Holler's Songs of the Year 2023

Religiously - Bailey Zimmerman

The title-track from his debut album, ‘Religiously’ showcases why Bailey Zimmerman has earned his ‘next-big-thing’ status.

Zimmerman flexes his lyrical muscles in the hook with a clever, spiritually-minded turn-of-phrase – “Praying hard just to stop the hurt / 'Cause I don't have the only woman who was there for me, religiously” – as he wraps his signature vibrato around the melody, injecting an additional sense of fragility to this forlorn anthem.

- Maxim Mower

No. 7 Road - The Castellows

The debut single from the viral trio set an exciting marker for what's to come.

Weaving their highly melodic pop sensibilities into homegrown neo-traditional sounds, Ellie, Powell and Lily paint a vivid picture of heaven and home in the Georgia pines.

- Ross Jones

Walmart - Sam Hunt

Sam Hunt bumps into his ex-girlfriend’s mum in a grocery aisle carrying the daughter his ex-girlfriend had, and as he stands there holding a bag of potato chips, the existential emptiness of his own bachelor life is thrown into painful juxtaposition with the adult life his ex-girlfriend is obviously leading without him.

The poet laureate of country started off the year with this poignant break up ballad, before releasing a string of near perfect pop country singles throughout 2023. A bag of potato chips has never held so much pain.

- Jof Owen

See You in Church - Tanner Adell

“I’m like Grace Kelly in a cowboy hat,” Tanner Adell announced in her sultry country twang on ‘See You in Church’. A breezy dancehall beat bobbed beneath her throughout the song, which sounded like Miranda Lambert working with Chaka Demus & Pliers.

Mixing a love for '90s and early 2000s country with trappy hip-hop beats, Adell served up something truly unique on her debut long player, Buckle Bunny.

- JO

Mama He's Crazy - Lainey Wilson, Dolly Parton

One of the standout tracks from 2023's A Tribute To The Judds, the new version of 'Mama He's Crazy' sees a country legend, Dolly Parton, and a legend-in-the-making, Lainey Wilson, join forces to produce one of the best collaborations of the year.

When either of these two icons are involved, magic happens. Now we know that when they combine their talents, stars collide.

- Lydia Farthing

Mellow War - Taylor McCall

An ode to his late grandpa who fought in Vietnam, Taylor McCall digs deep into the learnings and feelings of hope that can still find a way through such terror in ‘Mellow War’.

From the slow instrumental lead to McCall’s husky baritone voice, we’ve been swaying and humming along to this track, keeping us warm with comfort on these dark, long winter nights.

- Gemma Donahoe

Everything I Love - Morgan Wallen

Although ‘Everything I Love’ stood in the shadow of the sultry, record-shattering ‘Last Night’ upon its release, this unabashedly twangy and retro toe-tapper has since emerged as one of the hidden gems on Morgan Wallen’s One Thing At A Time.

‘Everything I Love’ finds him coasting breezily along a lively, steel-drenched interpolation of The Allman Brothers Band’s ‘Midnight Rider’, with country music’s biggest star again flexing the eclectic sonic palette he draws from.

- MM

Coal - Dylan Gossett

A storyteller beyond his years, Texan singer-songwriter Dylan Gossett introduced himself with immediacy with the release of his second single, 'Coal'.

Dog-tired but still yearning for a better life, Gossett converses with God and the devil as demons surround him, despairing at how life can keep testing him this way.

- RJ

Glory Days - Chapel Hart

The lead single and title track of Chapel Hart's 2023 album, 'Glory Days' boasts the honeyed harmonies, powerhouse vocals, wide-eyed energy and Southern sass the trio are adored for.

“This single is so exciting for us because we are currently living in our ‘Glory Days!’”, Chapel Hart told Holler back in January. “It’s an instant jump in the car and go for a ride anthem!”

- Ciara Bains

Penthouse - Kelsea Ballerini

‘Penthouse’ served as the keystone to Kelsea Ballerini’s momentous post-divorce opus, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat.

As well as having a sinuous hook and a sleek, R&B-driven instrumental, the true beauty of the track is captured in the titular metaphor. The sparse composition and Ballerini's vulnerable lyricism transport the listener to the soulless, clear-cut countertops and inhospitable ambience of their marital home, which so evocatively symbolises a love gone cold.

- MM

68 - Nolan Taylor

A candid and harrowing depiction of familial relationships, '68' was a stark example of Nolan Taylor's deeply vulnerable songwriting.

Like a lightning storm heard around the world, Taylor's voice brews from a gentle temper to a uncompromising growl, channelling years of hurt and trauma into one of the most moving songs you'll hear all year.

- RJ

Pickup Man - Hixtape, Joe Diffie, Post Malone

When Post Malone first started teasing potential new country collabs, nothing could prepare us for this. Produced by HIXTAPE, 'Pickup Man' is an indulgent, buzzy rendition of Joe Diffie’s original country bop, marking Posty’s first country airplay.

After a successful performance of the song at the CMAs, alongside Morgan Wallen and HARDY, this is just the beginning of Posty’s country career.

- GD

West of Tulsa - Wyatt Flores

If there's an artist who seemingly came out of nowhere this year and became a household name, it's Wyatt Flores.

Included on his Life Lessons EP, 'West of Tulsa' sees the alt-country prodigy at his very best as he wrestles with the weight of following your dreams while also tackling life's obstacles. With his heartfelt delivery and masterful lyricism, Flores is on the fast track to stardom.

- LF

I'm In Love - Hailey Whitters

‘I’m In Love’ is the kind of upbeat bop that will make you feel just as good doing the dishes on a Monday as it does getting ready with the girls on the weekend.

Hailey Whitters explores the first feelings of love, stacking them against everyday things, which shine brighter through lust-coloured glasses. A jingling mandolin and steel pedal propel the twinkly tune into a charming love song for the 21st century.

- GD

Giddy Up! - Shania Twain

A world tour and a new album made sure Shania Twain's name was on everyone's minds this year!

Nothing made a hard day in Holler HQ better than whacking this on the hi-fi and slapping our thighs while riding imaginary horses around our desks. Sometimes a song just needs to make you happy, this one does.

- Baylen Leonard

Light On in the Kitchen - Ashley McBryde

With 'Light On In The Kitchen', Ashley McBryde gave the country music community a warm and much needed hug.

Touching on body weight, complexion, romance, race and inequality, while also peppering in some lighthearted moments, McBryde explained to Holler that it was so special to her that she feared it wasn't going to make it onto her 2023 record, The Devil I Know, at all.

"You get these songs that you just treat so precious," she shared. "I knew ['Light On In The Kitchen'] was going to be the song that we sit down, listen back to everything and go 'That one doesn't belong.' Not only did it stay on the record, but it became the lead single, which is the best life that a song can hope for."

Packed with wisdom that she's inherited over the years, this lyrically-driven, contemplative ballad showcases true country excellence in three-and-a-half minutes.

- LF

He Says Y'all - Lola Kirke

Lola Kirke has always been country leaning, but in 2023 she fully embraced it with a pair of singles taken from her forthcoming Country Curious EP. ‘He Says Y’all’ is what happens when an irreverent New Yorker takes the carefree party ethos of bro-country and recontextualises it as a tongue-in-cheek feminist country classic.

The music video, shot on a Manhattan rooftop, starred Kirke and two backup dancers doing a low budget dance routine in front of the Empire State Building, and it even came with a brief line-dancing tutorial beforehand, too.

- JO

Girl in the Mirror - Megan Moroney

'Girl in the Mirror' is one of the most poignant and strikingly unreserved moments from one of the albums of the year.

Struggling to recognise the person she's become in a relationship, Moroney's frank, observational storytelling succinctly cements the idea that you should never love someone more than you do yourself.

- RJ

Cab in a Solo - Scotty McCreery

Despite revolving around tongue-in-cheek tastelessness, ‘Cab in a Solo’ is a plush, luxurious triple-threat.

An irresistible earworm of a hook, delightfully witty wordplay and Scotty McCreery’s charismatic baritone combine to prove why the Opry member remains one of the genre’s most dependable figures.

McCreery finds himself in the same shoes as Rhett Akins on ‘That Ain’t My Truck’ as his grand romantic gesture backfires, leaving our protagonist to drown his sorrows in an expensive Silver Oak 1998.

- MM

Dial Drunk - Noah Kahan

Noah Kahan's rise to stardom hit stratospheric heights in 2023. 'Dial Drunk' was one of the most infectious tunes of the year... even before it got a Post Malone revamp!

Becoming his first song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, ‘Dial Drunk’ sees Kahan's raw, emotive vocals skirting across an energizing, banjo-led instrumental, as he laments a failed relationship in his heartbroken, drunken stupor.

Kahan closed out his milestone year by taking 'Dial Drunk' to the coveted Saturday Night Live stage, marking a storybook ending for 2023.

- LF

If Only You Played Football As Well As You Play Girls - Maggie Antone

After we fell hard for her Interpretations album of country covers, Maggie Antone kicked off the year as one of our 23 Artists for 2023, but then she made us wait until June before dropping her first original. Luckily it was well worth waiting for!

'If Only You Played Football...' is a gently strummed, eye-rolling, no-fucks-given riposte to a small-town fuck boi that was equal parts Morgan Wade and Rizzo from Grease.

If Taylor Swift had spent her school years smoking pot under the bleachers and cutting class, she might sound something like Maggie Antone.

- JO

Save Me - Jelly Roll ft. Lainey Wilson

During one of the CMA Fest nights at Nissan Stadium back in the summer, out of nowhere all the lights turned off and the crowd hushed – no one was sure what was going on. That was until four huge beams of light shot up from the centre ground into the Nashville skies, and there appeared Jelly Roll, like a holy force to be reckoned with. That hush quickly became a choral roar when he started to perform.

A No. 1 song from arguably two of the most successful country artists of 2023, Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson's 'Save Me' punctuates an important moment in the genre's evolution, captured so emotively at his CMA debut.

- CB

I Remember Everything - Zach Bryan & Kacey Musgraves

'I Remember Everything' marks the highly anticipated rebirth of Kacey Musgrave's country career and adds another gong to Zach Bryan's enviable collaboration bank.

Add a musically satiating song, with Zach's gruff smoker's drawl gently joined by Kacey's softly sung verses, and you've got the perfect recipe to spark a worldwide obsession.

- GD

Shirley Temple - Lauren Watkins

A wistful and clever twist through a smoky honky tonk, Lauren Watkins' 'Shirley Temple' is the witty little sister to Hailey Whitters' 'Everything She Ain't'.

Brazen and unlucky in love but unwavering in who she is, Watkins' rues the fact that the person she's fallen for can't see she's everything he truly wants. It makes for a precocious and captivating song that we've had on repeat.

- RJ

In Your Love - Tyler Childers

Without a doubt the best song of the year. Could there be any other?! A unanimous decision with zero debate.

'In Your Love' had us crying when we first heard it and we’re still welling up now. A song that is as inclusive as it is specific, heartbreaking and heart-mending all at once. Timeless.

- BL