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Friday feels like it's come around a little bit quicker than usual after the long Labor Day weekend, but that's fine by us when we've got all these fantastic new country and Americana songs to listen to.
There’s nothing we like more than seeing all our favourite country stars playing nicely together, and it seems like they’ve all been secretly hanging out with each other lately because this week’s playlist is packed with juicy country duets.
We can’t get enough of Riley Green and Ella Langley’s already classic ‘you look like you love me,’ so imagine our delight when we found out the pair had partnered up again for the title track of Green’s forthcoming Don’t Mind If I Do album, announced last week for 18th October.
“I wrote this song based off the line ‘I’m one memory away from falling all the way apart,’ trying to capture that moment when you think you’re almost over someone, but one thought can pull you back into how much you miss that relationship,” explains Riley Green. “It quickly evolved into a duet, and I didn’t really have Ella in mind for this song, but I had her originally cut vocals on it for a demo, and she killed it in the studio. I couldn’t imagine having someone else on the song after hearing her sing it.”
Riley Green and Ella Langley are this week’s Best New Country cover stars.
It’s not the only dream pairing on our playlist this week. George Strait duets with Chris Stapleton on ‘Honky Tonk Hall Of Fame’ on his new album. The follow-up to Honky Tonk Time Machine, Strait’s 27th No. 1 Billboard Country album, Cowboys And Dreamers is finally out in the world today.
“I’m dedicating this record to my longtime manager and friend Erv Woolsey and my longtime fiddle player and friend Gene Elders (a player on four of these tracks), who we lost on the same day, March 20, 2024, as well as my longtime friend and road manager Tom Foote, who we lost on April 29, 2024,” Strait say. “I will never forget all of the good times we had together. May they rest in peace with our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Oak Ridge boys are having their own spiritual reflection on the first track from their forthcoming new Dave Cobb produced album, Mama’s Boys, due out in October, teaming up with Wille Nelson for the duet ‘I Thought About You Lord.’
Nelson wrote the song and originally included it on his 1996 album Spirit. He later recorded it on the 2021 album The Willie Nelson Family
“When David Cobb played, ‘I Thought About You, Lord’, I felt I was listening to a masterpiece,” shares Duane Allen. “I thought Willie has recorded with just about everyone but us. So, I called Buddy Cannon, who had recently been producing Willie, to see if Willie would sing his song with us. He replied that he would be honored to sing with the Oaks. When Willie’s vocals were finished, the masterpiece was completed!”
If all that wasn’t exciting enough, Post Malone is back at it again too!
Hot off the back of his F1-Trillion album, he’s collabing again with another country legend. ‘I Don’t Know How To Say Goodbye (Bang Bang Boom Boom)’ is the lead single from Dwight Yoakam’s upcoming album Brighter Days, due out on 15th November. Yoakam wrote the song specifically for the collaboration with Posty who is a self-proclaimed superfan!
It's not just the oldies hanging out together either. Two of our recent 10 Artists You Need To Know, WaylonWyatt and Bayker Blankenship have teamed up on their new song, ‘Jailbreak,’ and Jessie Murph and Bailey Zimmerman duet on ‘Someone In This Room’ from Murph’s sophomore album That Ain’t No Man That’s The Devil.
Watch the video for Waylon Wyatt and Bayker Blankenship’s ‘Jailbreak’ below.
TheDeslondes return with Roll It Out via New West Records. The 13-song set was produced by Andrija Tokic & The Deslondes and was recorded at the Bombshelter in East Nashville and follows the critically acclaimed Ways & Means.
After more than 15 years together, four albums, and countless live shows, the five members have found new inspiration in the ties that bind them together as friends and collaborators, as something close to kin. That sense of comfort and commitment animates Roll It Out, lending it a quiet poignancy as they reflect on what it means to devote yourself to other people - whether it’s family, friends, audiences, or other guys in the tour van with you.
“This band feels like the old family farm,” says Sam Doores. “It’s a place where we can meet for the Fourth of July, bring our families, grill some burgers, and make some music together. It’s always going to be there, and we know it’s going to work and feel good.”
All the songs on the album were written by The Deslondes with the exception of ‘Drifter’s Wife’ by J.J. Cale, and we’ve got the Riley Downing cut ‘Grand Junction’ on our playlist today.
“It reminds me of back when we were starting out, before we were even the Deslondes - back when we were the Tumbleweeds,” the band’s John James Tourville, one of their five songwriters and multi-instrumentalists, says. “It’s like we’re moving forward to get to where we were.”
Jackson Dean releases his sophomore album, On the Back Of My Dreams. Working with his bandmates, some of Nashville’s finest musicians and producer Luke Dick to tackle concepts of freedom, solace, pain, youth, mortality and the things that haunt and creep into our subconscious, his new 13-track project is a thing of wonder indeed.
“A lot of love and life was put into these 13 songs,” says Dean. “We’ve been working on this album for several years now and the thought of people turning it up and getting lost in the journey of it all is really doing something to this thing beating in my chest. I hope people find something in it. Joy, healing, connection, thought, memories or even just a good groove.”
Willow Avalon is back with another taste of her eagerly awaited debut album due out later this year. Her latest single, ‘Homewrecker,’ follows the arrival of recent viral hits such as ‘Yodelayheewho (feat. Maggie Antone)’ and ‘Tequila or Whiskey.’
Graham Barham is going out of his mind, stumbling drunkenly around all the bars in town asking if anyone’s seen his South Beach bodied baby on ‘M.I.A.’ and Tanner Adell is reminiscing more fondly about her early days in Music City.
"When I moved to Nashville, I had about $400 in my pocket that had come mostly from selling my most prized possession, my piano,” said Adell. “I gave up everything that I knew to move to a city where I knew no one, knew nothing, with literally just a dream and hope that one day, I would touch the stars. That's what this song represents, my drive to keep going while enjoying every minute of the ride. Even if I did spend many days surviving off White Castle sliders.”
Jon Pardi and Luke Bryan both release new singles, while 14-year-old country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Maddox Batson puts out his latest underage anthem ‘X's.’
Maddox Batson doesn’t need to worry about this yet, but when the time comes MaRynn Taylor has written an uplifting anthem for 20-somethings and beyond for him, with the reassuring message that they don’t have to have everything figured out just yet.
"I love the show Friends. Being in my early 20s, I relate a lot of my own life to a Friends episode," Taylor says on the meaning behind her new single, ‘Season 2 of Friends’. "I think this idea is relatable for many people my age. We're still figuring life out, and that's ok. It's a reminder that we have time and don't need to have it all together right now. I'm going to trust that everything will work out."
Danielle Bradbery knows what it’s like to be a teenage country star; she broke through on The Voice when she was 16 years old. Now though, she enters a new chapter with the launch of her newest album Danielle, her first album in over six years and first ever independent record.
“I’ve learned a lot the last several years, and with Danielle I am truly representing the woman I’ve become,” says Bradbery. “During the recording process, it was important to not only share my story, but also my love for the ranging styles of music that raised me and have continued to inspire me my whole life. This album takes listeners on a journey that is at times heartbreaking and angry, but at its core embodies the creative freedom that anchors the entire work. I’m so proud of this album - my first in almost seven years. I hope it makes you laugh and cry and if you happen to see a piece of yourself somewhere in this; I hope you feel seen and empowered.”
Fancy Hagood has announced his sophomore album American Spirit for 25th October with a country song about jumping headfirst into a romance with someone you know isn’t good for you and Corey Kent releases his new 10-track project, Black Bandana.
"There are a few virtues that I live my life by,” Kent explains about the album title “They have guided me in the toughest and darkest of times. One being Unwavering Hope… believing if the odds are one in a million, you’ll be the one. Another being relentless perseverance… when everyone else quits, you stay the course. This album embodies those virtues. We all have our battles to fight. Our people to love and protect. It ain’t always easy. When the going gets tough and you feel like waving the white flag, I hope this record inspires you to raise a black bandana instead."
Jamgrass trailblazers Yonder Mountain String Band have confirmed the release of their 11th studio album, Nowhere Next, due out on 8th November with their new single ‘Here I Go.’
Tyler Halverson releases the cheeky honky tonk anthem, ‘Beating Around the Bar,’ and Ben Chapman drops the Anderson East produced 'Downbeat' from his new album coming later in December.
“‘Downbeat’ is a testament to music making everything alright," says Chapman. "It could be a fight, an upset ex, heartbreak, or just about anything else that can happen under those neon lights. But when that first downbeat drops everything suddenly becomes okay.”
All that and more is in our Best New Country playlist today, including new ones from Jenna Paulette, Hannah Ellis, JD Clayton, Abby Anderson, Bob Sumner, Old Dominion and Zach John King.
Check out this week's new country and americana song releases and listen to the full playlist below:
Riley Green
George Strait and Chris Stapleton
Jackson Dean
The Deslondes
Willow Avalon
Dwight Yoakam and Post Malone
Waylon Wyatt and Bayker Blankenship
Jessie Murph
Tanner Adell
Graham Barham
Maddox Batson
Jon Pardi
Luke Bryan
Corey Kent
Danielle Bradbery
Fancy Hagood
Jenna Paulette
Zach John King
MaRynn Taylor
Ben Chapman
Yonder Mountain String Band
The Oak Ridge Boys and Willie Nelson
Tyler Halverson
Hannah Ellis
JD Clayton
Bob Sumner
Abby Anderson
Old Dominion
Chancey Williams
Matthew West
Cameron Whitcomb
Julia Cole
Meghan Patrick
Joe Nichols
John Morgan
CHASE WRIGHT
Neon Union
Canaan Cox
Ollie Joseph
Cory Asbury
Brandon Davis
Moose Miller
Anslee Davidson
Connor Hicks
Crys Matthews
Shovels & Rope
Madelyn Rose
Jeremie Albino
Lauren Freebird
Dusty Leigh and Bubba Sparxxx
Be sure to subscribe to Best New Country, listen above and follow Holler on your favourite digital streaming platform.
For more of the finest country playlists from Holler, see below: