our mixtape and the floor

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is yours. What song did you choose to kick off

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side A and why? I am kicking it off with Laney

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Wilson, Wildflowers and Wild Horses. I absolutely

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love Lainey. I have been a fan of hers since

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before she became superstardom Lainey Wilson.

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And when this album first came out, I went out

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and I downloaded the whole thing the very first

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day and I was just absorbing it. And her and

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her songwriters or co -writers have such a unique

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way of just speaking the language of her. but

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resonating with everybody else. And that's what

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we strive for as songwriters and performers,

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to be able to reach out to everybody that's listening

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and connect with them. And sometimes it gets

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a little hard because we kind of get too personal,

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but I think Lainey just nails it. And Wildflowers

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and Wild Horses, that song, the moment I heard

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it, made me feel like I was back in my home state

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of Nebraska. And I was like... Oh, my word. I

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love everything, everything about this album

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and about this song. So that's why I'm choosing

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this one first. Could not agree more. Bell Bottom

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Country is probably my favorite country album

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of 2022. Maybe quite possibly my favorite album

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of 2022. The first time I put it on and heard

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it front to back, I. had to sit back and say,

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did I just listen to that entire album and not

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even think about skipping anything? And I listened

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to it a second time through. And the way she

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weaves in between songs like Watermelon Moonshine,

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which is, I would say, a modern day strawberry

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wine by Dina Carter. Exactly. I feel like it

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has that same type of feeling where when you're

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listening to the lyrics of that song. It's got

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such a storyteller -like delivery to the song.

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You almost feel like you know Lainey Wilson listening

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to that song. But then a couple of songs later,

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you're flipping it into this funky 1970s swagger

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that is Grease. And then you throw on her cover

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of Four Non Blondes at the end of the album,

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What's Up? And I mean, she just slays it. She

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took home the prize. for best country album at

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the 2024 Grammys, deservedly so. So you totally

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scooped me on the artist. Love the song. Love

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the pick. Perfect. Yeah. And I think I'm going

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to follow it up with, hmm, I'm going to go back

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one more year. I'm going to go to 2021. In all

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my years of podcasting, I've had the chance to

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talk country only a few times so far. Super stoked

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to be able to do this tonight. But one of the

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first country interviews I ever did was with

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an artist whose album Reckless was soon to be

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released. And I'm going to go with Morgan Wade.

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And I'm going to go with the track Wilder Days,

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which was co -written and produced by Sadler

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Vaden, who some might recognize. from his tenure

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as part of Jason Isbell and the 400 unit. Now

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I could go on and on about how much I love this

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song. However, because I was fortunate enough

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to chat with Morgan a few years back on my old

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tune styles podcast, she told a pretty cool story

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about recording this song with Sadler. And I

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want to play that clip now. Wilder days was a

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song that that's literally like the first song

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Sadler and I worked on together. writing and

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wilder days has been through so many processes

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like just trying to figure out what's the right

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vibe for it and it's it's always been you know

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a similar line i remember the first night that

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we like really got the demo finished it was like

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10 30 and i'm an early bird man if i'm not touring

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i'm like in the bed early and this dude was so

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excited that he's like, we've got to go get ice

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cream and listen to this in the car. And he like

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burns a copy of it onto a CD and we get in Sadler's

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Honda Element and we ride to Jenny's to get ice

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cream at almost 11 p .m. And this guy is like

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so excited. This song is, he's like blasting

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the song as loud as he can as we're riding through

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Nashville. So that was like the biggest memory

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I have of this song because just the joy. that

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Sadler had from doing that. And I remember waking

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up the next morning and he's, you know, sitting

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down there in his robe and his pajamas. And he's

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like, I had this other idea for it. And so it's

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great. It went from that to, you know, where

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we're at now. And it just, it was like real organic,

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but we wanted it to kind of punch you in the

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face a little bit, but be one of those jam songs

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that also has meaning to it. And he definitely

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did that. That was all Sadler, you know, being

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able to really come up with the beat for that

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and really make all that groove. But it's exactly

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what I pictured in my head. And sometimes it's

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really hard to write something and you have this

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image in your head of like, okay, I want it to

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sound like this. I want it to look like this.

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But to actually do it is another thing. And we

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actually really did it for this song. And so

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this is a song that, you know, I was playing

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at shows and people were just freaking out. wanting

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the song, where can I get the song? And so we

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were like, we definitely have to put Wilder Days

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out, you know, as the first standalone single

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off the record. That's so awesome. Yeah, I couldn't

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agree more. To me, Wilder Days is one of those

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top down on the convertible country road trip

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anthems. And it peaked at number 36 on the Billboard

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Hot Country Songs chart and really helped establish

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Morgan. as a future force to be reckoned with

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in the country music space. So I feel like coming

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out of Lainey Wilson, Morgan Wade, the two of

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them really kind of have this vibe going right

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from the start. And I like where we're heading

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with this. So following up Lainey Wilson, I'm

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going to go with Morgan Wade's Wilder Days. That

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sounds perfect. I couldn't agree more with you

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on that. When I first heard her, I was like,

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ooh. She's a little like a little rebellious

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and we kind of need that. You know, when you

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think about country music and rebellion with

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female country artists, you know, there's obviously

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like Miranda Lambert, people think, and then

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they think of Gretchen Wilson, you know, but

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Gretchen was very the rebel female in 90s country.

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And I think along those lines too, I also think

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of like Wynonna Judd for some reason, but Morgan,

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I think she's a perfect. Number two, following

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Lainey Wilson on our mixtape. Well, now I'm throwing

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it back to you to follow up with track three.

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Well, I think that I'm going to go with Megan

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Moroney and her song, I'm Not Pretty. And reason

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why is because that was, I believe, single number

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two following Tennessee Orange. And I wish I

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had written this song. I honestly wish that I

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had written this song. I can relate to it on

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so many levels. Yeah, because I feel that like

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she was kind of looking into my diary at this

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particular moment. And I'm like, girl, how do

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you know my story? So I definitely want to continue

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on with her song, I'm Not Pretty. And I just

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think it resonates with so many younger women

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out there. who, especially with the whole social

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media route going on right now, we can spy on

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anybody, you know, as long as their profile's

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not private. And if you're jealous, you go down

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that rabbit hole and, you know, you'll find fault

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in that new girl, no matter what. And then you

00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:26.980
being the strong, confident new woman in this

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guy's life, it's just like, don't know what to

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tell you, sweet cheeks, you know, but move along.

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Just move, move, move. So, yeah. So, Megan Maroney.

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So, we're talking with something that came out

00:14:38.259 --> 00:14:42.460
just this past summer in 2023. That reached number

00:14:42.460 --> 00:14:46.179
32 on the Hot Country Songs chart and just missed

00:14:46.179 --> 00:14:49.159
cracking the top 100. So, this song was certainly

00:14:49.159 --> 00:14:51.720
making some waves. Now, the subject matter is

00:14:51.720 --> 00:14:54.500
something that I could tell you 20 years ago,

00:14:54.539 --> 00:14:56.019
I never would have thought would have been in

00:14:56.019 --> 00:14:58.840
a country song. But here we are because it is

00:14:58.840 --> 00:15:01.820
part of... The culture we live in now, social

00:15:01.820 --> 00:15:06.200
media is such a big part of human nature. It's

00:15:06.200 --> 00:15:08.620
kind of brought through its ugliest parts in

00:15:08.620 --> 00:15:12.120
this song. And there's that pop sensibility that

00:15:12.120 --> 00:15:15.980
is brought into this song. That's not overly

00:15:15.980 --> 00:15:19.840
pop, but you could definitely feel that there's

00:15:19.840 --> 00:15:22.639
something about pop music now in country music

00:15:22.639 --> 00:15:24.879
that there's been a line that's been blurred.

00:15:25.480 --> 00:15:28.379
Where you don't know at times when country ends

00:15:28.379 --> 00:15:31.919
and pop begins, because a lot of it has been

00:15:31.919 --> 00:15:35.440
thrown together and a lot of country songs are

00:15:35.440 --> 00:15:39.460
becoming crossover mainstream hits a lot quicker

00:15:39.460 --> 00:15:42.240
than they did, let's say, back in the 90s, where

00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:46.279
it took something extreme like a Shania Twain

00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:48.940
on the female side of things or a Garth Brooks

00:15:48.940 --> 00:15:52.240
on the male end of the spectrum to really cross

00:15:52.240 --> 00:15:56.100
over. Or a Billy Ray Cyrus achy breaky heart

00:15:56.100 --> 00:15:59.360
moment. But now that line has been completely

00:15:59.360 --> 00:16:01.960
moved where the blurring happens more often.

00:16:02.019 --> 00:16:05.179
And there's a lot of crossover appeal. And I

00:16:05.179 --> 00:16:07.740
think I'm going to tap into that with my next

00:16:07.740 --> 00:16:11.820
pick. I'm going to follow up Megan Maroney with

00:16:11.820 --> 00:16:15.720
an artist that started off pretty much in the

00:16:15.720 --> 00:16:20.580
pop realm. But has since pivoted to a more country

00:16:20.580 --> 00:16:23.879
style. And I know there's been. Some good and

00:16:23.879 --> 00:16:27.600
bad news recently over a performance for Dolly

00:16:27.600 --> 00:16:31.340
Parton at the Ryman on the Grand Ole Opry stage.

00:16:31.600 --> 00:16:38.139
But Ellie King has such a unique voice. The first

00:16:38.139 --> 00:16:40.379
time I heard X's and O's on the radio, I'm like,

00:16:40.440 --> 00:16:42.539
this song is going to be played at weddings for

00:16:42.539 --> 00:16:45.220
decades. Like, you just know when a song has

00:16:45.220 --> 00:16:49.139
that hook. And she brought it to country on her

00:16:49.139 --> 00:16:53.460
most recent album, which. I wasn't sure when

00:16:53.460 --> 00:16:56.399
I read it on paper that she was going to do a

00:16:56.399 --> 00:16:59.139
country album. I'm going, hmm, I'm not quite

00:16:59.139 --> 00:17:01.679
sure how that's going to work. And the first

00:17:01.679 --> 00:17:05.579
time I heard her single Out Yonder from the 2023

00:17:05.579 --> 00:17:08.819
album Come Get Your Wife, it was instantly that

00:17:08.819 --> 00:17:11.819
moment of, yeah, she nailed it. Her voice is

00:17:11.819 --> 00:17:14.480
perfect for country. And she's definitely getting

00:17:14.480 --> 00:17:18.670
out there a lot more. I could see. Her being

00:17:18.670 --> 00:17:21.329
a big name in country moving forward if she continues

00:17:21.329 --> 00:17:24.049
down this path. And when I say this path, I'm

00:17:24.049 --> 00:17:26.549
talking totally about the music here, not her

00:17:26.549 --> 00:17:29.049
personal life and the things that she's facing

00:17:29.049 --> 00:17:32.130
ever since the Dolly Parton incident. I know

00:17:32.130 --> 00:17:35.170
with some artists, they weave in and out of country

00:17:35.170 --> 00:17:38.750
depending on the album cycle. But I'm guessing

00:17:38.750 --> 00:17:40.529
she might be here to stay with this one because

00:17:40.529 --> 00:17:42.509
the album as a whole is a pretty strong statement.

00:17:43.509 --> 00:17:47.319
Yeah. I can't chime too much on Elle King, only

00:17:47.319 --> 00:17:50.859
knowing X is an O. I love that song. I used to

00:17:50.859 --> 00:17:53.880
perform that song a lot. I really get down and

00:17:53.880 --> 00:17:56.920
dirty with that song. And I have listened to

00:17:56.920 --> 00:18:01.200
some of her songs. Yeah, more power to us bringing

00:18:01.200 --> 00:18:06.019
her into this mixtape and allowing grace and

00:18:06.019 --> 00:18:09.019
giving her that moment of saying, you know, she

00:18:09.019 --> 00:18:13.980
is a great artist. Very unique voice. And, you

00:18:13.980 --> 00:18:16.799
know, I just I hope that with the whole Dolly

00:18:16.799 --> 00:18:19.440
Parton's issue that she had on the stage, I hope

00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:21.559
she gets the help that she needs. And from what

00:18:21.559 --> 00:18:23.680
I hear, she is getting the help she needs. So

00:18:23.680 --> 00:18:27.619
I expect her to come out a brand new person later

00:18:27.619 --> 00:18:32.299
on this year and shine. And, you know, her fans

00:18:32.299 --> 00:18:34.720
will still be there to support her. I agree.

00:18:34.799 --> 00:18:39.359
Look, people you can go on and on about issues

00:18:39.359 --> 00:18:42.880
that people have. Everybody. has one issue or

00:18:42.880 --> 00:18:45.279
another no matter what it is and i always try

00:18:45.279 --> 00:18:48.680
to use grace when stories like that pop up because

00:18:48.680 --> 00:18:52.960
not everything is what tmz makes it out to be

00:18:52.960 --> 00:18:55.440
sometimes there are other things going on and

00:18:55.440 --> 00:18:57.480
you just aren't living in those people's shoes

00:18:57.480 --> 00:19:01.240
so it might not have been her finest hour but

00:19:01.240 --> 00:19:03.359
if it put her in the direction to get the help

00:19:03.359 --> 00:19:07.059
she needs to put her on a path moving forward

00:19:07.059 --> 00:19:09.940
i could see that being a positive from a negative

00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:13.500
Oh, absolutely. I agree. Well, following that

00:19:13.500 --> 00:19:16.160
up, we're back to you for track five. You know

00:19:16.160 --> 00:19:19.960
what? I am following that up with a little bit

00:19:19.960 --> 00:19:23.539
of humor. I am going to take it down the aisle

00:19:23.539 --> 00:19:28.720
of, down the aisle, wrong aisle, Brandy Clark.

00:19:29.619 --> 00:19:33.519
And with Brandy. I just want to say that with

00:19:33.519 --> 00:19:36.180
both Brandi Clark and Brandi Carlile, they're

00:19:36.180 --> 00:19:38.420
both from Washington State. And I have a huge

00:19:38.420 --> 00:19:40.640
following in the Northwest. And I used to live

00:19:40.640 --> 00:19:43.220
in Spokane and Seattle and Vancouver, Washington.

00:19:43.539 --> 00:19:46.960
And so I've been a fan of Brandi Clark and Brandi

00:19:46.960 --> 00:19:50.460
Carlile for a long time. So I am super happy

00:19:50.460 --> 00:19:52.319
that the two of them have been working together.

00:19:52.940 --> 00:19:56.640
I am super happy that Brandi won a Grammy last

00:19:56.640 --> 00:20:00.640
night. But following in my little sick humor.

00:20:01.660 --> 00:20:05.680
With Elle King, my song of choice for Brandi

00:20:05.680 --> 00:20:09.400
Clark is Stripes. And I used to sing that song,

00:20:09.500 --> 00:20:11.700
and I think that was the first song that actually

00:20:11.700 --> 00:20:16.859
really helped her get noticed in Nashville, because

00:20:16.859 --> 00:20:18.960
she had been putting out all these songs that

00:20:18.960 --> 00:20:21.880
all these other artists were recording, but her

00:20:21.880 --> 00:20:24.940
as an artist... wasn't really making waves in

00:20:24.940 --> 00:20:27.480
Nashville until she came out with her own album,

00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:31.579
12 Stories. And 12 Stories ended up just taking

00:20:31.579 --> 00:20:34.119
off and everybody was like, this is album of

00:20:34.119 --> 00:20:37.059
the year. This is so fantastic. And her song

00:20:37.059 --> 00:20:41.779
Stripes is so awesome. And so I want to follow

00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:44.480
it up with Stripes. Well, one of my closest friends

00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:46.700
on the planet who I went to college with in North

00:20:46.700 --> 00:20:49.440
Carolina, and we've stayed friends for decades.

00:20:49.740 --> 00:20:52.079
And I want to say in like the last five years,

00:20:52.220 --> 00:20:54.420
he messaged me and said, you know, you're talking

00:20:54.420 --> 00:20:57.400
about country online. You've heard 12 stories,

00:20:57.500 --> 00:21:01.619
haven't you? And I said, uh, 12 stories. He goes,

00:21:01.680 --> 00:21:04.019
Brandy Clark. I said, it's not ringing a bell.

00:21:04.099 --> 00:21:07.779
He goes, oh, Jesus, hold on. And about a week

00:21:07.779 --> 00:21:10.039
later, I got a package in the mail and it was

00:21:10.039 --> 00:21:13.670
a copy of 12 stories on CD. And popping that

00:21:13.670 --> 00:21:15.690
in and hearing Pray to Jesus for the first time,

00:21:15.730 --> 00:21:17.950
I was like, Chris, maybe it's the New Jersey

00:21:17.950 --> 00:21:20.849
guy in me, but I don't know how I've gone this

00:21:20.849 --> 00:21:24.809
long and not heard Brandi Clark before. She is

00:21:24.809 --> 00:21:28.269
incredible. And everything she's done since then,

00:21:28.430 --> 00:21:31.769
I feel like her winning that Grammy is more a

00:21:31.769 --> 00:21:35.369
question of how did it take this long? Long overdue.

00:21:35.529 --> 00:21:40.210
Long overdue. What a fantastic pick. Thank you.

00:21:40.450 --> 00:21:43.319
And I'm going to follow it up. bring things down

00:21:43.319 --> 00:21:46.420
a little bit because we're at track six and sometimes

00:21:46.420 --> 00:21:48.180
on a mixtape, you know, you're kind of going

00:21:48.180 --> 00:21:50.599
up, up, up, and you want to bring it down a little

00:21:50.599 --> 00:21:52.599
bit and give everyone a breather. And there are

00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:55.819
certain songs that when it comes to slow country

00:21:55.819 --> 00:22:00.559
songs, really create moments. And there is a

00:22:00.559 --> 00:22:04.299
song that came out in 2019 that as a father,

00:22:04.440 --> 00:22:07.720
I have listened to this song. I have never once

00:22:07.720 --> 00:22:12.539
gotten through it without welling up. I have

00:22:12.539 --> 00:22:17.680
two beautiful daughters, and I know one day this

00:22:17.680 --> 00:22:21.599
song may come true, and I don't ever want it

00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:25.380
to, but it's realistic. I'm going to go with

00:22:25.380 --> 00:22:30.039
Ingrid Andress, More Hearts Than Mine. The first

00:22:30.039 --> 00:22:33.200
time I saw her perform that song on the 2020

00:22:33.200 --> 00:22:36.359
CMT Music Awards when she broke down in tears.

00:22:37.200 --> 00:22:38.880
My wife looked at me, I'm like, did you start

00:22:38.880 --> 00:22:41.180
cutting onions? I'm like, what is happening here?

00:22:41.240 --> 00:22:44.720
Like, why am I so invested in this song? And

00:22:44.720 --> 00:22:47.339
I went back and I immediately bought it. As soon

00:22:47.339 --> 00:22:49.240
as that performance was done, I bought the album

00:22:49.240 --> 00:22:51.900
and I went right to that song. And every time

00:22:51.900 --> 00:22:54.440
I hear it, and I'm just talking about it right

00:22:54.440 --> 00:22:57.460
now, and you could see this on the, I literally

00:22:57.460 --> 00:23:00.420
have goosebumps going up and down my arm. It

00:23:00.420 --> 00:23:05.160
is such a perfect storytelling song. And it breaks

00:23:05.160 --> 00:23:09.660
my heart, but it's also something where you can

00:23:09.660 --> 00:23:12.319
hear the family coming together in the lyrics.

00:23:12.420 --> 00:23:16.200
You feel like you know Ingrid by the end of that

00:23:16.200 --> 00:23:19.619
song. It's just so well written. It's so vulnerable,

00:23:19.740 --> 00:23:21.599
so personal, and it's just a beautiful song.

00:23:21.700 --> 00:23:25.539
So more hearts than mine. Oh, that's so perfect.

00:23:25.720 --> 00:23:28.839
I love that song. And the first time I heard

00:23:28.839 --> 00:23:33.099
it, I was like, oh. This is me and my daughter.

00:23:33.480 --> 00:23:36.599
This is so me and my daughter. And I had her

00:23:36.599 --> 00:23:38.680
listen to it. And she's like, I didn't tell her

00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:40.680
anything. I just, I'm like, you should hear this

00:23:40.680 --> 00:23:44.460
song. And she's like, oh, that's us. I was like,

00:23:44.599 --> 00:23:51.660
yes. So I love it. Following that, since we are

00:23:51.660 --> 00:23:56.019
along kind of a little bit more mellow mood.

00:23:56.640 --> 00:23:58.460
It's always good to have like two right before

00:23:58.460 --> 00:24:00.599
we start to build it back up. Since I was talking

00:24:00.599 --> 00:24:03.160
about Brandi Clark, I would like to pay homage

00:24:03.160 --> 00:24:06.559
to Brandi Carlile. And I was thinking about doing

00:24:06.559 --> 00:24:09.400
a song from the High Women. But then I was like,

00:24:09.420 --> 00:24:14.700
no, I'll give Brandi Carlile her own song. And

00:24:14.700 --> 00:24:18.380
I'm going to go with The Joke from 2017. And

00:24:18.380 --> 00:24:24.619
it's about all the struggles that us women. have

00:24:24.619 --> 00:24:26.519
had to, oh, well, actually it's not just us women.

00:24:26.599 --> 00:24:30.319
It's anybody that is different, whether you're,

00:24:30.319 --> 00:24:32.539
whether you're a woman or whether you're, you're

00:24:32.539 --> 00:24:38.839
gay or what have you, you know, talent and longevity

00:24:38.839 --> 00:24:42.819
and just being yourself. It always comes back

00:24:42.819 --> 00:24:45.900
around. And you know, when she's like the jokes

00:24:45.900 --> 00:24:49.319
on them, it is just like, and the way she delivers

00:24:49.319 --> 00:24:53.880
that hook is just like, oh, it just sends. chills

00:24:53.880 --> 00:24:57.299
down my spine and the first time i heard it i'm

00:24:57.299 --> 00:24:59.740
driving and i just remember i got teary -eyed

00:24:59.740 --> 00:25:03.920
because i was like yes you're 1000 correct the

00:25:03.920 --> 00:25:08.500
joke is on them not on you and so the joke by

00:25:08.500 --> 00:25:12.220
brandy carlisle i became a brandy carlisle fan

00:25:12.220 --> 00:25:14.640
back in 2007 the first time i heard the story

00:25:14.640 --> 00:25:18.220
i mean that song just blew my mind. I had never

00:25:18.220 --> 00:25:21.740
heard anything like it. It was so powerful, so

00:25:21.740 --> 00:25:25.940
big, so bold. And then we talked about the Grammys

00:25:25.940 --> 00:25:28.660
just before with Laney Wilson. If you watch the

00:25:28.660 --> 00:25:30.880
Grammys, I know we're still kind of hot on that

00:25:30.880 --> 00:25:33.200
moment this week because it just happened as

00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:36.559
the week we're recording this, but Randy's performance

00:25:36.559 --> 00:25:41.720
with Joni Mitchell of Both Sides Now was literally

00:25:41.720 --> 00:25:45.529
the most Beautiful performance I've seen on the

00:25:45.529 --> 00:25:47.529
Grammys in such a long time. And I know a lot

00:25:47.529 --> 00:25:50.029
of people right now are talking about the incredible

00:25:50.029 --> 00:25:53.210
performance of Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs doing

00:25:53.210 --> 00:25:55.609
Fast Car together. And that was a wonderful,

00:25:55.809 --> 00:25:59.289
wonderful performance. But Joni Mitchell's Both

00:25:59.289 --> 00:26:04.769
Sides Now just shredded me. I could barely see

00:26:04.769 --> 00:26:06.829
the screen through the tears of my eyes because

00:26:06.829 --> 00:26:10.170
it was such an emotional, beautiful performance.

00:26:11.660 --> 00:26:15.000
You could see the admiration and love that Brandi

00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:18.440
had for Joni in that performance. Just the look,

00:26:18.519 --> 00:26:21.259
it was just so powerful and so emotional. I'm

00:26:21.259 --> 00:26:23.460
so glad you included her on this list because

00:26:23.460 --> 00:26:27.640
you really can't talk modern country and not

00:26:27.640 --> 00:26:31.339
talk Brandi Carlile. Absolutely. Well, and even,

00:26:31.380 --> 00:26:34.740
you know, me being a country singer up in the

00:26:34.740 --> 00:26:36.700
Northwest, a female country singer up in the

00:26:36.700 --> 00:26:40.490
Northwest. I just have to. There's no ifs, ands,

00:26:40.490 --> 00:26:42.750
or buts about it. I just have to bring up Brandi

00:26:42.750 --> 00:26:46.029
Carlile and Brandi Clark. Contractually obligated,

00:26:46.029 --> 00:26:49.470
all set. That's right. Well, I'm going to pick

00:26:49.470 --> 00:26:51.769
up the pace a little bit now. And I'm going to

00:26:51.769 --> 00:26:56.009
go with a song that came out in 2020 during the

00:26:56.009 --> 00:26:58.769
height of the pandemic. And this was a song that,

00:26:58.769 --> 00:27:02.390
you know, during the pandemic, it was a very

00:27:02.390 --> 00:27:05.259
down time. Everything was... You turned on the

00:27:05.259 --> 00:27:07.220
news. It was just negative, negative, negative.

00:27:07.440 --> 00:27:09.319
And there was so much going on. It was such a

00:27:09.319 --> 00:27:14.119
stressful, horrible time that I turned to music

00:27:14.119 --> 00:27:17.420
to get a release and some joy and some happiness.

00:27:17.559 --> 00:27:21.279
And one of the most infectious and upbeat songs

00:27:21.279 --> 00:27:26.019
that came out in 2020 that truly was a delicate

00:27:26.019 --> 00:27:29.710
balance between country and pop. So this song

00:27:29.710 --> 00:27:33.230
truly had that crossover appeal. I'm going to

00:27:33.230 --> 00:27:35.750
go with Kelsey Ballerini's Hole in the Bottle.

00:27:36.190 --> 00:27:40.430
Yes. Okay. All right. This song, again, it's

00:27:40.430 --> 00:27:42.789
also international. It reached number one on

00:27:42.789 --> 00:27:46.049
Canada's country charts and number two in the

00:27:46.049 --> 00:27:50.029
U .S. for country airplay. It was a top 40 hit,

00:27:50.109 --> 00:27:53.269
meaning all genres. So there's that crossover

00:27:53.269 --> 00:27:56.279
appeal. It reached number 39. Now, if you're

00:27:56.279 --> 00:27:58.559
a person that likes your country to have less

00:27:58.559 --> 00:28:01.779
of the pop side of things, when Kelsey released

00:28:01.779 --> 00:28:05.819
the album, the CD version, and obviously on streaming,

00:28:05.920 --> 00:28:08.059
it's two separate albums, but there was a companion

00:28:08.059 --> 00:28:12.500
album called Ballerini, obviously, and there

00:28:12.500 --> 00:28:16.690
is a stripped down. honky -tonk almost bluegrass

00:28:16.690 --> 00:28:19.490
version of the song so depending on where you

00:28:19.490 --> 00:28:22.490
sit with your country tastes there's two versions

00:28:22.490 --> 00:28:25.390
there's actually three versions of the song if

00:28:25.390 --> 00:28:28.509
you count the duet version she did with shania

00:28:28.509 --> 00:28:31.289
twain so depending on where you stand this song

00:28:31.289 --> 00:28:34.390
kind of really checks off all the boxes and let's

00:28:34.390 --> 00:28:38.509
just be honest it's just a ton of fun yes yes

00:28:38.509 --> 00:28:42.240
it is oh i love kelsey I know we're not throwing

00:28:42.240 --> 00:28:45.160
it on the list, but when she came out with Miss

00:28:45.160 --> 00:28:50.900
Me More in 2017, I'm like, girl, you literally

00:28:50.900 --> 00:28:54.339
just spoke to every female on the planet with

00:28:54.339 --> 00:28:58.359
this song. We all can relate to this. It's happened

00:28:58.359 --> 00:29:02.119
to us at one point in our lives. So yeah, she's

00:29:02.119 --> 00:29:05.359
an amazing songwriter. And I'm going to follow

00:29:05.359 --> 00:29:10.339
it up with a Texas artist. I'm going to follow

00:29:10.339 --> 00:29:16.480
it up with Raelynn from her 2021 album, Baytown.

00:29:16.539 --> 00:29:21.099
And the song is called Keep Up. And Keep Up is

00:29:21.099 --> 00:29:26.480
a fun, fun honky -tonk song. I used to go around

00:29:26.480 --> 00:29:31.059
and sing it at rodeos, etc. But it's such a fun

00:29:31.059 --> 00:29:34.660
song about being, I guess, like a country girl.

00:29:35.450 --> 00:29:38.650
And living in the city and still staying true

00:29:38.650 --> 00:29:41.309
to your roots and and kind of just telling a

00:29:41.309 --> 00:29:43.849
guy like almost kind of like anything you can

00:29:43.849 --> 00:29:49.170
do, I can do better with my with my boots on

00:29:49.170 --> 00:29:51.630
and my and my truck. And I'm a truck girl. I

00:29:51.630 --> 00:29:55.609
have a truck and and she is just so much fun.

00:29:55.750 --> 00:29:59.049
So I want to say Ray Lynn and keep up. Well,

00:29:59.109 --> 00:30:02.390
I was introduced to Ray Lynn back in 2012 when

00:30:02.390 --> 00:30:06.900
she appeared on The Voice. And she covered the

00:30:06.900 --> 00:30:10.299
Pistol Annie's Hell on Heels. And to pull that

00:30:10.299 --> 00:30:16.619
song off with authority speaks volumes. And the

00:30:16.619 --> 00:30:20.059
fact that she isn't so much bigger, because I

00:30:20.059 --> 00:30:22.140
really felt like she was a highlight of that

00:30:22.140 --> 00:30:25.660
season, even though she did not win. But I think

00:30:25.660 --> 00:30:28.940
to follow her up, to close out the side, we started

00:30:28.940 --> 00:30:31.119
with Lainey Wilson, who is one of the biggest

00:30:31.119 --> 00:30:34.240
names in country music right now. I'm going to

00:30:34.240 --> 00:30:36.079
go with one of the biggest names in country music

00:30:36.079 --> 00:30:38.539
over the last several decades. And I'm going

00:30:38.539 --> 00:30:41.700
to follow it up by bouncing off the fact that

00:30:41.700 --> 00:30:44.559
Ray Lynn was on The Voice. And I'm going to flip

00:30:44.559 --> 00:30:47.099
the channel and go over to American Idol and

00:30:47.099 --> 00:30:50.200
bring in an artist that we obviously have to

00:30:50.200 --> 00:30:53.500
talk about with modern country artists. And that's

00:30:53.500 --> 00:30:55.880
the amazing Carrie Underwood. And I'm going to

00:30:55.880 --> 00:30:58.960
go all the way back to 2005 because Before He

00:30:58.960 --> 00:31:04.380
Cheats is just one of those songs. That I don't

00:31:04.380 --> 00:31:07.359
care what level of country fan you are. This

00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:11.799
song just hits. This song is powerful as all

00:31:11.799 --> 00:31:15.440
hell. It's the first country song ever to sell

00:31:15.440 --> 00:31:20.299
2 million digital copies. And at one point was

00:31:20.299 --> 00:31:27.059
the best selling country song of all time. That

00:31:27.059 --> 00:31:30.829
is amazing. Now think about the fact that. A

00:31:30.829 --> 00:31:33.890
lot of the American Idol, The Voice, America's

00:31:33.890 --> 00:31:37.190
Got Talent, there's not a massive track record

00:31:37.190 --> 00:31:39.470
for success. Just because you're on the show

00:31:39.470 --> 00:31:42.410
doesn't guarantee you're going to be able to

00:31:42.410 --> 00:31:45.589
solidify a career beyond the show. There have

00:31:45.589 --> 00:31:48.450
been some winners that have just kind of fizzled

00:31:48.450 --> 00:31:51.720
over the years. Carrie Underwood was one of those

00:31:51.720 --> 00:31:54.339
ones that just eclipsed it and then some and

00:31:54.339 --> 00:31:57.299
became the benchmark for what people on these

00:31:57.299 --> 00:32:00.500
shows strive to become. And she still is putting

00:32:00.500 --> 00:32:03.119
out amazing music to this day. I was thinking

00:32:03.119 --> 00:32:05.059
about some of the songs from her latest album,

00:32:05.180 --> 00:32:08.240
but as soon as I heard the Before He Cheats kick

00:32:08.240 --> 00:32:10.960
in, I'm like, I gotta go with it. It's just that

00:32:10.960 --> 00:32:13.839
great of a song. So closing out Side A, Carrie

00:32:13.839 --> 00:32:17.279
Underwood, Before He Cheats. I approve this message.

00:32:20.359 --> 00:32:24.000
Well, in fact, she was so nervous to even record

00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:28.019
the song that she asked permission from her mom.

00:32:28.500 --> 00:32:31.059
She asked her mom, what do you think about this,

00:32:31.140 --> 00:32:34.720
mom? Am I going to shine a bad light on me? She

00:32:34.720 --> 00:32:38.460
was that worried. And that just pays homage to

00:32:38.460 --> 00:32:42.220
her credit as a human being and the message that

00:32:42.220 --> 00:32:45.920
she wants to portray to other female artists.

00:32:46.940 --> 00:32:50.849
And with her mom going, heck yeah. cut the song,

00:32:50.950 --> 00:32:54.470
you know? But it was just awesome that she thought

00:32:54.470 --> 00:32:57.890
about it first, about what kind of message she's

00:32:57.890 --> 00:33:00.609
putting out there and how her parents would see

00:33:00.609 --> 00:33:03.609
her, you know, and her faith and everything.

00:33:03.769 --> 00:33:07.150
So I give her massive kudos for that. And boy,

00:33:07.250 --> 00:33:11.309
talk about skyrocketing. I mean, when Guns N'

00:33:11.430 --> 00:33:14.470
Roses asks you to join them on stage to sing,

00:33:14.650 --> 00:33:17.630
and I'll just say with all due respect, I am

00:33:17.630 --> 00:33:21.869
a huge Guns N' Roses fan. Carrie annihilated

00:33:21.869 --> 00:33:27.450
Axl on stage. She sounded so amazing. She could

00:33:27.450 --> 00:33:32.269
do a straight up hairband rock album and just

00:33:32.269 --> 00:33:34.609
murder it. And it would be amazing. I mean, if

00:33:34.609 --> 00:33:36.529
you think back to when she was on American Idol,

00:33:36.690 --> 00:33:41.230
she tackled alone by heart. Case closed. That

00:33:41.230 --> 00:33:44.990
is not an easy song to sing. I've tried to sing

00:33:44.990 --> 00:33:48.569
along with it. terribly on many occasions and

00:33:48.569 --> 00:33:52.269
she just slayed it. So there you have it. Mixtapers

00:33:52.269 --> 00:33:56.450
side a of our modern female country artists mixtape,

00:33:56.490 --> 00:33:59.529
which kicked off with Laney Wilson's wildflowers

00:33:59.529 --> 00:34:03.450
and wild horses, Morgan Wade's wilder days, Megan

00:34:03.450 --> 00:34:06.910
Maroney's. I'm not pretty. Ellie King's out yonder.

00:34:07.109 --> 00:34:10.730
Brandy Clark stripes, Ingrid Andrus, more hearts

00:34:10.730 --> 00:34:13.949
than mine. Brandy Carlisle's the joke. Kelsey

00:34:13.949 --> 00:34:16.780
ballerini's hole in the bottle. Ray Lynn's Keep

00:34:16.780 --> 00:34:20.000
Up, and Carrie Underwood's Before He Cheats.

00:34:20.059 --> 00:34:22.940
Head over to myweeklymixtape .com to hear all

00:34:22.940 --> 00:34:25.639
the songs we've discussed in this mix through

00:34:25.639 --> 00:34:29.920
the playlist embedded on the episode page. Now,

00:34:29.920 --> 00:34:31.639
Carrie, I'd like to take some time to dive into

00:34:31.639 --> 00:34:34.300
some of your songs. So let's start with your

00:34:34.300 --> 00:34:43.590
latest track, Just Like. Be the light in any

00:34:43.590 --> 00:34:49.969
situation I see you time and time again Bringing

00:34:49.969 --> 00:34:54.010
out your selflessness Show me what it means to

00:34:54.010 --> 00:34:59.750
be more patient I was looking for a mirror image

00:34:59.750 --> 00:35:34.170
But you got me seeing things all different On

00:35:34.170 --> 00:35:37.570
first listen, I hear in this song a very memorable

00:35:37.570 --> 00:35:41.809
groove. It immediately grabbed me. And you referred

00:35:41.809 --> 00:35:45.190
to the track as a term that I've never heard

00:35:45.190 --> 00:35:49.679
before. Disco country. So I have to ask, what

00:35:49.679 --> 00:35:52.719
inspired you to write a song with such a unique

00:35:52.719 --> 00:36:20.400
cross -genre approach? myself as an artist with

00:36:20.400 --> 00:36:23.940
what I grew up listening to. So I grew up listening

00:36:23.940 --> 00:36:26.860
to country music. I love country music, but I

00:36:26.860 --> 00:36:31.280
also grew up listening to Motown and Donna Summers

00:36:31.280 --> 00:36:35.039
and Lou Rawls and the Bee Gees and Diana Ross

00:36:35.039 --> 00:36:37.880
and the Supremes and the Mamas and the Papas.

00:36:37.900 --> 00:36:41.199
And that kind of music, those different genres

00:36:41.199 --> 00:36:45.380
really resonated with me my whole life. And so

00:36:46.250 --> 00:36:50.409
When I was working on Just Like with my co -writer,

00:36:50.610 --> 00:36:53.570
Riley Roth, we had finished it and we thought,

00:36:53.690 --> 00:36:56.309
oh, you know what? This is a beautiful walk down

00:36:56.309 --> 00:36:58.849
the aisle song. And that was the tempo that we

00:36:58.849 --> 00:37:01.630
had it going to. And as I was driving around

00:37:01.630 --> 00:37:03.889
Nashville, I just kept feeling myself going.

00:37:04.630 --> 00:37:11.679
And I'm like. oh, this is definitely not the

00:37:11.679 --> 00:37:14.679
walking down the aisle like this. I mean, some

00:37:14.679 --> 00:37:17.699
people do, right? Of course. I was like, no.

00:37:18.019 --> 00:37:20.099
And I just started thinking, I'm like, no, you

00:37:20.099 --> 00:37:23.059
know what? You need to dive into the kind of

00:37:23.059 --> 00:37:25.880
person you really are. And I think it also helped

00:37:25.880 --> 00:37:29.280
with Lainey, again, bringing it back up to side

00:37:29.280 --> 00:37:31.980
A with Lainey Wilson coming out with Bell Bottom

00:37:31.980 --> 00:37:35.980
Country. I was already kind of in the midst of

00:37:35.980 --> 00:37:40.079
writing this. way, because of my showgirl album

00:37:40.079 --> 00:37:43.460
that came out in 2022. There's a few songs in

00:37:43.460 --> 00:37:45.340
there that have that like a little bit of a disco

00:37:45.340 --> 00:37:48.280
backbeat, my song happy to me, for instance.

00:37:48.519 --> 00:37:50.260
And so I was like, I'm just going to embrace

00:37:50.260 --> 00:37:53.699
who I really am. And that's how I ended up coming

00:37:53.699 --> 00:37:55.579
out just saying, you know what, I'm going to

00:37:55.579 --> 00:37:58.800
be this disco cowgirl because that's who I am.

00:37:58.840 --> 00:38:02.360
I love disco. I love country music. And I even

00:38:02.360 --> 00:38:06.389
have a shirt that says disco cowgirl. So So when

00:38:06.389 --> 00:38:09.349
you're in the studio producing this track, how

00:38:09.349 --> 00:38:13.449
do you strike that balance to where the scale,

00:38:13.590 --> 00:38:17.050
because this song, it never tips to where you

00:38:17.050 --> 00:38:19.929
say, oh, this is leaning too heavy disco. This

00:38:19.929 --> 00:38:23.230
is leaning too heavy country. You really struck

00:38:23.230 --> 00:38:26.289
a balance with the instrumentation on the track.

00:38:26.530 --> 00:38:30.670
How did you tell that story musically with the

00:38:30.670 --> 00:38:34.170
producer on this song? So Scott Jarrow and I,

00:38:34.289 --> 00:38:37.750
he is the gentleman that was helping me produce

00:38:37.750 --> 00:38:42.269
the song. I was very adamant on when it came

00:38:42.269 --> 00:38:44.610
to talking to musicians, especially the drummer.

00:38:44.670 --> 00:38:46.190
I think the drummer and the bass player are the

00:38:46.190 --> 00:38:49.789
two most important musicians in this style of

00:38:49.789 --> 00:38:52.889
music. Because you can have keys doing something,

00:38:52.969 --> 00:38:54.530
you can have guitar doing something, but if you

00:38:54.530 --> 00:38:57.429
don't have... that backbeat with the drums and

00:38:57.429 --> 00:39:00.289
the funk on the bass, what have you, it just

00:39:00.289 --> 00:39:03.869
won't sound. And so with the drummer, I was talking

00:39:03.869 --> 00:39:05.289
to him and he was doing a couple of things. And

00:39:05.289 --> 00:39:07.289
I'm like, nope, that's just not what I'm hearing.

00:39:07.489 --> 00:39:09.969
Like, I need to hear the hi -hat like this. I

00:39:09.969 --> 00:39:13.369
need to hear the snare like this and hit these

00:39:13.369 --> 00:39:15.989
accents. And he just kept doing it until I was

00:39:15.989 --> 00:39:18.769
happy. And then, you know, and there was times

00:39:18.769 --> 00:39:21.250
when I would bring up a song. I'm like, I think

00:39:21.250 --> 00:39:24.079
we need to hit it more like this. And so they

00:39:24.079 --> 00:39:26.119
listen, I'm like, ah, they're like, we get what

00:39:26.119 --> 00:39:28.059
you're saying now. And then we would finesse

00:39:28.059 --> 00:39:31.079
it from there. And so when I have something in

00:39:31.079 --> 00:39:33.800
my head, when it comes to producing a song, I

00:39:33.800 --> 00:39:37.079
just keep working at it until it hits the way

00:39:37.079 --> 00:39:40.659
that I hear it. And sometimes, you know, I think

00:39:40.659 --> 00:39:44.159
musicians get frustrated with me, but yet the

00:39:44.159 --> 00:39:49.039
ones that really understand, they love it because

00:39:49.039 --> 00:39:51.679
it's, it's pulling because they want to be able

00:39:51.679 --> 00:39:56.039
to helped me succeed in the vision that i have

00:39:56.039 --> 00:39:59.260
in my head and i was just working with some amazing

00:39:59.260 --> 00:40:02.739
amazing musicians that scott had brought in for

00:40:02.739 --> 00:40:05.559
me and scott and i had this great communication

00:40:05.559 --> 00:40:08.480
talking back and forth on exactly how i wanted

00:40:08.480 --> 00:40:12.019
to go and the exact instrumentation and making

00:40:12.019 --> 00:40:14.659
it a nice fine balance where it wasn't over produced

00:40:14.659 --> 00:40:18.519
and so yeah i just it was a conglomerate of the

00:40:18.519 --> 00:40:21.079
musicians and scott and i working together and

00:40:21.079 --> 00:40:24.280
my overall vision Well, you might have coined

00:40:24.280 --> 00:40:26.579
a brand new phrase, disco country, that might

00:40:26.579 --> 00:40:30.719
become the next thing in female country music.

00:40:31.519 --> 00:40:34.179
I'm hoping so. There's not often where I hear

00:40:34.179 --> 00:40:37.400
cross genres that I'm going, what? And when I

00:40:37.400 --> 00:40:39.360
saw disco country, I'm like, okay, you have my

00:40:39.360 --> 00:40:41.780
attention. Thank you. We'll wait till the next

00:40:41.780 --> 00:40:44.460
single comes out. I'm looking forward to it.

00:40:44.539 --> 00:40:48.400
But you did mention your 2022 album, Showgirl.

00:40:48.480 --> 00:40:50.460
And I want to jump back to that for a second.

00:40:51.079 --> 00:40:54.139
and play a track now called Just a Bar Thing.

00:41:20.489 --> 00:41:23.909
But tonight it's just a bar thing, kicking back

00:41:23.909 --> 00:41:27.409
and drinking. I could see it could lead to a

00:41:27.409 --> 00:41:30.889
walk me to your car thing. Swinging on the front

00:41:30.889 --> 00:41:34.449
porch, kissing behind closed doors. I don't see

00:41:34.449 --> 00:41:41.550
no harm in starting just a bar thing. Now this

00:41:41.550 --> 00:41:47.139
song gives me that flirty 90s country vibe. And

00:41:47.139 --> 00:41:50.219
when I say 90s country, depending on the listener,

00:41:50.320 --> 00:41:52.219
they might question where I'm coming from with

00:41:52.219 --> 00:41:55.360
that. Because there was the Shania pop country,

00:41:55.420 --> 00:41:58.579
but I'm hearing a little bit more of the Terry

00:41:58.579 --> 00:42:02.019
Clark 90s country sound, which was definitely

00:42:02.019 --> 00:42:05.679
much more rooted in country western music. And

00:42:05.679 --> 00:42:08.320
I've always wondered, do you feel like the 90s

00:42:08.320 --> 00:42:12.519
country sound is coming back? into music now

00:42:12.519 --> 00:42:15.539
as it's all very cyclical, because I hear that

00:42:15.539 --> 00:42:17.780
influence on the song, but don't get me wrong,

00:42:17.980 --> 00:42:21.179
it sounds very much like a modern country song.

00:42:21.300 --> 00:42:24.199
It could work in both decades, and that's not

00:42:24.199 --> 00:42:27.820
an easy thing to pull off. Thank you for saying

00:42:27.820 --> 00:42:33.199
that it also works in this decade. No. Yeah,

00:42:33.300 --> 00:42:35.840
well, definitely. What I've been hearing the

00:42:35.840 --> 00:42:38.480
last year or two from publishers when they're

00:42:38.480 --> 00:42:40.860
looking for songs is, you know, they're definitely

00:42:40.860 --> 00:42:43.400
wanting songs that are kind of throwback to 90,

00:42:43.519 --> 00:42:46.039
but it has to have a current sound. And when

00:42:46.039 --> 00:42:49.199
we talk about 90s country stuff that makes you

00:42:49.199 --> 00:42:51.559
want to dance, get on the dance floor and, you

00:42:51.559 --> 00:42:55.679
know, do some line dancing, but also lyrically

00:42:55.679 --> 00:42:58.940
have some sort of substance. And I'm not sure

00:42:58.940 --> 00:43:01.309
if like just a bar thing is really like. some

00:43:01.309 --> 00:43:03.489
sort of substance that they're looking for, but

00:43:03.489 --> 00:43:05.530
definitely one that makes you want to get out

00:43:05.530 --> 00:43:08.789
and dance and has a story to it. It's flirty.

00:43:08.789 --> 00:43:11.949
It's fun. I mean, sometimes that's all you need

00:43:11.949 --> 00:43:15.510
in a song is that happiness and joy. Yeah. And

00:43:15.510 --> 00:43:20.510
well, I definitely pulled from reality on that

00:43:20.510 --> 00:43:22.829
song. I have to give credit to my dad for that.

00:43:23.190 --> 00:43:26.130
He threw that line at me. There's just a bar

00:43:26.130 --> 00:43:30.719
thing when he. Handed over his phone one night

00:43:30.719 --> 00:43:34.960
to some random dude at the bar. And my dad was

00:43:34.960 --> 00:43:39.400
showing this guy my picture. The guy just happened

00:43:39.400 --> 00:43:41.519
to call me on my dad's phone in the middle of

00:43:41.519 --> 00:43:44.679
the night and left a message about how good looking

00:43:44.679 --> 00:43:48.360
I was. And he was in Nebraska at the time with

00:43:48.360 --> 00:43:50.579
my dad. And he was from Spokane, Washington,

00:43:50.820 --> 00:43:52.460
which is where I used to live. And he's like,

00:43:52.519 --> 00:43:55.159
yeah, we'd make a really cute couple. So why

00:43:55.159 --> 00:43:56.840
don't you give me a call sometime, sweetheart?

00:43:57.119 --> 00:44:00.199
Okay, love you, bye. And I got freaked out and

00:44:00.199 --> 00:44:03.159
just texting my dad. And I'm like, what are you

00:44:03.159 --> 00:44:05.820
doing? And he's like, why, what'd he say? And

00:44:05.820 --> 00:44:07.679
I'm like, well, he said all this, blah, blah,

00:44:07.699 --> 00:44:10.159
blah. And my dad's like, oh, don't worry about

00:44:10.159 --> 00:44:11.820
it, Carrie. It's just a bar thing. And I go,

00:44:11.860 --> 00:44:14.260
I'm so mad at you, but I'm going to take what

00:44:14.260 --> 00:44:15.900
you just said and I'm going to write a song about

00:44:15.900 --> 00:44:20.460
it. So I ended up writing just a bar thing because

00:44:20.460 --> 00:44:23.840
of that whole situation. That is such a cool

00:44:23.840 --> 00:44:28.019
story. Thank you. The fun nature of that song

00:44:28.019 --> 00:44:32.860
is woven all throughout the Showgirl album. When

00:44:32.860 --> 00:44:35.539
you sit down to write an album like that, are

00:44:35.539 --> 00:44:37.840
you thinking, because in this day and age, the

00:44:37.840 --> 00:44:40.880
difference between the 90s and now, in this day

00:44:40.880 --> 00:44:44.739
and age, people are, their attention span has

00:44:44.739 --> 00:44:48.679
changed. And it's not so much the album anymore.

00:44:48.800 --> 00:44:51.860
The album as a whole, the thought process is

00:44:51.860 --> 00:44:55.400
more focused on a collection of singles. But

00:44:55.400 --> 00:44:58.940
Showgirl, to me, feels like a statement as an

00:44:58.940 --> 00:45:02.619
album, which is... rare and almost few and far

00:45:02.619 --> 00:45:05.119
between now. So I'd like to know, is that something

00:45:05.119 --> 00:45:07.440
you're cognizant of when you're going in to start

00:45:07.440 --> 00:45:10.340
a project like Showgirl? I'm always thinking

00:45:10.340 --> 00:45:13.920
of a complete set. And I think that's just because

00:45:13.920 --> 00:45:15.679
that's just the way that my brain's been ever

00:45:15.679 --> 00:45:18.920
since I started doing music. I have a lot of

00:45:18.920 --> 00:45:21.980
different albums over the years that I have put

00:45:21.980 --> 00:45:24.900
out. And when I started working on my Showgirl

00:45:24.900 --> 00:45:29.420
album, it was along the lines of, I want my listeners

00:45:29.420 --> 00:45:36.519
to me as a creative and so like with just a bar

00:45:36.519 --> 00:45:39.559
thing it's a fun flirty thing but I also have

00:45:39.559 --> 00:45:43.440
on there what is love which is definitely like

00:45:43.440 --> 00:45:47.400
a more reggae pop and then there's road by road

00:45:47.400 --> 00:45:51.039
which is straight across the board Americana

00:45:51.039 --> 00:45:55.599
talking about past lives and reincarnation and

00:45:55.599 --> 00:45:59.019
all this stuff and so I just I really needed

00:45:59.610 --> 00:46:03.610
To have my listeners know that I'm just not a

00:46:03.610 --> 00:46:06.210
straight down the middle country person. And

00:46:06.210 --> 00:46:11.809
they love it. As far as I know, they do. Love

00:46:11.809 --> 00:46:13.550
it enough that I was able to put it out on vinyl

00:46:13.550 --> 00:46:16.409
and CD. So that's a great thing. Of course. And

00:46:16.409 --> 00:46:19.710
do you feel like in this modern day and age in

00:46:19.710 --> 00:46:24.769
music that the country music scene. Is more adaptable.

00:46:24.789 --> 00:46:27.989
To be able to have country artists branch out.

00:46:28.190 --> 00:46:30.929
And explore different things. Because when I

00:46:30.929 --> 00:46:34.389
think about country radio in the 90s. There was

00:46:34.389 --> 00:46:38.190
almost a. I don't want to use the word monotonous.

00:46:38.190 --> 00:46:40.030
Because that's not the word I'm looking for.

00:46:40.210 --> 00:46:42.429
But there was a sound that you got on country

00:46:42.429 --> 00:46:46.349
radio in the 90s. And country radio in 2024.

00:46:47.730 --> 00:46:52.559
Really is just an entire spectrum. Where country

00:46:52.559 --> 00:46:57.219
music went from being the subcategory to being

00:46:57.219 --> 00:47:00.420
the category on top where everything branches

00:47:00.420 --> 00:47:03.099
from, the way rock music did, where everything

00:47:03.099 --> 00:47:05.760
kind of branched from rock. Country is now doing

00:47:05.760 --> 00:47:09.179
the same thing. And do you feel like that's an

00:47:09.179 --> 00:47:12.619
advantage for artists such as yourself? Oh, absolutely.

00:47:12.980 --> 00:47:16.260
When you were talking about 90s country, I was

00:47:16.260 --> 00:47:18.500
thinking cookie cutter, kind of like neighborhoods,

00:47:18.760 --> 00:47:21.969
right? Where you had what worked. And you just

00:47:21.969 --> 00:47:25.809
repeat what works. And now, especially with streaming

00:47:25.809 --> 00:47:28.989
and people wanting to find different sounds,

00:47:29.070 --> 00:47:33.190
it really gives us the creativity to really cross

00:47:33.190 --> 00:47:37.010
-blend genres and be true to ourselves, really.

00:47:37.230 --> 00:47:43.329
And how we all listen and how we absorb music.

00:47:43.550 --> 00:47:46.769
And it's true with the way pop music goes. I

00:47:46.769 --> 00:47:49.019
was just thinking about it. a couple weeks ago

00:47:49.019 --> 00:47:54.239
if you listen to 80s rock right about 1986 is

00:47:54.239 --> 00:47:56.860
when if you're listening your list you're thinking

00:47:56.860 --> 00:48:01.860
man 80s pop does a massive shift because it was

00:48:01.860 --> 00:48:05.539
kind of like an 80s rock sort of speak but then

00:48:05.539 --> 00:48:09.980
you have like def leppard and then you have tiffany

00:48:09.980 --> 00:48:14.420
or debbie gibson you know And there are two totally

00:48:14.420 --> 00:48:17.880
different extremes, but they were both working

00:48:17.880 --> 00:48:21.559
in pop music. And even though some people would

00:48:21.559 --> 00:48:24.139
say like, well, Def Leppard was rock music, they're

00:48:24.139 --> 00:48:27.119
still being played right next to each other where

00:48:27.119 --> 00:48:29.139
it wasn't really divided going, well, this is

00:48:29.139 --> 00:48:33.039
rock and this is pop. It just was, you know,

00:48:33.039 --> 00:48:35.900
because it wasn't country. And so they had to

00:48:35.900 --> 00:48:39.739
be put into that pop category. And if you listen

00:48:39.739 --> 00:48:43.650
to 80s on 8, you know, on Sirius XM. You will

00:48:43.650 --> 00:48:47.050
hear the whole gamut depending on what year they're

00:48:47.050 --> 00:48:49.610
playing. And it's just, it's really funny just

00:48:49.610 --> 00:48:53.190
to hear how massively music and pop music has

00:48:53.190 --> 00:48:58.630
changed from 1980 to 1989 and getting right on

00:48:58.630 --> 00:49:02.570
that cusp of 1989, where now it's like, oh, we're

00:49:02.570 --> 00:49:05.530
now hitting into kind of like hip hop, you know,

00:49:05.530 --> 00:49:08.289
and everybody's going to jump, jump, you know.

00:49:10.920 --> 00:49:13.960
And this is the same holds true for country music.

00:49:14.039 --> 00:49:16.480
I'm really glad that country is actually able

00:49:16.480 --> 00:49:21.219
to expand and bring multiple genres into country

00:49:21.219 --> 00:49:24.199
music. Well, now we're going to flip over our

00:49:24.199 --> 00:49:27.480
cassette and begin side B. And you know what?

00:49:27.519 --> 00:49:30.639
Ever since you mentioned Ray Lynn's Keep Up,

00:49:30.800 --> 00:49:33.800
I have had this song in my head because I explained

00:49:33.800 --> 00:49:36.659
to you at the end of the side, it's the song

00:49:36.659 --> 00:49:38.659
that introduced me to Ray Lynn, but I'm going

00:49:38.659 --> 00:49:41.889
to go with the original. Back to 2011's Hell

00:49:41.889 --> 00:49:46.329
on Heels, Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe, Angelina

00:49:46.329 --> 00:49:50.250
Presley, Pistol Annies. This is a female power

00:49:50.250 --> 00:49:56.130
country trio of epic proportions. We are talking

00:49:56.130 --> 00:49:59.670
about three singers who can and have done just

00:49:59.670 --> 00:50:02.230
fine on their own. But when they come together,

00:50:02.369 --> 00:50:05.170
it's a super group at the level of the high women.

00:50:05.309 --> 00:50:09.599
And I'm sorry, but when I think of. Female country

00:50:09.599 --> 00:50:12.639
trios. There's only two that come to mind. And

00:50:12.639 --> 00:50:16.260
it's the Chicks and Pistolannies. And actually,

00:50:16.320 --> 00:50:19.019
God, Shadazie. But I think that's 90s. I think

00:50:19.019 --> 00:50:22.480
Shadazie was 90s. I love Shadazie. And they are.

00:50:22.500 --> 00:50:24.599
They're 90s. I know. So, I mean, like, they were

00:50:24.599 --> 00:50:26.900
one of my favorites when I did my country radio

00:50:26.900 --> 00:50:29.159
show, Little Goodbyes. Oh, my God. I could play

00:50:29.159 --> 00:50:31.739
that song a million times over. I loved it. But

00:50:31.739 --> 00:50:36.280
Hell on Heels just has that awesome vibe to kick

00:50:36.280 --> 00:50:39.079
off a side to get the energy going. And I would

00:50:39.079 --> 00:50:41.699
be remiss if I did not mention Patreon mixtaper

00:50:41.699 --> 00:50:44.599
David Owens, who did chime in with Miranda Lambert

00:50:44.599 --> 00:50:47.159
at the top of the show. But remember, she's still

00:50:47.159 --> 00:50:49.920
on the table because of the fact that she's one

00:50:49.920 --> 00:50:52.780
third of Pistol Annie's. So there might still

00:50:52.780 --> 00:50:54.460
be some time for Miranda, but I'm going to kick

00:50:54.460 --> 00:50:58.559
things off on side B with Hell on Heels. Perfect.

00:50:58.920 --> 00:51:02.019
Well, darn it. I wish you hadn't mentioned them

00:51:02.019 --> 00:51:04.280
because now I have to mark them off my list.

00:51:05.059 --> 00:51:08.730
I scooped you. Sorry about that. That's okay.

00:51:08.889 --> 00:51:10.889
Because when you talked about the high women,

00:51:11.110 --> 00:51:15.710
I think instead of putting out a song that has

00:51:15.710 --> 00:51:18.530
to do with the high women, which the album is

00:51:18.530 --> 00:51:21.849
amazing. It came out in 2019. Absolutely love

00:51:21.849 --> 00:51:24.489
it. I think I'm going to shift gears and talk

00:51:24.489 --> 00:51:27.730
about one particular person off the high women

00:51:27.730 --> 00:51:30.510
album since we already spoke about Brandi Carlile.

00:51:30.550 --> 00:51:32.349
But I think I'm going to shift gears and go to

00:51:32.349 --> 00:51:36.579
Maren Morris. And with Maren, you know, she's

00:51:36.579 --> 00:51:39.960
kind of wanting to get out of country music.

00:51:40.019 --> 00:51:42.539
I think she'll always be country, even though

00:51:42.539 --> 00:51:47.480
there's a lot of pop in her too. But she helped

00:51:47.480 --> 00:51:51.719
pave the way for new female country artists,

00:51:51.940 --> 00:51:54.219
even though she's relatively, I don't want to

00:51:54.219 --> 00:51:56.619
say she's relatively new in the country market

00:51:56.619 --> 00:52:01.639
world, but she blew up. because her voice is

00:52:01.639 --> 00:52:06.900
so undeniable and her range is so amazing. And

00:52:06.900 --> 00:52:09.960
I'm like, like my church and I could use a love

00:52:09.960 --> 00:52:13.820
song. Those are just fantastic stories. And so

00:52:13.820 --> 00:52:17.559
many people can relate to my church, just being

00:52:17.559 --> 00:52:20.940
out on the road and trying to find what makes

00:52:20.940 --> 00:52:24.340
you grounded. What's your center, you know, and

00:52:24.340 --> 00:52:26.840
just trying to make it to where it's not everybody

00:52:26.840 --> 00:52:31.769
is religious, but everybody. can agree on finding

00:52:31.769 --> 00:52:35.829
something that makes you just feel at home. And

00:52:35.829 --> 00:52:38.409
I'm just going to have to go with My Church with

00:52:38.409 --> 00:52:41.650
Maren Morris on our next song. Oh, I love and

00:52:41.650 --> 00:52:43.449
hate the fact that you picked it because you

00:52:43.449 --> 00:52:45.789
totally scooped me on the artist and the song.

00:52:46.210 --> 00:52:49.389
I didn't know if I was going to go with My Church

00:52:49.389 --> 00:52:53.150
or Circles Around This Town from 2022's Humble

00:52:53.150 --> 00:52:55.829
Quest. I was literally teetering on it. So you

00:52:55.829 --> 00:52:58.820
made the decision for me. Can I get a hallelujah?

00:52:58.820 --> 00:53:03.139
Can I get an amen? To me, that is a perfect country

00:53:03.139 --> 00:53:07.539
road trip song. You are taking the sanctity and

00:53:07.539 --> 00:53:11.599
sanctuary of a church and putting it into a road

00:53:11.599 --> 00:53:16.610
trip. And for me, growing up. My weekly mixtape

00:53:16.610 --> 00:53:18.710
came from the fact that when I was a kid, I would

00:53:18.710 --> 00:53:21.789
always make mixtapes. And when my parents would

00:53:21.789 --> 00:53:24.329
go on road trips, when we'd go on vacation down

00:53:24.329 --> 00:53:26.230
to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, that was

00:53:26.230 --> 00:53:29.309
a 13 -hour drive. I would have to make hours

00:53:29.309 --> 00:53:31.349
and hours and hours and hours of cassette tape

00:53:31.349 --> 00:53:34.190
mixes, which took months of work. I mean, really,

00:53:34.250 --> 00:53:36.849
months of work. And sitting in the car listening

00:53:36.849 --> 00:53:38.989
to music and being on the road was just a feeling

00:53:38.989 --> 00:53:42.840
that always put me at peace. And hearing it in

00:53:42.840 --> 00:53:46.860
2016 when she first released Hero truly resonated

00:53:46.860 --> 00:53:49.340
with me because she was explaining what I felt

00:53:49.340 --> 00:53:52.639
through the lyrics of that song. So I knew immediately

00:53:52.639 --> 00:53:54.719
she would be massive. And then you take the stuff

00:53:54.719 --> 00:53:57.760
that she did with Sheryl Crow when she did Prove

00:53:57.760 --> 00:54:00.860
You Wrong with Sheryl Crow and Stevie Nicks.

00:54:01.079 --> 00:54:04.460
And she stayed at that level. And that was such

00:54:04.460 --> 00:54:08.019
an amazing track. Love the song. Love the pick.

00:54:08.619 --> 00:54:11.539
Hallelujah. Amen. Love it. Well, not only that,

00:54:11.699 --> 00:54:14.440
I mean, you think about the story and I don't

00:54:14.440 --> 00:54:17.059
want to get too deep into the story with the

00:54:17.059 --> 00:54:20.500
song, The Middle. Like that song was shopped

00:54:20.500 --> 00:54:24.420
around to find the right demo singer. And I mean,

00:54:24.420 --> 00:54:27.599
and like Demi Lovato cut it even. And Demi's

00:54:27.599 --> 00:54:30.699
voice just wasn't right for what the co -writers

00:54:30.699 --> 00:54:34.820
or what the writers were longing to hear. And

00:54:34.820 --> 00:54:36.860
then when Maren did it for them, that's what

00:54:36.860 --> 00:54:40.070
I was like, yes. We finally found somebody that

00:54:40.070 --> 00:54:42.190
can deliver the song the way we want it to. And

00:54:42.190 --> 00:54:44.230
then she ended up just cutting it. So, I mean,

00:54:44.230 --> 00:54:47.550
that just in itself speaks for how much of an

00:54:47.550 --> 00:54:50.269
amazing singer she is. Couldn't agree more. And

00:54:50.269 --> 00:54:53.090
I'm going to follow it up with somebody who I

00:54:53.090 --> 00:54:56.670
think is cut from similar cloth, but definitely

00:54:56.670 --> 00:54:59.170
leaning a little bit more towards the pop side

00:54:59.170 --> 00:55:02.750
of things. But this was one of my favorite songs

00:55:02.750 --> 00:55:07.099
from 2023. Spoiler alert, it actually made our

00:55:07.099 --> 00:55:10.820
Songs of 2023 episode. And I'm going to go off

00:55:10.820 --> 00:55:13.400
the album 20 -something. And I'm going to go

00:55:13.400 --> 00:55:16.860
with Alana Springsteen featuring Chris Stapleton,

00:55:17.000 --> 00:55:21.820
Ghost in My Guitar. This song weaves the pop

00:55:21.820 --> 00:55:24.280
sensibilities that Alana brings to her style

00:55:24.280 --> 00:55:28.579
of country music. But then you overlay this haunting

00:55:28.579 --> 00:55:31.880
guitar line from Chris Stapleton. And the two

00:55:31.880 --> 00:55:35.420
marry together in perfect harmony. ahem harmony

00:55:35.420 --> 00:55:39.300
but chris never sings on this track he's just

00:55:39.300 --> 00:55:42.079
there playing guitar but his guitar work really

00:55:42.079 --> 00:55:46.260
makes this a beautifully memorable track and

00:55:46.260 --> 00:55:50.440
i think could be a launching point for alana

00:55:50.440 --> 00:55:54.320
in 2024 because i still listen to this song as

00:55:54.320 --> 00:55:56.340
much as i did when i first heard it it's still

00:55:56.340 --> 00:55:59.699
in heavy rotation for me right now and i feel

00:55:59.699 --> 00:56:02.360
like she could be part of the future Of country

00:56:02.360 --> 00:56:06.039
music. If she continues down this path. Of really

00:56:06.039 --> 00:56:09.059
bridging the pop. Country sensibility. Because

00:56:09.059 --> 00:56:12.280
she nailed it in this song. Yeah I'm really glad

00:56:12.280 --> 00:56:15.440
that you brought her in. To the mixtape. When

00:56:15.440 --> 00:56:19.900
I first heard of her. I was like. Springsteen.

00:56:20.119 --> 00:56:24.199
That automatically caught my attention. And I'll

00:56:24.199 --> 00:56:26.300
be honest. At first I'm like. I don't even care

00:56:26.300 --> 00:56:28.420
what she sounds like. She has the last name Springsteen.

00:56:28.559 --> 00:56:33.340
She's got to be good. But I, because Bruce Springsteen,

00:56:33.340 --> 00:56:35.199
not, I mean, I'm not talking about Bruce right

00:56:35.199 --> 00:56:37.619
now, but he is one of the reasons I even got

00:56:37.619 --> 00:56:40.019
into the music business. I bought my first cassette

00:56:40.019 --> 00:56:44.199
tape. Wait, wait, wait, time out. I have to ask,

00:56:44.280 --> 00:56:47.039
was your first cassette tape born in the USA?

00:56:47.460 --> 00:56:51.880
It was. Oh my God. Hand to God, strike me dead

00:56:51.880 --> 00:56:55.059
by lightning. First Christmas, I got two cassette

00:56:55.059 --> 00:56:58.780
tapes, born in the USA and Michael Jackson's

00:56:58.780 --> 00:57:03.460
Thriller. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Yep. I remember my

00:57:03.460 --> 00:57:08.219
friend had a Michael Jackson thriller poster

00:57:08.219 --> 00:57:12.360
on her wall. And that's when I think about that

00:57:12.360 --> 00:57:15.179
timeframe in my life. I remember sitting on the

00:57:15.179 --> 00:57:17.539
front porch, listening to Bruce Springsteen with

00:57:17.539 --> 00:57:20.639
my new Walkman and that picture of Michael Jackson.

00:57:21.219 --> 00:57:23.760
Well, I will say there is no relation between

00:57:23.760 --> 00:57:27.239
Alana and Bruce. However, there must be something

00:57:27.239 --> 00:57:31.679
in the name. Yeah. She's going to be huge. All

00:57:31.679 --> 00:57:33.440
right. Well, we're back to you for track four.

00:57:33.519 --> 00:57:35.340
What are you going to follow up Ghost in My Guitar

00:57:35.340 --> 00:57:40.340
with? Okay. Ghost in My Guitar. We're going to

00:57:40.340 --> 00:57:42.300
have to, I was going to do somebody, but I'm

00:57:42.300 --> 00:57:44.119
changing my mind now just because you said Ghost

00:57:44.119 --> 00:57:46.820
in My Guitar. I think now's the perfect time

00:57:46.820 --> 00:57:49.800
to, let's just bring in Taylor. Let's do it.

00:57:49.900 --> 00:57:52.099
We're going to bring Taylor Swift in now. Who

00:57:52.099 --> 00:57:55.300
is this Taylor Swift you speak of? It's a guitar,

00:57:55.539 --> 00:58:02.280
Taylor guitar. The only person who just swept

00:58:02.280 --> 00:58:08.079
14 Grammys last night. Insane. Yeah. I'm so incredibly

00:58:08.079 --> 00:58:12.880
happy for her. I have to say that anybody that

00:58:12.880 --> 00:58:16.219
I see that knocks Taylor doesn't know Taylor.

00:58:16.480 --> 00:58:19.219
They haven't heard her music. They don't know

00:58:19.219 --> 00:58:21.869
her work ethic. They don't know her behind the

00:58:21.869 --> 00:58:23.889
scenes. They don't know all the garbage she has

00:58:23.889 --> 00:58:26.050
to do. They don't know how incredibly talented

00:58:26.050 --> 00:58:29.269
she is. And it's just, I'm not going to go down

00:58:29.269 --> 00:58:32.530
that ramp right now, but we're going to bring

00:58:32.530 --> 00:58:35.389
Taylor into this picture. The problem is trying

00:58:35.389 --> 00:58:41.550
to figure out which song. Oh, right now, Lover

00:58:41.550 --> 00:58:44.510
is sticking out in my head. So maybe we'll just

00:58:44.510 --> 00:58:48.420
do, maybe we'll do Lover, you know? Or we could

00:58:48.420 --> 00:58:52.519
do Carnaghan. That's such a great song. Do you

00:58:52.519 --> 00:58:54.980
ever have a problem trying to pick out a favorite

00:58:54.980 --> 00:58:57.440
Taylor song? I will say this. You just picked

00:58:57.440 --> 00:58:59.639
two of them. That's for certain. And I also had

00:58:59.639 --> 00:59:03.099
You Belong With Me on my list. And if you want

00:59:03.099 --> 00:59:05.380
to go all the way back, you can go with Picture

00:59:05.380 --> 00:59:07.920
to Burn. I mean, honestly, you can take any,

00:59:07.920 --> 00:59:11.519
ahem, era of Taylor Swift and it would work well

00:59:11.519 --> 00:59:15.440
in this mixtape. I think Lover was such an unusual.

00:59:17.329 --> 00:59:20.429
song for her to come out with it just threw us

00:59:20.429 --> 00:59:23.969
all for a loop and i was like wow this is like

00:59:23.969 --> 00:59:26.349
a new sound it was completely different than

00:59:26.349 --> 00:59:30.090
the album that she had just put out and so lover

00:59:30.090 --> 00:59:32.489
i still see the pink and the blue right now so

00:59:32.489 --> 00:59:34.809
let's stick with that one well i'm just gonna

00:59:34.809 --> 00:59:37.630
say that Taylor Swift is playing chess while

00:59:37.630 --> 00:59:39.409
the rest of the world is playing checkers because

00:59:39.409 --> 00:59:42.289
she came out on stage to accept an award for

00:59:42.289 --> 00:59:44.489
Midnight's and announced her new album in a couple

00:59:44.489 --> 00:59:46.909
of months. I mean, that is just a chess level

00:59:46.909 --> 00:59:50.550
move right there. And I have two girls who are

00:59:50.550 --> 00:59:54.449
obsessed with Taylor Swift. I took the girls

00:59:54.449 --> 00:59:57.750
to see the Eras movie. Unfortunately, I was not

00:59:57.750 --> 01:00:00.250
able to secure tickets to an actual Eras tour

01:00:00.250 --> 01:00:04.590
show. But my oldest said to me. You're not going

01:00:04.590 --> 01:00:07.090
to know all the songs tonight, but I want to

01:00:07.090 --> 01:00:09.429
know which ones were your favorites at the end

01:00:09.429 --> 01:00:12.849
of the show. And the three that I resonated with

01:00:12.849 --> 01:00:19.170
the most were Cruel Summer, Betty, and Lover.

01:00:19.429 --> 01:00:22.269
So I am so glad you picked that one because to

01:00:22.269 --> 01:00:26.590
me, it has this almost, as I said to my daughter,

01:00:26.690 --> 01:00:31.829
a 1950s style of doo -wop. Mixed with a little

01:00:31.829 --> 01:00:35.010
bit of country and a modern pop sense. It was

01:00:35.010 --> 01:00:40.690
really creative, really unique. And I think it's

01:00:40.690 --> 01:00:44.469
songs like lover that truly prove that Taylor

01:00:44.469 --> 01:00:47.730
Swift is an incredible songwriter. I think most

01:00:47.730 --> 01:00:51.469
people see her as the pop icon, not realizing

01:00:51.469 --> 01:00:54.769
that there is a lot of thought that goes into

01:00:54.769 --> 01:00:57.800
these tracks because. Lover doesn't sound like

01:00:57.800 --> 01:00:59.800
anything out there. And I think it's the perfect

01:00:59.800 --> 01:01:03.840
choice for this mix. Thank you. And you hit the

01:01:03.840 --> 01:01:05.239
nail on the head when you're talking about kind

01:01:05.239 --> 01:01:09.239
of like a 1950s, 60s sound. And I think that's

01:01:09.239 --> 01:01:11.539
probably why I resonated with it so much as well

01:01:11.539 --> 01:01:15.760
with my love of Motown and soul music and everything

01:01:15.760 --> 01:01:19.519
that that's exactly it. So, yeah, thank you.

01:01:19.539 --> 01:01:22.159
Thank you for agreeing with the lover. Oh, yeah.

01:01:22.219 --> 01:01:25.539
Well, coming out of that, though. Like, how do

01:01:25.539 --> 01:01:28.760
you top or how do you continue the vibe of Taylor

01:01:28.760 --> 01:01:31.940
Swift? And I'm going to go with an artist that

01:01:31.940 --> 01:01:34.639
I've seen live a couple of times that has blown

01:01:34.639 --> 01:01:38.360
my mind every time I've seen her perform. And

01:01:38.360 --> 01:01:43.079
she is not a country artist per se, but due to

01:01:43.079 --> 01:01:47.059
her style of music, she has swayed in and out

01:01:47.059 --> 01:01:49.079
of country over the years with different collaborations.

01:01:50.630 --> 01:01:53.050
Namely, Kenny Chesney being the biggest of all

01:01:53.050 --> 01:01:56.269
of them. I'm going to go with Grace Potter. And

01:01:56.269 --> 01:01:58.849
I was torn between two songs. I was debating

01:01:58.849 --> 01:02:03.010
going with a cover song because in 2012, she

01:02:03.010 --> 01:02:05.809
performed at the Love for Levon benefit in New

01:02:05.809 --> 01:02:08.869
Jersey at the Izod Center. And she did a cover

01:02:08.869 --> 01:02:11.949
of the band's I Shall Be Released. I was there

01:02:11.949 --> 01:02:15.130
with my father. And when the song was over, there

01:02:15.130 --> 01:02:18.179
was like this long pause before. the cheers started

01:02:18.179 --> 01:02:20.360
because everyone was, their jaws were on the

01:02:20.360 --> 01:02:22.800
ground and the crowd needed a minute to collect

01:02:22.800 --> 01:02:25.400
themselves because she was actually crying as

01:02:25.400 --> 01:02:27.820
she delivered the last line of the song. Just

01:02:27.820 --> 01:02:29.840
unbelievable performance. My father turned to

01:02:29.840 --> 01:02:32.179
me and said, I've seen Jimi Hendrix perform.

01:02:33.460 --> 01:02:35.800
I've never seen anything like that in my life.

01:02:36.179 --> 01:02:38.119
And it was just a mind -blowing performance.

01:02:38.440 --> 01:02:41.300
But that one is a little bit more on the classic

01:02:41.300 --> 01:02:43.199
rock side of things. So I'm going to go with

01:02:43.199 --> 01:02:47.460
a song she did. On her 2012 deluxe edition of

01:02:47.460 --> 01:02:49.179
her album, The Lion, The Beast and The Beat.

01:02:49.380 --> 01:02:53.119
And it's a duet with Kenny Chesney. There's two

01:02:53.119 --> 01:02:55.420
versions of the song on the album. I'm going

01:02:55.420 --> 01:02:57.059
to go with the country version. I'm going to

01:02:57.059 --> 01:03:00.239
go with Stars. Make no mistake. She's not a country

01:03:00.239 --> 01:03:03.400
artist per se. But she was able to zig and zag

01:03:03.400 --> 01:03:07.840
into the genre. And Stars is a stunning country

01:03:07.840 --> 01:03:11.679
song. And I think Kenny Chesney actually elevates.

01:03:12.119 --> 01:03:14.559
This version from the original, just because

01:03:14.559 --> 01:03:17.639
of the harmonies he brings to the fold, because

01:03:17.639 --> 01:03:20.579
the song is beautiful regardless. But when there's

01:03:20.579 --> 01:03:24.860
the vocal harmonies at the end, it just rips

01:03:24.860 --> 01:03:26.920
my heart out and shows it to me. And it's just

01:03:26.920 --> 01:03:30.559
so beautiful and so powerful. And I've seen so

01:03:30.559 --> 01:03:33.960
many people try to sing this song on different

01:03:33.960 --> 01:03:36.719
shows, American Idol, The Voice, and none of

01:03:36.719 --> 01:03:38.880
them reached the level of Grace. So I got to

01:03:38.880 --> 01:03:41.280
put Grace Potter into the mix here. Now, Sam,

01:03:41.420 --> 01:03:43.360
I thought that you were going to put You and

01:03:43.360 --> 01:03:46.239
Tequila. That was the other one. But I decided

01:03:46.239 --> 01:03:49.139
to go with Stars because You and Tequila was

01:03:49.139 --> 01:03:52.239
technically a Kenny Chesney song where she guested.

01:03:52.280 --> 01:03:54.719
So I kind of wanted to keep this putting the

01:03:54.719 --> 01:03:59.119
female name in front from her album. So tough

01:03:59.119 --> 01:04:01.679
decision. I could have went either way. I am

01:04:01.679 --> 01:04:03.980
going with you on that one. I agree with you.

01:04:04.019 --> 01:04:07.059
Yeah. With it being a Kenny song and her just

01:04:07.059 --> 01:04:09.480
being a special guest appearance, I think you

01:04:09.480 --> 01:04:11.539
made the right decision. I'd love for the two

01:04:11.539 --> 01:04:13.360
of them to do an entire album together, but I

01:04:13.360 --> 01:04:16.480
digress. That would be amazing. I'd love to hear

01:04:16.480 --> 01:04:18.940
it. But now we're back to you for track six.

01:04:19.119 --> 01:04:23.139
We're going heavy hitters here now. We are. You

01:04:23.139 --> 01:04:25.719
know, there are two females that I definitely

01:04:25.719 --> 01:04:27.840
want to make sure that are on the mixtape before

01:04:27.840 --> 01:04:31.599
we end. So I'm going to bring in Miranda now.

01:04:32.099 --> 01:04:37.940
And I think, you know, she did the Marfa tapes.

01:04:38.599 --> 01:04:40.539
And then some of the songs that are off the Marfa

01:04:40.539 --> 01:04:45.019
tapes, she put onto another album. And one song

01:04:45.019 --> 01:04:48.400
that really resonates with me is If I Was a Cowboy.

01:04:48.679 --> 01:04:52.659
Just lyrically, it's so beautiful. You envision

01:04:52.659 --> 01:04:55.699
being a cowboy and just the presentation music

01:04:55.699 --> 01:04:59.159
-wise, you just feel like you're seeing sunsets.

01:04:59.159 --> 01:05:02.800
You feel like you're out in the open range. You

01:05:02.800 --> 01:05:06.940
feel powerful in a sense of being a woman and

01:05:06.940 --> 01:05:12.250
wanting to be that cowgirl in that moment. And

01:05:12.250 --> 01:05:16.570
it's just, it's such a great song. And I don't

01:05:16.570 --> 01:05:19.550
know, I think, especially when I'm doing shows

01:05:19.550 --> 01:05:23.690
for rodeos, that song just hits me. And I'm like,

01:05:23.809 --> 01:05:27.510
I am full blown cowgirl right now. You know,

01:05:27.510 --> 01:05:30.409
like, I don't have to say if I was, if I was

01:05:30.409 --> 01:05:32.550
a cowboy, because I'm a cowgirl right now, you

01:05:32.550 --> 01:05:36.130
know, so definitely Miranda right now. I mean,

01:05:36.849 --> 01:05:41.090
Palomino is an amazing album. And I think once

01:05:41.090 --> 01:05:42.670
again, kind of like what you were saying with

01:05:42.670 --> 01:05:46.769
Taylor Swift, she writes these songs and she

01:05:46.769 --> 01:05:49.989
is an amazing songwriter. I know everybody hears

01:05:49.989 --> 01:05:53.130
her voice and that is what really grabs you,

01:05:53.170 --> 01:05:55.530
but she is also writing these tunes as well.

01:05:55.889 --> 01:05:58.710
And then the fact that she features the B -52s

01:05:58.710 --> 01:06:02.610
on the same album. Yeah. What is happening? Like

01:06:02.610 --> 01:06:06.199
it just works so, so well. If I was a Cowboy,

01:06:06.260 --> 01:06:08.659
it's probably my favorite song on the album.

01:06:08.760 --> 01:06:11.619
But Music City Queen, it's tough because the

01:06:11.619 --> 01:06:13.699
B -52s are just so much fun and they bring me

01:06:13.699 --> 01:06:18.840
back to my middle school dances. It's hard to

01:06:18.840 --> 01:06:22.920
not pick that song as well. And obviously, David

01:06:22.920 --> 01:06:25.539
Owens, Patreon, Mixtaper brought her up. We can't

01:06:25.539 --> 01:06:28.159
not talk Miranda Lambert in this episode. And

01:06:28.159 --> 01:06:30.460
the fact that she made it twice with Pistol Annies

01:06:30.460 --> 01:06:32.659
is a nice little asterisk because she deserves

01:06:32.659 --> 01:06:35.820
to be here. And I think following that up, I'm

01:06:35.820 --> 01:06:37.219
going to go with somebody else who definitely

01:06:37.219 --> 01:06:39.619
deserves to be here. But I feel like something

01:06:39.619 --> 01:06:42.860
we haven't done a lot on this mixtape is go a

01:06:42.860 --> 01:06:46.420
little deeper into the Americana folky side of

01:06:46.420 --> 01:06:48.860
things. We did it a little bit on Side A, and

01:06:48.860 --> 01:06:51.159
I want to bring it in here as well. And I'm going

01:06:51.159 --> 01:06:54.679
to go back to 2013 for this one. And this was

01:06:54.679 --> 01:06:58.179
a song. That was written by Shane McAnally and

01:06:58.179 --> 01:07:01.920
Joan Osborne. The latter 90s rock fans will remember

01:07:01.920 --> 01:07:05.019
from that smash hit, One of Us, that Dr. Evil

01:07:05.019 --> 01:07:08.340
sang in one of the Austin Powers movies. But

01:07:08.340 --> 01:07:11.340
I digress. I'm going to go with Kacey Musgraves'

01:07:11.400 --> 01:07:15.900
Merry -Go -Round. Just a beautiful folk rock

01:07:15.900 --> 01:07:22.440
song with contrastingly cynical lyrics. So there's

01:07:22.440 --> 01:07:26.579
this beautiful melody. with this biting story

01:07:26.579 --> 01:07:31.260
that is literally oil and water. And they're

01:07:31.260 --> 01:07:34.619
not supposed to mix, but it just is the perfect

01:07:34.619 --> 01:07:37.699
concoction. I mean, this song is just unbelievable.

01:07:37.820 --> 01:07:40.780
And this is somebody that you shared the stage

01:07:40.780 --> 01:07:45.119
with. I did. I did. In fact, she was on her merry

01:07:45.119 --> 01:07:49.320
-go -round tour. Yeah. Thank you for saying that

01:07:49.320 --> 01:07:52.340
and recognizing that. It was in Portland, Oregon.

01:07:53.019 --> 01:07:56.019
When I got to share the stage with her, it was

01:07:56.019 --> 01:07:59.780
pretty fantastic. Like I said, it was her first

01:07:59.780 --> 01:08:01.900
single that was out, and she was out on the road

01:08:01.900 --> 01:08:04.739
promoting it. So since you saw her kind of at

01:08:04.739 --> 01:08:08.099
the onset of her career, did you know, seeing

01:08:08.099 --> 01:08:10.480
her live, that she had that if factor that was

01:08:10.480 --> 01:08:13.280
going to make her the musician that we all know

01:08:13.280 --> 01:08:17.079
today? For me personally, I did. I did, especially

01:08:17.079 --> 01:08:22.380
because I'm from a small town in Nebraska. I

01:08:22.380 --> 01:08:24.939
could definitely put myself in that kind of situation

01:08:24.939 --> 01:08:28.579
where I'm like, oh yeah, that, that is my brother

01:08:28.579 --> 01:08:33.000
actually smoking weed down, you know? And how

01:08:33.000 --> 01:08:36.020
did she know that my, yeah, Mary is a true person.

01:08:36.140 --> 01:08:39.880
Let's okay. Nevermind. Moving on. It's a poetic

01:08:39.880 --> 01:08:44.260
song, very smartly written and very biting and

01:08:44.260 --> 01:08:46.380
very scathing, but there's this beautiful melody

01:08:46.380 --> 01:08:50.140
and the two just work so well together. So Mary

01:08:50.140 --> 01:08:53.399
go round. Perfect. Yeah. I'm glad that you brought

01:08:53.399 --> 01:08:56.979
Casey into the mixtape, even if it's on side

01:08:56.979 --> 01:08:59.680
B, because I would have felt really bad if she

01:08:59.680 --> 01:09:03.079
didn't make it on the list. I hate to say it,

01:09:03.140 --> 01:09:04.579
but you're going to wake up tomorrow and you're

01:09:04.579 --> 01:09:06.819
going to go, wait a minute, I forgot. And I do

01:09:06.819 --> 01:09:09.800
it every time. It happens. It happens. I know.

01:09:10.039 --> 01:09:13.920
I used to do this women of country music and

01:09:13.920 --> 01:09:17.199
their first number one hits and do it out on

01:09:17.199 --> 01:09:19.100
the road. And that was so much fun, but I would

01:09:19.100 --> 01:09:21.960
do it from like. decades, like 50s, 60s, 70s,

01:09:22.039 --> 01:09:25.859
80s, 90s to today. And you can't hit all the

01:09:25.859 --> 01:09:28.640
female artists. I mean, it made it a little easier

01:09:28.640 --> 01:09:31.859
for me saying if they had a number one, I would

01:09:31.859 --> 01:09:33.960
do their first number one. So that made it a

01:09:33.960 --> 01:09:36.539
little better. And I know it's not this decade,

01:09:36.760 --> 01:09:39.539
modern country, but I do have to give homage

01:09:39.539 --> 01:09:43.460
to Barbara Mandrell because she is literally

01:09:43.460 --> 01:09:46.100
what got me into the music business as far as

01:09:46.100 --> 01:09:49.909
being a female country artist. And just her voice,

01:09:50.050 --> 01:09:53.569
her stage presence, her instrumentation that

01:09:53.569 --> 01:09:56.050
her and her sisters had, played so many instruments.

01:09:56.130 --> 01:09:59.689
She played pedal steel at the age of five. Like,

01:09:59.689 --> 01:10:02.909
that's unbelievable. It's insane. And so with

01:10:02.909 --> 01:10:06.029
that being said, Barbara Mandrell was my first

01:10:06.029 --> 01:10:08.529
female influence in country music. And my second

01:10:08.529 --> 01:10:13.329
female influencer with stage presence, with voice,

01:10:13.449 --> 01:10:16.920
with choosing songs was Reba. And so I want to

01:10:16.920 --> 01:10:20.420
make sure Reba gets on our mixtape. And I was

01:10:20.420 --> 01:10:24.220
trying to debate on what song, but I think we

01:10:24.220 --> 01:10:26.939
just have to go with Fancy. And I was thinking,

01:10:26.979 --> 01:10:30.659
well, I can go back to the 80s with Reba and

01:10:30.659 --> 01:10:34.039
do like Kathy's Clown or whoever's in New England.

01:10:34.760 --> 01:10:37.560
But I think we will just stick with the one that

01:10:37.560 --> 01:10:41.579
skyrocketed her into every household in the country

01:10:41.579 --> 01:10:46.020
music world, which was Fancy. And heck. You know,

01:10:46.100 --> 01:10:50.899
when I in the late 90s and I was very young,

01:10:50.960 --> 01:10:55.500
but I had a six foot Reba in my bedroom. I did.

01:10:55.600 --> 01:10:58.899
I had a cut out six foot Reba and she was my

01:10:58.899 --> 01:11:02.279
inspiration and I wanted to be just like her.

01:11:02.399 --> 01:11:06.579
And so I give many, many thanks to Reba as far

01:11:06.579 --> 01:11:10.439
as what I do on stage and my stage performance

01:11:10.439 --> 01:11:12.840
and how I talk to the audience. It's all Reba.

01:11:13.509 --> 01:11:18.489
Reba is a national treasure. I mean, I can't

01:11:18.489 --> 01:11:23.590
even begin to say how influential she is on female

01:11:23.590 --> 01:11:26.789
country artists. Obviously, with her being on

01:11:26.789 --> 01:11:29.069
The Voice right now, it's almost getting a resurgence.

01:11:29.210 --> 01:11:32.210
But I feel like there were so many times over

01:11:32.210 --> 01:11:35.270
the last several decades, if you see him, if

01:11:35.270 --> 01:11:38.329
you see her with Brooks and Dunn, I'm a survivor,

01:11:38.909 --> 01:11:43.260
seven minutes in heaven, turn on the radio. She

01:11:43.260 --> 01:11:45.680
even did an amazing cover because I know you

01:11:45.680 --> 01:11:49.739
like dance music and Motown. She does an amazing,

01:11:49.899 --> 01:11:53.500
fun dance version of You Keep Me Hanging On,

01:11:53.720 --> 01:11:56.020
which I used to play on my radio show all the

01:11:56.020 --> 01:11:58.739
time. So there's a little bit of the dance country

01:11:58.739 --> 01:12:02.899
for you. Love the pic. Absolutely love it. Thank

01:12:02.899 --> 01:12:06.619
you. And that's really tough to follow up because

01:12:06.619 --> 01:12:10.300
these are big, big names. And I am torn right

01:12:10.300 --> 01:12:14.550
now because. We haven't talked about the chicks

01:12:14.550 --> 01:12:17.489
yet. I want to, but there's one other artist

01:12:17.489 --> 01:12:21.149
that has a song from 2023 that I feel like I

01:12:21.149 --> 01:12:25.130
need to include. So. How many more do we have?

01:12:25.270 --> 01:12:29.470
We each have one pick left. Oh, no. Yes. Oh,

01:12:29.609 --> 01:12:32.869
no. This is where it gets ridiculous because

01:12:32.869 --> 01:12:36.590
I want to. So I'm going to give a shout out to

01:12:36.590 --> 01:12:38.569
the chicks right now because they're amazing.

01:12:38.949 --> 01:12:42.819
They're my wife's favorite group. I took her

01:12:42.819 --> 01:12:44.939
to Madison Square Garden to see the chicks on

01:12:44.939 --> 01:12:47.939
the Top of the World Tour. And holy crap, they

01:12:47.939 --> 01:12:50.859
put on such an amazing show. But God, when we're

01:12:50.859 --> 01:12:54.479
talking modern country, 2023 was such a great

01:12:54.479 --> 01:12:58.500
year for this singer. And hell, there's hell

01:12:58.500 --> 01:13:00.640
everywhere I go. I'm just sticking with the devil

01:13:00.640 --> 01:13:04.819
I know, Ashley McBride. This song just slays.

01:13:04.819 --> 01:13:08.600
I'm a rock guy at heart. And she... Brought the

01:13:08.600 --> 01:13:13.260
heft and the heavy guitars to country music effortlessly.

01:13:13.600 --> 01:13:15.779
And when she was discussing the album, I'm going

01:13:15.779 --> 01:13:19.180
to read a quote here. She said people were saying

01:13:19.180 --> 01:13:21.600
to her, y 'all are too country. So we leaned

01:13:21.600 --> 01:13:24.560
into that more country. It is. Y 'all are awfully

01:13:24.560 --> 01:13:27.279
rock leaning for a country artist. Is that so?

01:13:27.500 --> 01:13:30.380
You ain't seen nothing yet. Last thing y 'all

01:13:30.380 --> 01:13:33.310
need is another tender finger picking song. Oh,

01:13:33.310 --> 01:13:35.770
tender makes you uneasy. Cowboy. I hear you.

01:13:35.930 --> 01:13:38.590
Let's see how much more tender we can be. We

01:13:38.590 --> 01:13:41.130
listened to all those opinions and said, I hear

01:13:41.130 --> 01:13:44.310
you. I understand what you're saying, but sadly

01:13:44.310 --> 01:13:47.010
there's no room on the record for your opinion.

01:13:47.569 --> 01:13:50.390
We'll do what we want. And that's exactly what

01:13:50.390 --> 01:13:53.430
she did. The devil, you know, is a monster track.

01:13:53.789 --> 01:13:56.729
And as my last song of the night, that's the

01:13:56.729 --> 01:13:59.909
one I'm going to throw in at track nine. I'm

01:13:59.909 --> 01:14:03.020
so glad that you. chose Ashley because now I

01:14:03.020 --> 01:14:07.760
can mark her off my list, but that still, I feel,

01:14:07.920 --> 01:14:17.020
oh man. No, you know what? I really want to talk

01:14:17.020 --> 01:14:21.239
about Carly Pierce, but I feel, okay, I wish

01:14:21.239 --> 01:14:23.760
I could give a shout out to Carly Pierce. I wish

01:14:23.760 --> 01:14:25.859
I could talk about Maddie and Tay. I wish I could

01:14:25.859 --> 01:14:28.739
talk about Caitlin Smith. Remember, there's always

01:14:28.739 --> 01:14:33.369
room on volume two. There is. You know what?

01:14:33.449 --> 01:14:40.289
I'm going to go with Mickey Guyton. I'm going

01:14:40.289 --> 01:14:44.069
with Mickey Guyton. She is the first black female

01:14:44.069 --> 01:14:46.729
solo artist to be nominated for a country Grammy.

01:14:47.449 --> 01:14:51.010
Black female artists are starting to get recognition

01:14:51.010 --> 01:14:56.090
in the country market. And she is such a wonderful

01:14:56.090 --> 01:15:04.279
human being. And the song that I think the song

01:15:04.279 --> 01:15:07.279
that I want to play is, what are you going to

01:15:07.279 --> 01:15:11.520
tell her? That resonates for all the women of

01:15:11.520 --> 01:15:15.439
color. It resonates with any female in general.

01:15:15.840 --> 01:15:20.760
And I know it's a really heavy song, but I think,

01:15:20.840 --> 01:15:23.619
and you know, you never want to end a playlist

01:15:23.619 --> 01:15:27.520
on a heavy song, but. We didn't get her in any

01:15:27.520 --> 01:15:31.439
earlier. And I think she deserves to be on the

01:15:31.439 --> 01:15:35.600
mixtape. So we have to. We have to close it out

01:15:35.600 --> 01:15:39.500
with the next mover and shaker as far as a female

01:15:39.500 --> 01:15:42.760
country artist goes. I'm so glad you chose her.

01:15:42.840 --> 01:15:46.119
I discovered her back in 2021. I am a rock guy

01:15:46.119 --> 01:15:48.680
as well. And Metallica put out an album called

01:15:48.680 --> 01:15:52.039
The Metallica Blacklist. And it featured covers

01:15:52.039 --> 01:15:54.829
of all the songs from the Black album. And she

01:15:54.829 --> 01:15:56.930
did a version of Nothing Else Matters on that

01:15:56.930 --> 01:16:00.750
album that just blew my mind. And I am so glad

01:16:00.750 --> 01:16:02.829
that she's being included in this list because

01:16:02.829 --> 01:16:07.310
she is definitely the future of country music.

01:16:08.720 --> 01:16:11.500
The fact that we're at a point in 2024 where

01:16:11.500 --> 01:16:14.960
musically country music can expand and bring

01:16:14.960 --> 01:16:19.180
in artists like Mickey with such a unique statement

01:16:19.180 --> 01:16:22.640
and style to her voice and the way she can weave

01:16:22.640 --> 01:16:25.420
in a Metallica song and still keep that country

01:16:25.420 --> 01:16:28.079
sound. And I'm not going to lie, you're 100 %

01:16:28.079 --> 01:16:31.229
right. What are you going to tell her is a ridiculously

01:16:31.229 --> 01:16:34.310
heavy song to close with. But I think it absolutely

01:16:34.310 --> 01:16:37.850
works because you're coming out of Ashley McBride's

01:16:37.850 --> 01:16:39.869
The Devil You Know, which is a heavy musical

01:16:39.869 --> 01:16:42.350
song. And what are you going to tell her is a

01:16:42.350 --> 01:16:46.210
heavy song only thematically? Exactly. And there

01:16:46.210 --> 01:16:49.329
you have it, mixtapers. Side B of our ultimate

01:16:49.329 --> 01:16:52.689
modern female country artist mixtape, which kicked

01:16:52.689 --> 01:16:55.609
off with Pistol Annie's Hell on Heels, Maren

01:16:55.609 --> 01:16:58.949
Morris' My Church, Alana Springsteen with Chris

01:16:58.949 --> 01:17:01.789
Stapleton, Ghost in My Guitar, Taylor Swift's

01:17:01.789 --> 01:17:04.609
Lover, Grace Potter's Stars with Kenny Chesney,

01:17:04.789 --> 01:17:08.770
Miranda Lambert's If I Was a Cowboy, Kacey Musgraves'

01:17:08.909 --> 01:17:12.529
Merry Go Round, Reba McEntire's Fancy, Ashley

01:17:12.529 --> 01:17:15.510
McBride's The Devil I Know, and Mickey Guyton's

01:17:15.510 --> 01:17:18.789
What Are You Gonna Tell Her, head over to myweeklymixtape

01:17:18.789 --> 01:17:21.729
.com to hear all the songs we've discussed in

01:17:21.729 --> 01:17:25.310
this mix through the playlist embedded on the

01:17:25.310 --> 01:17:28.829
episode page. I'm looking at both sides of this

01:17:28.829 --> 01:17:32.029
mixtape, Carrie. I think we've made a strong

01:17:32.029 --> 01:17:35.710
case for the fact that female country music is

01:17:35.710 --> 01:17:39.960
alive and well in 2024. I'm hoping so. And if

01:17:39.960 --> 01:17:41.819
people don't think so, then they need to start

01:17:41.819 --> 01:17:45.119
listening to more of your playlists and start

01:17:45.119 --> 01:17:48.079
doing their research because there's so much

01:17:48.079 --> 01:17:52.739
great female talent out there. And it just, we're

01:17:52.739 --> 01:17:55.399
doing our part, right? You certainly are. And

01:17:55.399 --> 01:17:57.920
as part of that amazing female country music

01:17:57.920 --> 01:18:01.300
scene, what does the rest of 2024 have in store

01:18:01.300 --> 01:18:04.500
for you? You did tease a fact that there is possibly

01:18:04.500 --> 01:18:07.300
some more disco country coming our way. What

01:18:07.300 --> 01:18:11.239
can fans expect in 2024? Yes, I will be coming

01:18:11.239 --> 01:18:14.159
out with some more singles. I'm thinking I'm

01:18:14.159 --> 01:18:16.739
going to end up putting out a whole album that's

01:18:16.739 --> 01:18:19.579
kind of along those lines. But definitely in

01:18:19.579 --> 01:18:22.060
the next few months, I will be having another

01:18:22.060 --> 01:18:24.430
single come out. I'm not sure if I want to tell

01:18:24.430 --> 01:18:26.170
you what the single's called or if I should just

01:18:26.170 --> 01:18:29.670
wait. Do tell, do tell. Okay, okay. Well, the

01:18:29.670 --> 01:18:31.869
next single that's coming out in the next couple

01:18:31.869 --> 01:18:34.829
of months is called Habit. And it's along the

01:18:34.829 --> 01:18:40.289
lines of Just Like, but a little bit more in

01:18:40.289 --> 01:18:44.310
your face. Like, Just Like was kind of like the

01:18:44.310 --> 01:18:47.529
sweetness of it. Habit's going to be a little

01:18:47.529 --> 01:18:51.350
bit more edgy. And I'm doing some shows. throughout

01:18:51.350 --> 01:18:55.010
the Northwest. And I have a lot of, a lot of

01:18:55.010 --> 01:18:57.869
writing retreats I'm going to be on. I'm also

01:18:57.869 --> 01:19:01.489
a side note, you know, I'm also a benefit auctioneer

01:19:01.489 --> 01:19:04.510
because I love helping people. And so I got some

01:19:04.510 --> 01:19:08.390
auctions that I'm working on. And other than

01:19:08.390 --> 01:19:11.210
that, I'm just enjoying life and I'm just going

01:19:11.210 --> 01:19:14.149
to keep putting out music and improve my craft

01:19:14.149 --> 01:19:16.770
because you keep improving yourself until you

01:19:16.770 --> 01:19:19.329
die. I mean, plain and simple, because if you

01:19:19.329 --> 01:19:22.680
don't, then. You're boring. You've got to just

01:19:22.680 --> 01:19:27.279
keep improving yourself. So that's what I'm going

01:19:27.279 --> 01:19:30.699
to be doing. Carrie, this has been an absolute

01:19:30.699 --> 01:19:33.939
pleasure. First off, I hope you have a wonderful

01:19:33.939 --> 01:19:37.020
birthday. Thank you so much for joining me on

01:19:37.020 --> 01:19:38.819
my weekly mixtape. And I hope to have you back

01:19:38.819 --> 01:19:41.520
sometime down the road. Absolutely. Thank you

01:19:41.520 --> 01:19:44.659
so much for having me. And I hope everybody loves

01:19:44.659 --> 01:19:47.090
our mixtape. And remember, Mixtapers, you can

01:19:47.090 --> 01:19:49.569
find My Weekly Mixtape on all the social media

01:19:49.569 --> 01:19:52.710
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01:19:52.710 --> 01:19:55.109
to MyWeeklyMixtape .com to check out the full

01:19:55.109 --> 01:19:58.430
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01:19:59.810 --> 01:20:02.329
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01:20:11.310 --> 01:20:13.489
That's all for this week. Thanks again for listening.

01:20:13.529 --> 01:20:15.670
And until next time. Enjoy the tunes.