WEBVTT 00:00:11.310 --> 00:00:14.470 What is going on, friends? Welcome to my weekly 00:00:14.470 --> 00:00:17.370 mixtape, the show that takes the classic mixtape 00:00:17.370 --> 00:00:20.730 approach to building a modern playlist. I'm your 00:00:20.730 --> 00:00:23.649 host, Brian Colburn, and tonight I am here to 00:00:23.649 --> 00:00:28.109 count down a dozen top country songs from the 00:00:28.109 --> 00:00:31.489 year 2025. Now, I know what you're thinking. 00:00:32.009 --> 00:00:34.869 I could just go on Apple Music or Spotify and 00:00:34.869 --> 00:00:37.229 look at the top 20 songs from the year. You certainly 00:00:37.229 --> 00:00:40.770 can do that. My list is probably not going to 00:00:40.770 --> 00:00:42.969 align with that very much. Certainly there's 00:00:42.969 --> 00:00:45.450 going to be some crossover, I'm sure, because 00:00:45.450 --> 00:00:48.570 I listen to all sorts of country music. So there's 00:00:48.570 --> 00:00:50.689 going to be the top hits as well as some stuff 00:00:50.689 --> 00:00:53.670 that digs a little deeper. But I feel like 2025 00:00:53.670 --> 00:00:58.929 was a year in country music that really branched 00:00:58.929 --> 00:01:02.149 out in many different directions. And country 00:01:02.149 --> 00:01:05.209 music as a whole has been doing that a lot over 00:01:05.209 --> 00:01:08.980 the last decade. And I think. More and more, 00:01:09.180 --> 00:01:14.920 especially in 2024 and 2025, we are seeing country 00:01:14.920 --> 00:01:17.760 music kind of cross -pollinate with so many different 00:01:17.760 --> 00:01:22.680 genres that it's almost becoming hard to distinguish 00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:25.819 what country music is versus what straight -up 00:01:25.819 --> 00:01:29.379 rock or pop is. And I find that very interesting 00:01:29.379 --> 00:01:32.319 because there's some pop songs that'll just incorporate 00:01:32.319 --> 00:01:35.680 some country elements, but not necessarily be 00:01:35.680 --> 00:01:39.069 country. and then vice versa. So it's definitely 00:01:39.069 --> 00:01:42.250 been blurring the lines over what country music 00:01:42.250 --> 00:01:46.790 is over the last several years, especially. And 00:01:46.790 --> 00:01:48.150 I think some of that's going to come through 00:01:48.150 --> 00:01:51.170 in my picks tonight. But with that, I want to 00:01:51.170 --> 00:01:54.370 know what songs resonated with you on your country 00:01:54.370 --> 00:01:57.170 playlists this year. So be sure to reach out 00:01:57.170 --> 00:02:01.319 to me, myweeklymixtape at gmail .com. I'm on 00:02:01.319 --> 00:02:04.439 all the social media haunts at My Weekly Mixtape. 00:02:04.459 --> 00:02:08.419 You can also use the contact page over at myweeklymixtape 00:02:08.419 --> 00:02:12.719 .com or you can join the Mixtaper community over 00:02:12.719 --> 00:02:16.620 at patreon .com forward slash myweeklymixtape. 00:02:17.099 --> 00:02:19.159 Over there, I was having a conversation with 00:02:19.159 --> 00:02:21.879 Chad LaMasso about his top country song of the 00:02:21.879 --> 00:02:24.860 year, which was Ashley Kutcher's Hey Girl. And 00:02:24.860 --> 00:02:26.479 he even brought up the fact that she started 00:02:26.479 --> 00:02:29.740 out pop, but has since gone country. And I feel 00:02:29.740 --> 00:02:32.000 like that's part of this crossover conversation 00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:34.599 that I'm going to be talking about tonight because 00:02:34.599 --> 00:02:38.539 a lot of these songs are cross -pollinated with 00:02:38.539 --> 00:02:42.240 other genres. And I can understand and respect 00:02:42.240 --> 00:02:44.520 the argument that would go both ways there because 00:02:44.520 --> 00:02:46.840 some people feel like they want their country 00:02:46.840 --> 00:02:52.439 to stay. as pure as it was in the 70s, 80s, and 00:02:52.439 --> 00:02:54.520 then obviously in the 90s when things started 00:02:54.520 --> 00:02:57.379 to change because country music started to make 00:02:57.379 --> 00:03:00.879 this change in the 90s with artists like Garth 00:03:00.879 --> 00:03:03.659 Brooks and Shania Twain that really drove that 00:03:03.659 --> 00:03:07.560 crossover narrative. And other people are kind 00:03:07.560 --> 00:03:10.039 of welcome to seeing wherever it goes. Now, me, 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:12.740 if you listen to this show week in and week out, 00:03:12.759 --> 00:03:16.500 you know my musical palette. spans all genres 00:03:16.500 --> 00:03:19.580 and is all over the place. So the more the genre 00:03:19.580 --> 00:03:23.060 evolves and stretches its boundaries, the better 00:03:23.060 --> 00:03:25.360 as far as I'm concerned. But I understand where 00:03:25.360 --> 00:03:27.939 some people just might not resonate with it. 00:03:27.960 --> 00:03:30.479 But in this playlist tonight, I'm trying to touch 00:03:30.479 --> 00:03:33.539 on both sides of the spectrum so that way you 00:03:33.539 --> 00:03:36.479 can get an idea of stuff that is staying true 00:03:36.479 --> 00:03:39.159 to the old school country sound, to stuff that 00:03:39.159 --> 00:03:42.750 stays in that modern country wheelhouse. as well 00:03:42.750 --> 00:03:45.030 as the stuff that's kind of branching out in 00:03:45.030 --> 00:03:48.069 all different directions, which might be where 00:03:48.069 --> 00:03:51.389 the genre is headed in the future. And along 00:03:51.389 --> 00:03:53.830 with Chad, Sean Goff chimed in with Peace of 00:03:53.830 --> 00:03:56.949 Mind by Amanda Shires, saying it definitely has 00:03:56.949 --> 00:03:59.530 some good country roots, and he thinks the song 00:03:59.530 --> 00:04:03.129 has enough of a today's country sound to qualify. 00:04:03.550 --> 00:04:05.729 But as we're going to find out a little later 00:04:05.729 --> 00:04:08.430 on throughout this episode, a today's country 00:04:08.430 --> 00:04:11.840 sound could mean a lot of different things. And 00:04:11.840 --> 00:04:14.759 I feel like Amanda's music definitely speaks 00:04:14.759 --> 00:04:18.199 to that argument for sure, because peace of mind 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:21.839 has a gritty, almost Southern rock drive to it 00:04:21.839 --> 00:04:24.839 that maybe a decade ago might not have been included 00:04:24.839 --> 00:04:27.839 in the country conversation, but now it a hundred 00:04:27.839 --> 00:04:31.040 percent fits and taking that to the next extreme. 00:04:31.689 --> 00:04:34.050 Tom Hutchison chimed in with a song that he actually 00:04:34.050 --> 00:04:36.430 discovered through the show. So thank you very 00:04:36.430 --> 00:04:39.370 much, Tom. He went with Lakeview's home team, 00:04:39.550 --> 00:04:42.430 saying it fits with his style of music. And this 00:04:42.430 --> 00:04:45.129 year for him, the rest of the country year was 00:04:45.129 --> 00:04:48.230 a bit too poppy for his tastes. And I could definitely 00:04:48.230 --> 00:04:51.769 see that. But Lakeview, not so much when it comes 00:04:51.769 --> 00:04:54.829 to poppy. Lakeview is the other side of the spectrum. 00:04:55.069 --> 00:04:59.670 They are hard rock, almost metal country music. 00:05:00.350 --> 00:05:02.610 Yes, you heard that correctly. And it may be 00:05:02.610 --> 00:05:05.470 something we talk about a little bit later on. 00:05:05.509 --> 00:05:07.410 So for now, I'm going to put a pin in what Tom 00:05:07.410 --> 00:05:10.189 had to say right there. So once again, if you 00:05:10.189 --> 00:05:12.149 want to join the mixtaper community, which is 00:05:12.149 --> 00:05:15.110 free to do, you can do so over at patreon .com 00:05:15.110 --> 00:05:19.689 forward slash my weekly mixtape. So without further 00:05:19.689 --> 00:05:22.870 ado, let's dive into 12 of the top country songs 00:05:22.870 --> 00:05:26.970 that truly moved the needle for me in 2025. And 00:05:26.970 --> 00:05:28.829 I'm going to be perfectly honest and out myself 00:05:28.829 --> 00:05:30.990 right from the beginning. Some of these songs 00:05:30.990 --> 00:05:35.110 came out in late 2024, but took on a life of 00:05:35.110 --> 00:05:37.790 their own throughout 2025. So they'll be included 00:05:37.790 --> 00:05:41.069 tonight, including my first pick, which was a 00:05:41.069 --> 00:05:43.329 top 10 country hit and cracked the Billboard 00:05:43.329 --> 00:05:46.670 Hot 100. This is an artist that is probably not 00:05:46.670 --> 00:05:48.930 a shock to many modern country fans. He's been 00:05:48.930 --> 00:05:52.160 around since the early 2000s. And if you're a 00:05:52.160 --> 00:05:54.699 huge fan of The Voice, I'm sure you're very familiar 00:05:54.699 --> 00:05:56.779 with him pointing to himself whenever he wants 00:05:56.779 --> 00:05:59.920 to be selected as a coach. That would be Blake 00:05:59.920 --> 00:06:02.100 Shelton. And I'm going to go with a song that 00:06:02.100 --> 00:06:06.319 he released in November of 2024, but the album 00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:10.040 for recreational use only dropped in early 2025, 00:06:10.319 --> 00:06:14.519 and that is Texas. This is one of those songs 00:06:14.519 --> 00:06:18.620 that fall under the modern country music wheelhouse 00:06:18.620 --> 00:06:22.310 category for me. It checks all the boxes of what 00:06:22.310 --> 00:06:26.610 modern country is. It definitely has the modern 00:06:26.610 --> 00:06:29.269 production and sound to it, but there's also 00:06:29.269 --> 00:06:32.269 some elements and notes that kind of bring you 00:06:32.269 --> 00:06:35.589 back into the early 2000s and even maybe a hat 00:06:35.589 --> 00:06:38.970 tip or a nod to the 1990s country sound, which 00:06:38.970 --> 00:06:41.569 I kind of like. And I'll say that for selfish 00:06:41.569 --> 00:06:43.689 reasons because that's when I was introduced 00:06:43.689 --> 00:06:47.029 to country. It was in the mid -90s. The first 00:06:47.029 --> 00:06:49.990 country song I ever enjoyed. was John Michael 00:06:49.990 --> 00:06:52.430 Montgomery's Soul, thanks to my college roommate. 00:06:52.810 --> 00:06:57.089 So that sound and that vibe always sticks and 00:06:57.089 --> 00:07:00.089 resonates with me. And I feel like through artists 00:07:00.089 --> 00:07:05.009 such as Zach Topp, Luke Combs, Laney Wilson, 00:07:05.269 --> 00:07:07.870 and some of the other artists we might get into 00:07:07.870 --> 00:07:10.449 this evening, that sound is kind of making its 00:07:10.449 --> 00:07:13.129 way back when you do that rotation, that throwback 00:07:13.129 --> 00:07:17.819 vibe. I'm hearing 90s country start to... creep 00:07:17.819 --> 00:07:20.139 in and out of music again. And I think it's a 00:07:20.139 --> 00:07:23.220 refreshing change because it's no secret that 00:07:23.220 --> 00:07:26.420 what's old is new again, happens over and over 00:07:26.420 --> 00:07:28.699 again in the music scene. This could be rock, 00:07:28.819 --> 00:07:33.579 hip hop, country. The sounds come back in and 00:07:33.579 --> 00:07:35.959 out of style. That's why there's a lot of rock 00:07:35.959 --> 00:07:39.240 bands right now that are embracing that 70s flavor 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:43.420 and some even embracing the early 2000s divorced 00:07:43.420 --> 00:07:47.319 dad rock. Music is very cyclical, and I have 00:07:47.319 --> 00:07:49.800 no problem with it circling back around to an 00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:52.240 era that I am extremely fond of, whether that 00:07:52.240 --> 00:07:55.139 be through nostalgia or through what the artists 00:07:55.139 --> 00:07:57.759 are actually bringing to the table to take that 00:07:57.759 --> 00:08:01.779 sound to a different place. But Texas is definitely 00:08:01.779 --> 00:08:04.920 one of those ones that immediately grabbed me 00:08:04.920 --> 00:08:07.339 the first time I heard it, and it's one that 00:08:07.339 --> 00:08:09.519 I listened to throughout the whole year for recreational 00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:13.170 use only. Could possibly be one of my favorite 00:08:13.170 --> 00:08:15.230 Blake Shelton albums that he's ever released. 00:08:15.509 --> 00:08:18.290 It's solid from start to finish. There is a duet 00:08:18.290 --> 00:08:21.569 with Gwen Stefani on it, and as much as I love 00:08:21.569 --> 00:08:24.610 her stuff with No Doubt, she can handle a country 00:08:24.610 --> 00:08:27.350 tune, and their voices work really well together. 00:08:27.769 --> 00:08:30.149 Now, anybody that listens to this show knows 00:08:30.149 --> 00:08:34.590 I'm a huge Third Wave Ska fan. I love No Doubt. 00:08:34.590 --> 00:08:38.549 I even enjoy Gwen's solo stuff from the 2000s. 00:08:38.830 --> 00:08:40.750 I think her voice is one of the ones that can 00:08:40.750 --> 00:08:43.610 kind of bounce from genre to genre effortlessly. 00:08:44.110 --> 00:08:47.190 And she's done country stuff before and it works. 00:08:47.289 --> 00:08:50.629 She's done pop. She's done ska. She just fits 00:08:50.629 --> 00:08:53.350 in any genre. And that's something I've always 00:08:53.350 --> 00:08:56.049 loved about her voice. The duet's a fantastic 00:08:56.049 --> 00:08:58.269 listen. It's called Hanging On, if you want to 00:08:58.269 --> 00:09:01.210 look that one up. But Texas was a song that I 00:09:01.210 --> 00:09:04.070 felt myself going back to more and more as the 00:09:04.070 --> 00:09:06.470 year went on. So kicking off things tonight. 00:09:06.970 --> 00:09:12.009 Blake Shelton's Texas. Also in November of 2024, 00:09:12.529 --> 00:09:16.730 Thomas Rhett dropped a single featuring Teddy 00:09:16.730 --> 00:09:20.370 Swims, Something About a Woman. It was from his 00:09:20.370 --> 00:09:23.470 About a Woman album. So yes, it was released 00:09:23.470 --> 00:09:28.230 in November of 24, but included on the 2025 deluxe 00:09:28.230 --> 00:09:31.029 edition of the album. This is where that cross 00:09:31.029 --> 00:09:33.529 -pollinization of music starts to come into play 00:09:33.529 --> 00:09:36.580 here. Teddy Swims kind of has a lock on that 00:09:36.580 --> 00:09:40.139 modern pop soul vibe. However, when you mix it 00:09:40.139 --> 00:09:42.399 in with Thomas Rhett's Something About a Woman, 00:09:42.580 --> 00:09:47.340 the two really merge together well. And I'll 00:09:47.340 --> 00:09:48.919 be perfectly honest with you, you could play 00:09:48.919 --> 00:09:52.679 this song on Top 40 radio and it would work just 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:56.700 as well as it did on country radio. Probably 00:09:56.700 --> 00:10:00.519 my favorite all -time Thomas Rhett song. I think 00:10:00.519 --> 00:10:04.519 this vibe and this sound suits his voice. really 00:10:04.519 --> 00:10:07.279 well. And I think the interplay with Teddy swims, 00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:09.840 even though there is a version with just Thomas 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:13.320 read alone, I think the duet suits the song better. 00:10:13.639 --> 00:10:16.940 But then again, in 2024, I was singing Teddy 00:10:16.940 --> 00:10:20.100 swims praises and I'm still continuing to do 00:10:20.100 --> 00:10:23.740 so all throughout 2025. Teddy swims is one of 00:10:23.740 --> 00:10:26.019 those artists that if he wanted to could drop 00:10:26.019 --> 00:10:28.429 an entire country album. With a little bit of 00:10:28.429 --> 00:10:30.830 that soul touch, similar to what Marcus King 00:10:30.830 --> 00:10:33.830 did on his 2025 album Darling Blue, which is 00:10:33.830 --> 00:10:37.309 another incredible listen, I feel like he could 00:10:37.309 --> 00:10:40.789 slide seamlessly into the country scene and would 00:10:40.789 --> 00:10:43.190 be universally accepted. He's already done it 00:10:43.190 --> 00:10:46.250 with pop, and I feel like Teddy Swims is one 00:10:46.250 --> 00:10:47.889 of those artists that can do just about anything. 00:10:48.269 --> 00:10:50.809 Last year, I dropped an episode talking about 00:10:50.809 --> 00:10:53.809 my favorite cover versions of Taylor Swift's 00:10:53.809 --> 00:10:56.559 Cruel Summer. And Teddy Swims made the cut and 00:10:56.559 --> 00:11:01.039 he turned Cruel Summer into a power ballad. And 00:11:01.039 --> 00:11:03.879 it works so well, almost has a country vibe to 00:11:03.879 --> 00:11:06.580 it. So who knows? Maybe we'll see something like 00:11:06.580 --> 00:11:08.659 that from Teddy Swims in the future. But following 00:11:08.659 --> 00:11:11.740 up Blake Shelton's Texas, we got Thomas Rhett 00:11:11.740 --> 00:11:15.919 and Teddy Swims' Something About a Woman. And 00:11:15.919 --> 00:11:18.159 I'm going to follow one duet up with another. 00:11:18.909 --> 00:11:22.250 This song actually dropped in April of 2025. 00:11:22.509 --> 00:11:26.190 So finally, an all 2025 song, something that's 00:11:26.190 --> 00:11:29.610 not from 2024. That would be Hayley Witters featuring 00:11:29.610 --> 00:11:33.269 Molly Tuttle's Prodigal Daughter from Hayley's 00:11:33.269 --> 00:11:35.629 Corn Queen album, which I think is absolutely 00:11:35.629 --> 00:11:39.710 a hysterical album title. Molly on this track 00:11:39.710 --> 00:11:42.690 plays guitar and sings background vocals, which 00:11:42.690 --> 00:11:45.909 lends kind of a bluegrass vibe to this song. 00:11:46.429 --> 00:11:49.250 And I want to say it gives it an early 2000s 00:11:49.250 --> 00:11:52.590 Chicks vibe. And I'm almost hesitant to say that 00:11:52.590 --> 00:11:55.970 because a lot of people compare Hailey's voice 00:11:55.970 --> 00:11:58.809 to Natalie Maine's. And I don't want to go down 00:11:58.809 --> 00:12:03.129 that road because while I hear some tonal similarities, 00:12:03.370 --> 00:12:07.330 I feel like Hailey stands out on her own. But 00:12:07.330 --> 00:12:09.350 then again, when you listen to a track like this, 00:12:09.389 --> 00:12:13.419 when Molly's harmonies drop into the fold. I 00:12:13.419 --> 00:12:15.240 could definitely see where people would compare 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:18.240 it to the Chicks, but is that really a bad group 00:12:18.240 --> 00:12:20.799 to compare it to when you're talking about a 00:12:20.799 --> 00:12:23.039 country sound that has a little bit of that bluegrass 00:12:23.039 --> 00:12:25.600 vibe? I mean, they kind of paved the way in the 00:12:25.600 --> 00:12:28.940 90s and 2000s of what that sound should be, but 00:12:28.940 --> 00:12:31.259 in no way, shape, or form do I consider Hailey 00:12:31.259 --> 00:12:34.620 to be just a carbon copy of Natalie Maines. I 00:12:34.620 --> 00:12:37.539 feel like she's carved her own path. And I feel 00:12:37.539 --> 00:12:39.779 like she's got something special going on. Corn 00:12:39.779 --> 00:12:43.120 Queen is an incredible album that also features 00:12:43.120 --> 00:12:45.980 collaborations with Charles Wesley Godwin and 00:12:45.980 --> 00:12:48.639 the Wilder Blue. So there's a little bit of touch 00:12:48.639 --> 00:12:50.639 of that bluegrass sound, a little bit of modern 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:53.580 country. It's a little less bluegrass than some 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:56.480 of her earlier albums, but I feel like it didn't 00:12:56.480 --> 00:12:59.539 sway too far out of the way that fans of her 00:12:59.539 --> 00:13:02.120 earlier work might wonder what the hell is going 00:13:02.120 --> 00:13:04.980 on. No, this is a fantastic album and one that 00:13:04.980 --> 00:13:07.440 I highly recommend. If you haven't heard it all 00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:10.340 the way through. So now I'm going to go back 00:13:10.340 --> 00:13:13.379 to a solo artist, no more collaborations for 00:13:13.379 --> 00:13:16.120 now. And I'm going to go with one that once again 00:13:16.120 --> 00:13:19.759 was released in 2024, but the album didn't drop 00:13:19.759 --> 00:13:23.340 until 2025. And this one's kind of egregious. 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:25.360 So I'm going to apologize in advance because 00:13:25.360 --> 00:13:29.860 this came out in the fall of 2024 and very easily 00:13:29.860 --> 00:13:34.279 could have made my songs of 2024 playlist. That 00:13:34.279 --> 00:13:36.879 being John Party's Friday Night Heartbreaker 00:13:36.879 --> 00:13:41.000 was a top 10 country airplay hit. This song has 00:13:41.000 --> 00:13:45.539 such a groove to it. It's sultry. It sits in 00:13:45.539 --> 00:13:47.940 that minor key. It's one of those songs that, 00:13:47.980 --> 00:13:49.740 I mean, it's right there in the title, Friday 00:13:49.740 --> 00:13:52.320 Night. And it feels like one of those songs that 00:13:52.320 --> 00:13:54.580 you can listen to on a late night drive. It's 00:13:54.580 --> 00:13:58.669 just got that groove to it. While it's a make 00:13:58.669 --> 00:14:01.870 no mistake, modern country song, I feel like 00:14:01.870 --> 00:14:04.350 it starts to lean a little bit into the rock 00:14:04.350 --> 00:14:06.929 side of what John's put out in the past. And 00:14:06.929 --> 00:14:09.370 I like it. On John's Christmas album, he did 00:14:09.370 --> 00:14:13.509 an incredible cover of Counting Crows along December. 00:14:13.769 --> 00:14:18.250 And I feel like some of that influence bled into 00:14:18.250 --> 00:14:21.110 this track. I know he used some of the same players 00:14:21.110 --> 00:14:23.509 on the song, and that might be where I'm catching 00:14:23.509 --> 00:14:26.940 that vibe from. But this song works. The entire 00:14:26.940 --> 00:14:29.919 Honky Tonk Hollywood album is great. John is 00:14:29.919 --> 00:14:33.059 such a consistent modern country artist. And 00:14:33.059 --> 00:14:35.000 I feel like John is one of those ones that does 00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:38.519 tip his hat time and time again to that 90s sound. 00:14:38.740 --> 00:14:42.019 And I feel like it's not to the point where you 00:14:42.019 --> 00:14:44.120 think it's on the nose because it definitely 00:14:44.120 --> 00:14:48.509 has the modern sound baked into the music. But 00:14:48.509 --> 00:14:52.350 there's definitely a 90s heart at the core of 00:14:52.350 --> 00:14:55.009 this song. And it's one that was one of my favorites 00:14:55.009 --> 00:14:57.929 throughout the whole year and towards the end 00:14:57.929 --> 00:15:01.409 of 2024. So I'm kind of making up for not including 00:15:01.409 --> 00:15:04.549 it on my 2024 playlist by giving it the love 00:15:04.549 --> 00:15:07.669 it deserves now. But now we're going to start 00:15:07.669 --> 00:15:10.250 really leaning into that cross -pollinization 00:15:10.250 --> 00:15:13.559 a little bit. This next artist was one that I 00:15:13.559 --> 00:15:15.360 was lucky enough to be able to interview with 00:15:15.360 --> 00:15:17.940 J sweet back in the tune styles days, but it 00:15:17.940 --> 00:15:21.379 was also featured in a bonus episode in season 00:15:21.379 --> 00:15:24.960 one of my weekly mixtape because her career has 00:15:24.960 --> 00:15:27.200 exploded over the last few years. And that would 00:15:27.200 --> 00:15:30.419 be Morgan Wade. Now this is a song she originally 00:15:30.419 --> 00:15:34.639 recorded in 2017 by her group, Morgan Wade and 00:15:34.639 --> 00:15:38.200 the step brothers. However, in August of 2025, 00:15:38.299 --> 00:15:42.139 she released a new version of the song, And name 00:15:42.139 --> 00:15:44.700 the album after it. The song is called The Party 00:15:44.700 --> 00:15:48.100 Is Over. And the album, The Party Is Over. And 00:15:48.100 --> 00:15:51.919 then in parentheses, Recovered. This song is 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:57.320 everything I love about Morgan's music. The chorus 00:15:57.320 --> 00:16:00.980 is soaring and massive. And as far as I'm concerned, 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:05.039 is custom built for arenas and stadiums. And 00:16:05.039 --> 00:16:07.580 I think I could say that that point comes from 00:16:07.580 --> 00:16:11.720 a place of extensive research. Because I had 00:16:11.720 --> 00:16:15.379 the pleasure of seeing her open this past year 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:20.519 for Shinedown and Bush on Shinedown's first ever 00:16:20.519 --> 00:16:23.580 appearance at New York City's Madison Square 00:16:23.580 --> 00:16:26.100 Garden. Thank you to the band for having me out 00:16:26.100 --> 00:16:28.940 that evening. I sincerely appreciate it. Morgan 00:16:28.940 --> 00:16:31.720 was the first artist on the bill. She played 00:16:31.720 --> 00:16:33.799 this song. Now, I know what you're wondering. 00:16:34.139 --> 00:16:37.399 This is a Shinedown and Bush show. Why is Morgan 00:16:37.399 --> 00:16:39.980 Wade on the bill? Have you heard the party is 00:16:39.980 --> 00:16:43.759 over yet? Listen to the end. The song frigging 00:16:43.759 --> 00:16:47.460 rocks. As far as I'm concerned, you do not need 00:16:47.460 --> 00:16:50.139 to have a genre when it comes to Morgan Wade. 00:16:50.240 --> 00:16:53.600 She could step into a rock show and tear up the 00:16:53.600 --> 00:16:57.220 stage just as much as she could for a country 00:16:57.220 --> 00:17:00.340 show. And look, the lines continue to get blurred 00:17:00.340 --> 00:17:03.100 because if you've heard Searchlight, Shinedown's 00:17:03.100 --> 00:17:06.900 most recent song, it leans into country and Shinedown. 00:17:07.259 --> 00:17:10.460 debuted at the Grand Ole Opry this year. And 00:17:10.460 --> 00:17:12.819 just a few years back, this was something I spoke 00:17:12.819 --> 00:17:15.200 with Shinedown's drummer Barry Kirch about at 00:17:15.200 --> 00:17:18.819 length. Jelly Roll was the opening act for Shinedown. 00:17:18.839 --> 00:17:21.039 And I don't know, if you look at where his career's 00:17:21.039 --> 00:17:23.119 gone since opening for Shinedown, even in the 00:17:23.119 --> 00:17:25.960 country world, Shinedown hoped open doors for 00:17:25.960 --> 00:17:28.339 Jelly Roll that weren't there before. And now 00:17:28.339 --> 00:17:30.319 they're doing the same thing for Morgan Wade. 00:17:30.730 --> 00:17:33.329 And Morgan Wade hat tips it right back to the 00:17:33.329 --> 00:17:36.730 rock genre because on the party is over recovered 00:17:36.730 --> 00:17:39.750 the bonus edition, because now this is something 00:17:39.750 --> 00:17:42.210 I can go into a total sidebar tangent about, 00:17:42.269 --> 00:17:43.789 but I'm going to save it for something in the 00:17:43.789 --> 00:17:46.309 new year. But artists have been increasingly, 00:17:46.309 --> 00:17:48.349 and I'm not sure if it's the artists themselves 00:17:48.349 --> 00:17:51.509 or the labels behind it have been increasingly. 00:17:52.490 --> 00:17:56.049 releasing deluxe editions of albums very shortly 00:17:56.049 --> 00:17:58.890 and i mean within a few months of the standard 00:17:58.890 --> 00:18:01.849 version being released it's not something i'm 00:18:01.849 --> 00:18:04.230 a huge fan of because i immediately go out and 00:18:04.230 --> 00:18:06.630 support the album when it comes out and i mean 00:18:06.630 --> 00:18:09.869 physical copies i would prefer that artists start 00:18:09.869 --> 00:18:13.069 dropping the deluxe edition on the same day as 00:18:13.069 --> 00:18:15.210 the regular edition let me decide which version 00:18:15.210 --> 00:18:17.450 i want i promise you it's always going to be 00:18:17.450 --> 00:18:20.329 the deluxe edition but with that said On the 00:18:20.329 --> 00:18:23.109 deluxe edition of The Party's Over, she does 00:18:23.109 --> 00:18:26.849 a fantastic cover of Radiohead's Creep that you 00:18:26.849 --> 00:18:28.829 should definitely check out. You know how I am 00:18:28.829 --> 00:18:32.190 with my cover songs. And, you know, I understand 00:18:32.190 --> 00:18:33.910 that there's Radiohead fans out there that are 00:18:33.910 --> 00:18:35.970 probably going, oh, he said Creep. Yeah, she 00:18:35.970 --> 00:18:38.349 does a fantastic version of Creep. And I'm one 00:18:38.349 --> 00:18:41.630 of those people. I'll admit it. It is my favorite 00:18:41.630 --> 00:18:44.950 Radiohead song. So apologies to the Radiohead 00:18:44.950 --> 00:18:46.730 fans out there that just lost a little bit of 00:18:46.730 --> 00:18:49.920 respect for me. But yes, I am that guy with zero 00:18:49.920 --> 00:18:53.240 shame because music is subjective and it hits 00:18:53.240 --> 00:18:55.500 us all in different ways. And Creep is always 00:18:55.500 --> 00:18:57.380 going to resonate with me on a different level. 00:18:57.539 --> 00:19:00.059 And that's with zero disrespect to the rest of 00:19:00.059 --> 00:19:02.759 Radiohead's catalog. But I digress. We've talked 00:19:02.759 --> 00:19:04.900 enough about Radiohead. This is a country episode. 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:08.339 Back to Morgan Wade. Now, if you've heard The 00:19:08.339 --> 00:19:10.819 Party Is Over, you know the end of the song goes 00:19:10.819 --> 00:19:14.440 double time and gets heavy as hell. So how would 00:19:14.440 --> 00:19:17.180 you come out of a song like that? For me, it's 00:19:17.180 --> 00:19:20.420 an absolute no -brainer, but once again, just 00:19:20.420 --> 00:19:22.819 like John Party's Friday Night Heartbreaker, 00:19:23.099 --> 00:19:27.559 I am going to dive earlier back into 2024 with 00:19:27.559 --> 00:19:32.119 an album that I regret did not make my 2024 playlist, 00:19:32.480 --> 00:19:36.079 but I am making good on it now in 2025. This 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:39.019 is the album I probably listened to more than 00:19:39.019 --> 00:19:42.900 any country album in 2025, and that would be 00:19:42.900 --> 00:19:46.730 Lakeview's self -titled album. And the song that 00:19:46.730 --> 00:19:48.809 I'm going to go with to close out the first half 00:19:48.809 --> 00:19:54.049 of this 2025 country playlist is Home Team. Once 00:19:54.049 --> 00:19:56.950 again, I'll shout out Patreon mixtaper Tom Hutchinson, 00:19:57.089 --> 00:19:59.970 who also chimed in with this one. You want to 00:19:59.970 --> 00:20:03.509 talk about a song that gets the party started 00:20:03.509 --> 00:20:06.670 like no other? Home Team is one of those tunes. 00:20:07.029 --> 00:20:11.529 This is a country song that somehow in the chorus 00:20:11.529 --> 00:20:16.309 goes down the path of Disturbed. The riff is 00:20:16.309 --> 00:20:20.029 massive. This song is frigging heavy. There's 00:20:20.029 --> 00:20:22.890 screaming in this song. This is everything that 00:20:22.890 --> 00:20:25.690 you would not expect a country song to be. But 00:20:25.690 --> 00:20:29.410 in 2025, the cross -pollinization, and I've probably 00:20:29.410 --> 00:20:32.230 said that word way too many times in this first 00:20:32.230 --> 00:20:35.589 half, is alive and well. And Lakeview is one 00:20:35.589 --> 00:20:37.990 of those bands that's carrying the torch and 00:20:37.990 --> 00:20:40.970 leading the way for this sound. This is a new 00:20:40.970 --> 00:20:44.529 sound of country music. Why do I say that? They've 00:20:44.529 --> 00:20:47.049 toured with Breaking Benjamin. They've toured 00:20:47.049 --> 00:20:50.009 with Stained. They've toured with country artists. 00:20:50.390 --> 00:20:53.210 They've been on country music festivals. The 00:20:53.210 --> 00:20:56.369 Barefoot Music Festival that takes place in Wildwood, 00:20:56.430 --> 00:20:59.269 New Jersey. Lakeview is on the bill. And then 00:20:59.269 --> 00:21:01.650 they go off and tour with Breaking Benjamin and 00:21:01.650 --> 00:21:04.289 Stained over the summer. They are introducing 00:21:04.289 --> 00:21:07.809 their music to two completely different audiences 00:21:07.809 --> 00:21:13.039 at the same time and making ground in both. genres 00:21:13.039 --> 00:21:16.339 at once. Let's be honest, setting yourselves 00:21:16.339 --> 00:21:19.220 apart and making a name for yourself in this 00:21:19.220 --> 00:21:23.099 current music scene is hard enough to do in one 00:21:23.099 --> 00:21:26.640 genre, let alone multiple genres simultaneously. 00:21:27.299 --> 00:21:31.640 And yet Lakeview is here doing just that. Earlier 00:21:31.640 --> 00:21:34.400 this year, I had Cody Hanson of Hinder on the 00:21:34.400 --> 00:21:37.519 show to talk about the band's 2025 album, Back 00:21:37.519 --> 00:21:41.190 to Life. And we got into it about Lakeview. They 00:21:41.190 --> 00:21:45.470 are huge Lakeview fans. Lakeview are huge Hinder 00:21:45.470 --> 00:21:48.509 fans. Lakeview covered Lips of an Angel this 00:21:48.509 --> 00:21:52.109 year. Hinder was rocking out to Lakeview all 00:21:52.109 --> 00:21:55.589 year long, as Cody and I talked about. Just a 00:21:55.589 --> 00:21:57.789 few weeks back, Lakeview and Hinder did a show 00:21:57.789 --> 00:22:01.049 together and teamed up on Lips of an Angel. I 00:22:01.049 --> 00:22:04.869 am telling you, the lines are blurred. Country 00:22:04.869 --> 00:22:08.549 music is going down a path. that has so many 00:22:08.549 --> 00:22:11.450 different off -ramps that I don't know if the 00:22:11.450 --> 00:22:14.490 world is ready for it, and I friggin' love it. 00:22:14.710 --> 00:22:18.549 So with that, the first half of my 2025 country 00:22:18.549 --> 00:22:22.009 music playlist, which kicked off with Blake Shelton's 00:22:22.009 --> 00:22:25.069 Texas, followed up by Thomas Rhett featuring 00:22:25.069 --> 00:22:28.349 Teddy Swim's Something About a Woman, Hayley 00:22:28.349 --> 00:22:31.269 Witter's featuring Molly Tuttle, Prodigal Daughter, 00:22:31.589 --> 00:22:35.029 John Party's Friday Night Heartbreaker, Morgan 00:22:35.029 --> 00:22:38.009 Wade's The Party Is Over and Lakeview's Home 00:22:38.009 --> 00:22:41.450 Team. Head over to myweeklymixtape .com to hear 00:22:41.450 --> 00:22:44.809 all the songs I've discussed in this mix through 00:22:44.809 --> 00:22:49.309 the playlist embedded on the episode page. And 00:22:49.309 --> 00:22:51.029 now we're going to dive into the second half 00:22:51.029 --> 00:22:54.690 of my top 12 country songs of 2025. And this 00:22:54.690 --> 00:22:58.849 is one that, again, lines are blurred because 00:22:58.849 --> 00:23:01.269 when I hear the name Larkin Poe, I don't immediately 00:23:01.269 --> 00:23:04.750 go country. To me, they're a blues rock group, 00:23:04.829 --> 00:23:07.369 but their latest album, Bloom, which dropped 00:23:07.369 --> 00:23:11.150 at the beginning of 2025, right in January, has 00:23:11.150 --> 00:23:13.849 a little bit of that country and Americana sound 00:23:13.849 --> 00:23:18.089 baked into what Larkin Poe has done in the past. 00:23:18.250 --> 00:23:22.930 And it works so very well. Now, Larkin Poe is 00:23:22.930 --> 00:23:25.190 a group that I don't know is on every country 00:23:25.190 --> 00:23:28.789 music fan's radar, and I want them to be. So 00:23:28.789 --> 00:23:31.460 I'm including it here tonight. Because if you 00:23:31.460 --> 00:23:34.460 haven't heard Larkin Poe, you need to hear Rebecca 00:23:34.460 --> 00:23:36.900 and Megan Lavelle tear it up. That's right. They 00:23:36.900 --> 00:23:39.359 are sisters and they are frigging incredible. 00:23:39.880 --> 00:23:43.480 Go back through their whole catalog. You will 00:23:43.480 --> 00:23:47.839 not be disappointed. But in terms of 2025, I 00:23:47.839 --> 00:23:50.299 am going to go with the track Mockingbird because 00:23:50.299 --> 00:23:53.460 I feel like it's got the most country -esque 00:23:53.460 --> 00:23:57.059 sound from the album. And I feel like it would 00:23:57.059 --> 00:24:01.680 be the easiest way. for a country music purist 00:24:01.680 --> 00:24:05.279 to be introduced to their music and still be 00:24:05.279 --> 00:24:08.819 able to find path roads into wanting to listen 00:24:08.819 --> 00:24:11.660 to all of their other stuff. I feel it's the 00:24:11.660 --> 00:24:15.680 perfect gateway drug song to introduce a country 00:24:15.680 --> 00:24:19.619 fanatic to the world of Larkin Poe. I feel like 00:24:19.619 --> 00:24:22.039 Larkin Poe is one of those bands that's destined 00:24:22.039 --> 00:24:26.039 to be massive and just hasn't gotten that push 00:24:26.039 --> 00:24:28.940 over the top yet. And make no mistake about it, 00:24:28.960 --> 00:24:31.640 I'm not saying they are a small band. They are 00:24:31.640 --> 00:24:34.980 headlining blues festivals and concerts all over 00:24:34.980 --> 00:24:37.460 the country. I just don't feel like they're getting 00:24:37.460 --> 00:24:40.839 the mainstream attention that they deserve. They 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:43.660 should be at every single one of these CMA music 00:24:43.660 --> 00:24:46.599 fests in front of thousands upon thousands of 00:24:46.599 --> 00:24:49.220 people, because not only does their music stand 00:24:49.220 --> 00:24:52.130 up with everybody else on that stage. It has 00:24:52.130 --> 00:24:55.250 an authentic and unique sound that sets them 00:24:55.250 --> 00:24:59.849 apart from anybody on those CMA stages. As far 00:24:59.849 --> 00:25:01.869 as I'm concerned, they should be a household 00:25:01.869 --> 00:25:06.009 name. Their harmonies are incredible. Their talent 00:25:06.009 --> 00:25:09.190 is off the charts. Every one of their albums 00:25:09.190 --> 00:25:12.789 is consistent from start to finish. I feel like 00:25:12.789 --> 00:25:15.390 they just need that one push to get over the 00:25:15.390 --> 00:25:18.289 top to become one of the biggest things in music. 00:25:18.390 --> 00:25:21.210 Is dipping into country the thing that does that? 00:25:21.690 --> 00:25:24.190 Maybe we'll find out in 2026, but they're still 00:25:24.190 --> 00:25:27.789 out on the road touring all over the place. Be 00:25:27.789 --> 00:25:30.349 sure to check out Larkin Poe. You won't be disappointed. 00:25:30.829 --> 00:25:34.269 And Mockingbird is a killer, killer tune with 00:25:34.269 --> 00:25:36.950 some fantastic harmonies. The entire Bloom album 00:25:36.950 --> 00:25:39.990 is an experience. Along with the Lakeview album 00:25:39.990 --> 00:25:42.150 I mentioned earlier, probably one of my favorite, 00:25:42.230 --> 00:25:45.569 and I'll use quote marks, country albums of 2025. 00:25:46.109 --> 00:25:49.920 It's just that solid. But I feel like I need 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:52.119 to right a wrong because a couple of songs I've 00:25:52.119 --> 00:25:55.900 dipped into tonight go way back into 2024, almost 00:25:55.900 --> 00:25:58.380 to a cheating degree, a little more than I feel 00:25:58.380 --> 00:26:01.539 comfortable with. So I want to drop a song now 00:26:01.539 --> 00:26:07.339 that is the newest song on this playlist. And 00:26:07.339 --> 00:26:11.059 it's only come out a month ago. But it hit so 00:26:11.059 --> 00:26:16.180 hard that I felt like it deserved a spot on the 00:26:16.180 --> 00:26:19.380 2025 playlist. And I have a feeling it's going 00:26:19.380 --> 00:26:23.359 to be one that gets played a lot throughout 2026. 00:26:23.500 --> 00:26:26.799 Not just for me, but I think for a lot of people, 00:26:26.880 --> 00:26:30.539 both in the country world as well as in the rock 00:26:30.539 --> 00:26:33.619 world. Because I mentioned this band and song 00:26:33.619 --> 00:26:36.339 earlier when I was talking about Morgan Wade. 00:26:36.420 --> 00:26:39.519 But Shinedown has officially dipped their toe 00:26:39.519 --> 00:26:42.559 in the country music waters, if you will, on 00:26:42.559 --> 00:26:46.250 their 2025 single Searchlight. and it couldn't 00:26:46.250 --> 00:26:49.589 be a better introduction for the band. One of 00:26:49.589 --> 00:26:51.390 the songs from their last full -length release, 00:26:51.569 --> 00:26:54.230 Planet Zero, a track called A Symptom of Being 00:26:54.230 --> 00:26:57.829 Human, could have very easily slid into the country 00:26:57.829 --> 00:27:00.470 music world given the content and the way it 00:27:00.470 --> 00:27:03.769 plays out musically, but Searchlight really leans 00:27:03.769 --> 00:27:06.890 into it on both a musical and instrument level. 00:27:07.250 --> 00:27:09.910 Now, the song is still in the early stages of 00:27:09.910 --> 00:27:12.500 its release, so I haven't really seen... the 00:27:12.500 --> 00:27:16.259 full spectrum of fan reaction to it. I think 00:27:16.259 --> 00:27:18.660 it's going to open Shinedown's music to a whole 00:27:18.660 --> 00:27:21.980 new audience as Symptom already started down 00:27:21.980 --> 00:27:25.519 that path. Now, they have always had a little 00:27:25.519 --> 00:27:27.819 bit of a foot in that Southern rock sound. Their 00:27:27.819 --> 00:27:30.460 earlier albums had a touch of that. Obviously, 00:27:30.460 --> 00:27:32.759 their cover of Leonard Skinner's Simple Man is 00:27:32.759 --> 00:27:35.839 a staple that they play to this day. Maybe much 00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:38.480 to the band's chagrin. And I will say that because 00:27:38.480 --> 00:27:41.470 I had the... Amazing opportunity to have both 00:27:41.470 --> 00:27:44.950 Eric Bass and Barry Kirch of Shinedown on the 00:27:44.950 --> 00:27:48.269 podcast this year. And we talked all things about 00:27:48.269 --> 00:27:51.170 the evolution of the band's music from the early 00:27:51.170 --> 00:27:53.650 days through the new music they're working on 00:27:53.650 --> 00:27:56.210 now, including Searchlight, which is going to 00:27:56.210 --> 00:27:58.630 be a part of Shinedown 8, which comes out in 00:27:58.630 --> 00:28:02.029 2026. Now, I don't want to give too much away, 00:28:02.109 --> 00:28:04.309 but one of their songs that they also released 00:28:04.309 --> 00:28:07.789 this year made my Songs of 2025 episode, which 00:28:07.789 --> 00:28:10.099 if you haven't heard it, Go back to last week's 00:28:10.099 --> 00:28:13.140 episode and check that out. That covers all genres 00:28:13.140 --> 00:28:16.000 where this week is focused specifically on country 00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:19.259 and the offsets of it. And Shinedown really nailed 00:28:19.259 --> 00:28:21.339 it with this one. I feel like this one is going 00:28:21.339 --> 00:28:24.940 to be an absolute home run for the band. Now, 00:28:24.960 --> 00:28:28.180 lyrically for me personally, having lost my father 00:28:28.180 --> 00:28:31.180 this year, some of the lyrics hit really close 00:28:31.180 --> 00:28:34.640 to home. No one taught me how to let go. Been 00:28:34.640 --> 00:28:37.390 hanging on a thread by a tightrope. but you could 00:28:37.390 --> 00:28:39.950 still learn what you don't know, that's for sure. 00:28:40.430 --> 00:28:43.730 The first time I heard those lyrics, it instantly 00:28:43.730 --> 00:28:46.829 made me well up. I feel like it's my father talking 00:28:46.829 --> 00:28:49.289 to me through music because one of the last conversations 00:28:49.289 --> 00:28:52.569 that him and I had together was him telling me 00:28:52.569 --> 00:28:55.210 that I need to let all the negativity in my life 00:28:55.210 --> 00:28:58.069 go and just choose the things that bring me joy 00:28:58.069 --> 00:29:01.369 and bring me happiness. And I feel like this 00:29:01.369 --> 00:29:04.009 song really speaks to me in that sense, almost 00:29:04.009 --> 00:29:07.940 on a spiritual sense. And I don't get into much 00:29:07.940 --> 00:29:09.740 of that kind of conversation on the show, and 00:29:09.740 --> 00:29:13.440 I'm not going to. However, a song like this definitely 00:29:13.440 --> 00:29:16.259 moves the needle for me, both from a musical 00:29:16.259 --> 00:29:19.500 perspective as well as just a personal lyrical 00:29:19.500 --> 00:29:22.319 perspective. I hope to one day have Brent Smith 00:29:22.319 --> 00:29:24.720 on the show to be able to dive into his lyrics 00:29:24.720 --> 00:29:27.880 and solely his lyrics, because a lot of the stuff 00:29:27.880 --> 00:29:29.799 they talk about in their music resonates with 00:29:29.799 --> 00:29:32.119 me on a personal level. So maybe that's a goal 00:29:32.119 --> 00:29:36.589 for my weekly mixtape in 2026. However, coming 00:29:36.589 --> 00:29:39.710 out of Searchlight, I think I'm going to bring 00:29:39.710 --> 00:29:42.250 in another collaboration that also resonated 00:29:42.250 --> 00:29:45.430 with me a lot throughout the year. Again, on 00:29:45.430 --> 00:29:48.970 that musical and, dare I use the word, spiritual 00:29:48.970 --> 00:29:52.910 level. I feel like this next track flows pretty 00:29:52.910 --> 00:29:55.950 naturally out of Searchlight for both musical 00:29:55.950 --> 00:29:58.750 reasons at the song level, as well as artists 00:29:58.750 --> 00:30:00.950 who are connected to each other on the stage, 00:30:00.950 --> 00:30:03.029 either through touring or other things like that. 00:30:03.369 --> 00:30:05.690 And again, go back to a song that was released 00:30:05.690 --> 00:30:09.650 in 2024. However, this collaboration came out 00:30:09.650 --> 00:30:12.009 in February of this year. So I feel like I'm 00:30:12.009 --> 00:30:14.509 getting a little bit of a get out of jail free 00:30:14.509 --> 00:30:17.430 card, I guess you'll call it. And this is another 00:30:17.430 --> 00:30:22.309 big cross -pollinization of genres here because 00:30:22.309 --> 00:30:25.809 this artist is contemporary Christian. And I'm 00:30:25.809 --> 00:30:28.809 going to go with Brandon Lake featuring Jelly 00:30:28.809 --> 00:30:31.410 Roll. who I mentioned earlier when I was talking 00:30:31.410 --> 00:30:33.569 about the Morgan Wade and Shinedown connection 00:30:33.569 --> 00:30:36.710 from his King of Hearts album, and I'm going 00:30:36.710 --> 00:30:40.369 to go with Hard Fought Hallelujah. Besides the 00:30:40.369 --> 00:30:42.549 stranglehold this song had on the contemporary 00:30:42.549 --> 00:30:44.950 Christian charts as well as the country charts, 00:30:45.069 --> 00:30:48.549 it was also a Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hit. So 00:30:48.549 --> 00:30:51.670 this blazed all sorts of trails. This song is 00:30:51.670 --> 00:30:55.329 powerful, and it's emotional, and it definitely 00:30:55.329 --> 00:31:00.589 grabs you by the heartstrings. Person of faith, 00:31:00.789 --> 00:31:04.109 it might not resonate with you as much. But who 00:31:04.109 --> 00:31:07.210 am I to say? To me, this song, considering the 00:31:07.210 --> 00:31:10.650 fact it was a top 40 hit, obviously means it 00:31:10.650 --> 00:31:14.230 resonated with a lot of people. And look, I had 00:31:14.230 --> 00:31:16.730 to include Jelly Roll in some facet this year. 00:31:17.250 --> 00:31:20.190 Not only has the dude put out some fantastic 00:31:20.190 --> 00:31:24.690 music, he took some incredible bumps at SummerSlam 00:31:24.690 --> 00:31:29.180 this year, if you are a WWE fan. And... Not only 00:31:29.180 --> 00:31:32.960 did he take some major bumps, he took the pinfall. 00:31:33.180 --> 00:31:35.240 And if anybody's a wrestling fan, I'm not going 00:31:35.240 --> 00:31:37.240 to go too deep into my wrestling nerdom here. 00:31:37.420 --> 00:31:42.519 But for a guest musician to appear on a WWE show, 00:31:42.579 --> 00:31:45.779 usually they give them the victory. And he took 00:31:45.779 --> 00:31:47.720 the three count, which is something you don't 00:31:47.720 --> 00:31:51.779 see. So hat tip to Jelly Roll for that. He actually 00:31:51.779 --> 00:31:55.230 handled himself so well in the ring. that I would 00:31:55.230 --> 00:31:58.549 not be disappointed to see him show up again 00:31:58.549 --> 00:32:02.150 for another round. And then earlier, like I mentioned, 00:32:02.269 --> 00:32:04.529 there's that connection to Shinedown. Shinedown 00:32:04.529 --> 00:32:07.210 brought Jelly Roll out on tour with them several 00:32:07.210 --> 00:32:09.829 years ago before he really broke it big in the 00:32:09.829 --> 00:32:13.609 country scene. And now Shinedown releases a song 00:32:13.609 --> 00:32:16.349 that I think is going to be a huge staple on 00:32:16.349 --> 00:32:20.230 country radio as we feed into 2026. Coincidence? 00:32:20.289 --> 00:32:23.039 Maybe, maybe not, but... The common denominator 00:32:23.039 --> 00:32:26.359 is Jelly Roll. But I also don't want to make 00:32:26.359 --> 00:32:29.119 this all about Jelly Roll. The original is by 00:32:29.119 --> 00:32:31.759 Brandon Lake, and the original is fantastic in 00:32:31.759 --> 00:32:34.740 and of itself without the collaboration. The 00:32:34.740 --> 00:32:36.799 collaboration just gives it that little something 00:32:36.799 --> 00:32:40.019 extra that puts it over the edge, gave it that 00:32:40.019 --> 00:32:43.079 crossover appeal, made the song more mainstream 00:32:43.079 --> 00:32:46.259 because Jelly Roll is a mainstream name in 2025. 00:32:47.130 --> 00:32:50.150 And I feel like him attaching himself to Brandon's 00:32:50.150 --> 00:32:53.869 music has put a huge spotlight on Brandon's music 00:32:53.869 --> 00:32:56.849 moving forward. And I'll be very curious to see 00:32:56.849 --> 00:33:00.809 where his career goes. But as far as 2025 is 00:33:00.809 --> 00:33:04.130 concerned, it's all about hard fought. Hallelujah. 00:33:05.109 --> 00:33:07.630 But with that, it's going to be the last time 00:33:07.630 --> 00:33:10.509 I dip back into 2024. I've done that enough this 00:33:10.509 --> 00:33:13.230 year. The last three songs I'm going to go with 00:33:13.230 --> 00:33:17.930 tonight all came out in the summer of 2025. And 00:33:17.930 --> 00:33:21.089 all three have pretty much been on nonstop repeats 00:33:21.089 --> 00:33:24.430 since each of their respective releases. And 00:33:24.430 --> 00:33:26.670 I feel like these are the three that need to 00:33:26.670 --> 00:33:30.869 close out my 2025 playlist. And I can guarantee 00:33:30.869 --> 00:33:36.430 all three of them will be a huge part of my 2026 00:33:36.430 --> 00:33:40.549 country playlist as well. The first. being Ashley 00:33:40.549 --> 00:33:43.269 McBride's Rattlesnake Preacher, which was released 00:33:43.269 --> 00:33:48.750 as a single in June of 2025. This song flat out 00:33:48.750 --> 00:33:52.869 rocks. This is the type of song I can hear Blackberry 00:33:52.869 --> 00:33:55.690 Smoke pulling out in a show and gender flipping 00:33:55.690 --> 00:33:57.690 the shit out of it, and it's sounding amazing. 00:33:58.349 --> 00:34:00.869 It's a country song, make no mistake about it, 00:34:00.910 --> 00:34:04.210 but there's almost a touch of Southern rock in 00:34:04.210 --> 00:34:06.970 the underlying elements of this track that really 00:34:06.970 --> 00:34:09.579 set it apart from some of the other stuff. Ashley's 00:34:09.579 --> 00:34:12.699 done over the years. Now, Ashley McBride is no 00:34:12.699 --> 00:34:15.099 stranger to all the award shows. I've seen her 00:34:15.099 --> 00:34:18.139 on TV many a times doing her thing. She's still 00:34:18.139 --> 00:34:21.340 only playing theaters. And I have a feeling like 00:34:21.340 --> 00:34:23.860 her time is coming. She's going to take that 00:34:23.860 --> 00:34:26.559 jump to the next level because she just has that 00:34:26.559 --> 00:34:29.280 it factor. And if Rattlesnake Preacher is the 00:34:29.280 --> 00:34:31.099 first taste of what her next album is going to 00:34:31.099 --> 00:34:33.400 be, I feel like this is going to be the album 00:34:33.400 --> 00:34:36.579 that truly puts her into the top pantheon of 00:34:36.579 --> 00:34:40.900 female country artists for 2026. And I do hope 00:34:40.900 --> 00:34:43.079 that's the case because she's been consistently 00:34:43.079 --> 00:34:45.639 doing her thing for quite a while now, and she 00:34:45.639 --> 00:34:48.760 has such a commanding presence on that stage. 00:34:49.389 --> 00:34:52.289 Her voice is top -notch. Look up any live video 00:34:52.289 --> 00:34:55.289 of her. She sounds just as good on stage as she 00:34:55.289 --> 00:34:58.230 does on the album. There are no studio theatrics 00:34:58.230 --> 00:35:00.750 at play with her. She's real. She's authentic. 00:35:01.170 --> 00:35:04.949 And she just has this presence, both musically 00:35:04.949 --> 00:35:08.210 and on the stage, that's undeniable. And every 00:35:08.210 --> 00:35:10.889 one of her albums, I feel like, is just a staircase, 00:35:11.190 --> 00:35:13.489 each one consistently getting better than the 00:35:13.489 --> 00:35:15.349 last one. And there's nothing wrong with anything 00:35:15.349 --> 00:35:18.280 she's ever put out. Here's a test for you. Pick 00:35:18.280 --> 00:35:21.320 any one of her albums, go to track one, hit play, 00:35:21.500 --> 00:35:24.199 and enjoy. And yeah, I can't wait to see what 00:35:24.199 --> 00:35:26.880 2026 has in store for Ashley McBride. I think 00:35:26.880 --> 00:35:28.460 it's going to be a year to remember for her. 00:35:29.159 --> 00:35:31.280 But following that up, I'm going to go with a 00:35:31.280 --> 00:35:33.739 song that, I don't know, if you're a fan of this 00:35:33.739 --> 00:35:36.739 artist, maybe it'll piss you off. Maybe it won't. 00:35:36.739 --> 00:35:40.500 I don't know. But his 2025 album, Snipe Hunter, 00:35:40.639 --> 00:35:43.260 which was produced by Rick Rubin. was maybe a 00:35:43.260 --> 00:35:46.019 divisive listen if you were a fan of Tyler Childers' 00:35:46.099 --> 00:35:49.480 music prior to 2025. Rick Rubin is definitely 00:35:49.480 --> 00:35:52.699 one of those producers that brings out different 00:35:52.699 --> 00:35:56.039 elements of artists. And I love what he does 00:35:56.039 --> 00:35:58.219 because, I mean, look, the guy produced Tom Petty's 00:35:58.219 --> 00:36:00.900 Wildflowers, so one of my favorite albums of 00:36:00.900 --> 00:36:03.980 all time. Not to mention Beastie Boys, License 00:36:03.980 --> 00:36:06.699 to Ill, Slayer, Seasons in the Abyss, Red Hot 00:36:06.699 --> 00:36:09.730 Chili Peppers, Blood Sugar, Sex Magic. I mean, 00:36:09.750 --> 00:36:12.349 I can just a list goes on and on and on, even 00:36:12.349 --> 00:36:14.389 when you factor in some of his newer stuff, which 00:36:14.389 --> 00:36:16.429 might be controversial to fans of those bands 00:36:16.429 --> 00:36:19.269 like Metallica's Death Magnetic and Black Sabbath's 00:36:19.269 --> 00:36:22.670 13. But over the years, he's had a lot more hits 00:36:22.670 --> 00:36:25.050 than misses as far as I'm concerned. So I love 00:36:25.050 --> 00:36:27.550 what Rick Rubin brings to the table here. And 00:36:27.550 --> 00:36:29.469 from that album, I'm going to go with the song 00:36:29.469 --> 00:36:32.789 that, in my humble opinion, is one of the greatest 00:36:32.789 --> 00:36:36.260 songs to come out this year in any genre. Sadly, 00:36:36.340 --> 00:36:38.320 it didn't make my list last week because I just 00:36:38.320 --> 00:36:40.579 couldn't find a way to squeeze it in from a musical 00:36:40.579 --> 00:36:43.860 slash playlisting standpoint. However, I do need 00:36:43.860 --> 00:36:46.679 to make a note here tonight on this country episode 00:36:46.679 --> 00:36:49.719 that Bite and List is one of the best songs to 00:36:49.719 --> 00:36:52.960 come out in 2025, hands down, hard stop, period. 00:36:53.440 --> 00:36:57.980 The song is fun, infectious. It's got that touch 00:36:57.980 --> 00:37:00.539 of bluegrass, a little bit of an attitude to 00:37:00.539 --> 00:37:03.739 it. There's a stank to the lyrics. I'm not a 00:37:03.739 --> 00:37:06.199 big TikTok person, but I could see why a lot 00:37:06.199 --> 00:37:08.900 of people were pulling this song for TikTok videos 00:37:08.900 --> 00:37:11.679 throughout the year. This song just has that 00:37:11.679 --> 00:37:15.579 it factor that is completely and utterly undeniable. 00:37:16.159 --> 00:37:18.340 I mean, and some might not agree with me given 00:37:18.340 --> 00:37:20.340 some of his earlier work. I think the entire 00:37:20.340 --> 00:37:23.099 album is incredible, but I'll leave it up to 00:37:23.099 --> 00:37:25.420 you to decide. However, if you haven't heard 00:37:25.420 --> 00:37:27.719 Bite and List yet, you need to stop and remedy 00:37:27.719 --> 00:37:29.860 that right away because this song is so much 00:37:29.860 --> 00:37:32.059 frigging fun. You're going to play it at least 00:37:32.059 --> 00:37:34.739 five or ten times on repeat before you move on 00:37:34.739 --> 00:37:37.539 to the next tune. Now, earlier in the episode, 00:37:37.559 --> 00:37:39.460 I talked about how some of the modern country 00:37:39.460 --> 00:37:43.699 sounds throwback and hat tip to the 90s. And 00:37:43.699 --> 00:37:46.280 I think no other song encapsulates that more 00:37:46.280 --> 00:37:48.219 than the song I'm going to close out with tonight 00:37:48.219 --> 00:37:52.320 and is my favorite country song of 2025. Very, 00:37:52.519 --> 00:37:55.519 very slightly edging out by list, even though 00:37:55.519 --> 00:37:57.800 these songs are back to back on my playlist. 00:37:57.840 --> 00:38:00.539 So they probably at the end of the day got just 00:38:00.539 --> 00:38:03.159 as much love. However, this was the one that 00:38:03.159 --> 00:38:05.320 came on first in the playlist because it was 00:38:05.320 --> 00:38:07.880 my go -to. And once again, it's a collaboration 00:38:07.880 --> 00:38:12.440 and it's a mashup and it's a song within a song. 00:38:12.969 --> 00:38:17.530 So it touches on modern country and dips into 00:38:17.530 --> 00:38:21.949 nostalgia hardcore. And I'm perfectly okay with 00:38:21.949 --> 00:38:25.170 that. Because back in the 90s, I would have discussions 00:38:25.170 --> 00:38:28.449 with my college buddies about if Hootie and the 00:38:28.449 --> 00:38:31.510 Blowfish were actually country or country rock 00:38:31.510 --> 00:38:34.869 or rock where they stood in the musical spectrum. 00:38:34.889 --> 00:38:38.269 Because back in the 90s, some Hootie and the 00:38:38.269 --> 00:38:40.789 Blowfish songs were played on country radio. 00:38:41.519 --> 00:38:45.760 So here we are in 2025 and Scotty McCreary puts 00:38:45.760 --> 00:38:49.659 out the song Bottle Rockets featuring Hootie 00:38:49.659 --> 00:38:52.860 and the Blowfish and incorporating, literally 00:38:52.860 --> 00:38:56.980 weaving in elements of Hootie's Hold My Hand 00:38:56.980 --> 00:39:00.639 into the single. But it's not done in a way that 00:39:00.639 --> 00:39:03.960 borrows the song as an interpolation. They are 00:39:03.960 --> 00:39:08.260 actually calling out the song as Hold My Hand 00:39:08.260 --> 00:39:12.599 in the lyrics. Scotty is saying, I picked up 00:39:12.599 --> 00:39:16.760 my guitar and sang, boom. And the two work so 00:39:16.760 --> 00:39:20.679 well together that it is literally a song within 00:39:20.679 --> 00:39:24.860 a song. And they weave in and out between Scotty's 00:39:24.860 --> 00:39:28.639 tune and Hold My Hand, as well as both songs 00:39:28.639 --> 00:39:33.300 happening simultaneously. And the vocals of Hootie 00:39:33.300 --> 00:39:39.519 and the Blowfish in 2025 are just as lush and... 00:39:39.960 --> 00:39:44.579 full as they were in 1995. And we're at the point 00:39:44.579 --> 00:39:48.619 in 2025 where a song from 1995 is hitting that 00:39:48.619 --> 00:39:51.039 peak nostalgia moment. I don't know what the 00:39:51.039 --> 00:39:54.639 actual time frame is for a song to hit peak nostalgia. 00:39:55.079 --> 00:39:58.179 However, in 2025, I can tell you that songs from 00:39:58.179 --> 00:40:01.659 1995 are hitting it for me personally. So I'm 00:40:01.659 --> 00:40:04.280 going to go with 30 years. However, considering 00:40:04.280 --> 00:40:07.420 how many anniversary releases they put out and 00:40:07.420 --> 00:40:11.199 re -releases, Five years, 10 years, 20 years. 00:40:11.360 --> 00:40:13.960 I mean, unfortunately, this year there's been 00:40:13.960 --> 00:40:17.280 some five months, six months, seven month deluxe 00:40:17.280 --> 00:40:20.440 editions. But that being said, your mileage may 00:40:20.440 --> 00:40:23.719 vary. This is one of those songs that every time 00:40:23.719 --> 00:40:25.679 we went to the beach with my family this year, 00:40:25.800 --> 00:40:28.960 this song got played and it got played over and 00:40:28.960 --> 00:40:32.829 over again. And it never got old for me. Yes, 00:40:32.869 --> 00:40:35.610 it's leaning into that peak nostalgia hardcore 00:40:35.610 --> 00:40:39.070 for people that are my age. So bravo for Scotty 00:40:39.070 --> 00:40:41.130 for leaning into that and doing it the right 00:40:41.130 --> 00:40:43.889 way by bringing the original artist into the 00:40:43.889 --> 00:40:46.610 fold and not just sampling the original song. 00:40:46.710 --> 00:40:49.030 I think that might have done a disservice. So 00:40:49.030 --> 00:40:50.989 actually having Hootie and the Blowfish come 00:40:50.989 --> 00:40:54.210 and re -record parts for this song, I feel makes 00:40:54.210 --> 00:40:57.769 it feel fresh and rejuvenated and new. And I 00:40:57.769 --> 00:41:00.369 can say with 100 % certainty, it's going to be 00:41:00.369 --> 00:41:02.880 something that I enjoy. thoroughly throughout 00:41:02.880 --> 00:41:05.940 2026 as well, because there's just something 00:41:05.940 --> 00:41:09.739 about it that works so well as an original, as 00:41:09.739 --> 00:41:13.280 well as the magic that the mashup brings to the 00:41:13.280 --> 00:41:16.739 table. However, Hold My Hand is a classic Hootie 00:41:16.739 --> 00:41:19.199 and the Blowfish song, but I also bet there's 00:41:19.199 --> 00:41:21.400 a younger audience, maybe some of Scotty's fans 00:41:21.400 --> 00:41:23.880 that might be, I don't know, hearing Hootie and 00:41:23.880 --> 00:41:26.500 the Blowfish for the first time and going back 00:41:26.500 --> 00:41:30.320 to Crack View Mirror. In 2025 is not a bad listen. 00:41:30.400 --> 00:41:32.460 If you haven't done it in a while, I highly suggest 00:41:32.460 --> 00:41:34.460 you go back and give that album a listen because 00:41:34.460 --> 00:41:38.500 it's definitely a good one. So closing out this 00:41:38.500 --> 00:41:41.639 second half of my Country Songs of 2025 playlist 00:41:41.639 --> 00:41:46.119 is Larkin Poe's Mockingbird, followed up by Shinedown's 00:41:46.119 --> 00:41:48.780 Searchlight, their first foray into country music, 00:41:49.139 --> 00:41:51.940 Brandon Lake featuring Jelly Roll's hard -fought 00:41:51.940 --> 00:41:55.500 Hallelujah, Ashley McBride's Rattlesnake Preacher, 00:41:56.010 --> 00:41:59.469 Tyler Childers' Bite and List, and Scotty McCreary 00:41:59.469 --> 00:42:02.630 featuring Hootie and the Blowfish, Bottle Rockets. 00:42:02.809 --> 00:42:05.829 Head over to MyWeeklyMixtape .com to hear all 00:42:05.829 --> 00:42:08.610 the songs I've discussed in this mix through 00:42:08.610 --> 00:42:12.989 the playlist embedded on the episode page. Now, 00:42:12.989 --> 00:42:15.530 is there a country song that I didn't talk about 00:42:15.530 --> 00:42:18.550 tonight that you feel should be included in the 00:42:18.550 --> 00:42:22.050 Country Songs of 2025 discussion? I want to hear 00:42:22.050 --> 00:42:26.150 from you. MyWeeklyMixtape at gmail .com. You 00:42:26.150 --> 00:42:28.349 can find me on all the social media haunts at 00:42:28.349 --> 00:42:31.369 myweeklymixtape. You can also use the contact 00:42:31.369 --> 00:42:35.150 page at myweeklymixtape .com or you can come 00:42:35.150 --> 00:42:38.949 join the fellow mixtapers at patreon .com forward 00:42:38.949 --> 00:42:42.449 slash myweeklymixtape. It's free to join. And 00:42:42.449 --> 00:42:44.809 I also have several tiers available if you'd 00:42:44.809 --> 00:42:46.849 like to support the show a little extra, but 00:42:46.849 --> 00:42:49.469 none of that is required. Once again, that's 00:42:49.469 --> 00:42:53.619 patreon .com forward slash myweeklymixtape. If 00:42:53.619 --> 00:42:57.280 you listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or YouTube, 00:42:57.440 --> 00:43:00.420 please give the show a thumbs up, hit the subscribe 00:43:00.420 --> 00:43:03.659 button, leave a five -star review, do all the 00:43:03.659 --> 00:43:06.820 things. That helps other people find the show 00:43:06.820 --> 00:43:09.940 in order to keep this conversation going well 00:43:09.940 --> 00:43:13.940 into 2026. Once again, my name is Brian Colburn. 00:43:14.099 --> 00:43:17.079 This is my weekly mixtape, and I hope you enjoy 00:43:17.079 --> 00:43:19.739 listening to the 12 songs I feel helped define 00:43:19.739 --> 00:43:23.960 country music in 2025. We'll see you next week.