Kacey Musgraves, ERNEST & More

This week, Kacey Musgraves delivers a gorgeous folk ballad from her album. deepest well, while ERNEST teams up with the ubiquitous Jelly Roll for a new song, and Cyndi Thomson returns with “The Georgia in Me.” See all this and more Billboard selections for the best news of the week country below.

Kacey Musgraves, “The Architect”

A sublime song from their new album. deepest well, “The Architect” marks one of the highlights of the project. Gently hypnotic and well-written, this song questions whether life’s zeniths, nadirs and twists along the way are orchestrated or happen at random. “I don’t understand, are there plans or blueprints?
Can I speak to the architect? She sings. Written by Musgraves with longtime collaborators Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne, this deeply felt song marks another musical triumph.

ERNEST feat. Jelly Roll, “I went to college/I went to jail”

Country music has a tradition of artists referencing their own less brilliant moments that become central parts of their legend and legacy, from Haggard’s “Mama Tried” to George Jones’ “No Show Jones.” ERNEST and Jelly Roll are Nashville natives and in this collaboration, they detail their unconventional journeys to stardom, from ERNEST dropping out after a year of college and Jelly Roll’s evolution from jail cell to award-winning artist CMA. Along the way, they both also paid their music industry dues.

“Who won/ Hell, it’s hard to tell,” they sing triumphantly, bolstered by a flourish of steel guitars, violin and piano. Jelly even shouts out the location of the criminal justice center that is central to much of his story. ERNEST wrote the song with Chandler Paul Walters, Luke Bryan and Rivers Rutherford, and “I Went to College/ I Went to Jail” will be found on ERNEST’s upcoming album out April 12. Nashville, Tennessee.

Cyndi Thomson, “The Georgia in Me”

In the two decades since the release of their debut album. My world, scoring Country Airplay success with “What I Really Meant to Say” and then opting to leave her role as a recording artist behind, this Georgia native has released music sporadically. Her dark, soft-edged vocal drawl remains as potent as a Southern magnolia, and it’s front and center on her first new music since 2016, with this song she wrote with Paul Sikes (“Wildflowers and Wild Horses,” “Make “I Want To”). She recalls the teenage summers she spent on red dirt roads, filled with fun Saturday nights and glorious Sunday mornings, and the song also nods to another Georgia-born country singer, Trisha Yearwood. This sweet-but-sweet sounding track is a solid addition to Thomson’s all-too-brief musical canon.

Matt Koziol, “I Was”

The time-worn rasp in Koziol’s voice gives this blues-country song a real feel, as he recalls his earlier days flying too fast down an unhealthy road and all the times he was “on top of the list.” of prayer” and the “reason for the last call”. The discreet piano and percussion bring the warmth of oak wood to the crackling fire of Koziol’s voice. This song, which Koziol wrote with Kenton Bryant, is from Koziol’s upcoming album out April 5. The last of the old dogswho continues his 2022 project Wild Horse and the luxury version of 2023 Wild Horse (Aged in barrels).

Ben Rector and Hailey Whitters, “Color Up My World”

This quirky, comforting love song manages to nod to Pat Green, Bob Ross and turquoise nudist outfits in a span of just over two minutes. On this banjo-flecked track, Rector’s voice balances both wit and charisma, while Whitters’ smooth tone is the sweetener.

Madison Hughes, “I Hate That You Love Me”

The voice Alumnus Hughes broke through last year with a cover of Morgan Wallen’s “I Deserve a Drink.” His latest album delves deeper into the realm of blues than pure country, becoming a commanding testament to both Hughes’ deft guitar skills and his purring voice. His voice is world-weary, his guitar tones are filled with angst, as he offers a relatable story about his infatuation precipitated by a charismatic heartthrob. The immensely talented Hughes is on a star-making trajectory.

Riley Green, “Far From Here”

Before Keith Urban offered a nod to three “Johns” on “John Cougar, John Deere and John 3:16,” singer-songwriter Josh Thompson paid tribute to his own trio of icons named John (Johnny Cash, John Wayne and John Deere ). on his top 20 Hot Country Songs of 2010. Now, Riley Green offers his own interpretation of Thompson’s hit. “We don’t take a dime if we ain’t earned it/When it comes to weight, brother, we do our thing,” Riley sings. His interpretation is more subdued, with a slightly more melancholic production, of this 15-year-old song about defending rural life, but he presents this song with a lot of heart.