Megan Moroney's 'Cloud 9' is a 'No Duds' Release for Pop-Country Fans

by Tyler Glover

Photo: Columbia Records

​One feature of the music streaming service Spotify that I love is New Music Fridays. Every Friday, the app highlights the newest releases, making it convenient for users to check out the latest music. As a diehard Swiftie, I rarely venture away from music that isn’t written by the greatest songwriter of our generation, Taylor Swift. This feature has helped me explore more. A few months ago, country artist Megan Moroney dropped a single called “Six Months Later,” ahead of the release of her third studio album, Cloud 9. I gave it a listen and was instantly excited for her album. I pre-saved it and was anxious to hear more from Cloud 9.

The album has 15 tracks, and there is not a dud in the whole bunch. I feel this is such a rarity in music today. Most albums will have songs that are mixed: half great, a quarter good and a quarter that feel like songs used as filler. It could be argued that this is why many music listeners nowadays do not listen to full albums but only to what is released as singles on the radio. This is not the case with Cloud 9. Moroney is an artist whom I am excited to hear more from. Moroney’s songs are reminiscent of early, country-genre Taylor Swift, Kacey Musgraves and Kelsea Ballerini. Even though she reminds me of them, Moroney has a very distinct sound and perspective, though that makes it clear she is putting her own stamp on country music. 

Even though the album is called Cloud 9, Moroney still explores a lot of heartache and heartbreak. It feels like she has experienced being on Cloud Nine but realizes just how far the fall is from that “high.” It seems that even when she is experiencing happiness, she is waiting for the other shoe to drop. The best song (and most heartbreaking) on the album is called “Wedding Dress.” In the song, Moroney acknowledges that some people may be scared of “lions and spiders,” but she has a very distinct fear. She worries that she will never get over the man who left her. The most devastating lyric is “What if the missing you don’t ever go away?” She worries that she will move on with another man but be reminded how much she loved him in her wedding dress and be heartbroken on her wedding day. It is a devastating song. Her distinct fear captures the universal feeling we all experience when we struggle to move on from someone we know we loved.  

The title track, “Cloud 9,” is also a standout and one of the happier songs on the album. Moroney sings that “The TV’s talking, some more bad news/ But who cares? I woke up next to you.” Moroney brilliantly captures the way we all feel when we love someone so much that their presence makes all of the horrible things in life bearable. The track that got me interested in this album, "Six Months Later,” is one of the best. This song captures the feeling of how, when we finally move on from someone, that is when they decide to get their act together and care the way they needed to during the relationship. “Convincing” offers a unique perspective on the beginning of a relationship. Moroney sings that things are going so well between her and her new beau that they could pass for a couple who have been together for years. 
 
The album covers so many different areas of love: self-love (“Beautiful Things”), men ghosting (“Stupid”), the struggle between deciding to break up or not (“Change of Heart”), unwillingness to move on (“Table For Two”), and preparing for the worst (“Waiting On the Rain.”) The album features two features: Ed Sheeran on “I Only Miss You” and Kacey Musgraves on “Bells & Whistles.” Both are great songs, but not the best the album has to offer.  

Moroney’s Cloud 9 has made me a fan.

She is clearly influenced by Swift, Musgraves and Ballerini but is forging her own path in the music industry. After I get over my Cloud 9 obsession, I’m going to go back to her debut album, Lucky, and her sophomore album, Am I Okay? I am anxious to see where her career takes her.