by Julian Spivey
 
Singer-songwriter David Allan Coe died on Wednesday, April 29, at age 86, and I have to say, I don’t care.
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Many see him as a legendary performer; I’ve always seen a vile person. The reasons I’ve always been convinced of for both are the same.

I grew up in Northern Arkansas listening to a bit of everything the local radio stations played. I loved the oldies station and the classic rock station. At times, I would listen to the modern country station and the top-40 pop station.

In high school, I got really into classic country music and became a huge fan of Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard, so I was into the kind of stuff that would make one think I might also love David Allan Coe. But I hadn’t heard of him.

I don’t really know how the group of people I spent the most time with in high school developed. Looking back on it, I only really liked two or three of them, even at that time, but it was a sizeable group. I don’t know what you’d call us… We weren’t jocks. We weren’t popular. With the exception of maybe two of us, we weren’t all that smart or nerdy. But as it goes in high school lunchrooms, we all sat together every day at lunch.

Somehow, David Allan Coe would come up with this group – I don’t understand why that would happen in 2005-2006, but probably because a handful of us liked older country music. These idiots would cackle and giggle about his disgusting songs, many of them bigoted and racist, including slurs like the “N-word,” which these guys sitting near me would repeat, acting as if that sort of thing was cool.

These guys didn’t seem to care about the good songs Coe had written, like “Take This Job and Shove It” for Johnny Paycheck or “The Ride,” his own tribute to Hank Williams; they just liked that he used the “N-word” in his songs.

To these guys, Coe made racism and racist language cool, and he made it acceptable.

I was quiet, even more so than I am today, but I’ve always let it be known when I didn’t appreciate something, and I did with these guys, which just made it worse for me. It was a racist joke palooza after that, with me being too cowardly at the time to just walk away.

And that’s why, even though I know these songs only make up a small percentage of Coe’s discography, it’s the main reason I’ve always viewed him as a racist loser, and even worse, someone who made people like the ones I grew up with believe that it was just fine to be one, cool even.

David Allan Coe is dead. I hope his legacy goes with him.

While sitting in the darkened over-100-year-old Rialto Community Arts Center in Morrilton, Ark., I was told for the first time in my life that I was going to Hell. 
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“If you’re trusting in the made-up, man-made system that Rome has built, and by the way codified in 1546, you have no hope of Christ,” a Baptist preacher spouted on stage to a sold-out theater partly made up of Catholics like me. Later, he called the Catholic Church a “demonically influenced system.”

I was covering a debate on May 22, 2025, as a freelance reporter for the local diocesan newspaper between a priest and a Baptist preacher. An online rant by the preacher calling the late Pope Francis the “anti-Christ” following his death sparked the debate, culminating in two hours of mercy and truth preached by the priest, combating the condemnation and hatred spewed by the pastor. 

It was the first time someone so fervently and publicly stood in front of me, believing and saying I was bound for Hell. My body tensed, my blood pressure certainly rose and I remember thinking, how dare this man, who does not know me at all, stand up on that stage and pretend to know where my soul is destined to go? 

It was also the moment I got a brief glimpse of the religious trauma so many of my friends endured growing up. 

As a born-and-raised Catholic, I’m consistently taught that Jesus loves me. I have never once heard a priest condemn anyone to Hell because they can’t — it’s not Catholic teaching. In fact, the Church can only say for certain that the saints are in Heaven. Everyone else is left to God’s mercy. Regardless of if you agree with everything the Catholic Church believes, it always teaches a consistent message of human dignity and love for God’s creation. It’s one of many reasons I believe there was an uptick in the number of people joining the Catholic Church this year. I won’t pretend people have always had positive experiences with Catholicism — priests are people, and people can sometimes be the worst. But it’s certainly not what Jesus intended when he instituted the Church. 

I have many close friends who no longer attend a church because of what they were told and the hypocrisy they saw. I would not want to sit in a pew week after week, hearing what I heard from that preacher in that theater. And I know now that for some friends, that was their reality. No wonder they left. 

It’s why songs like Noah Kahan’s “The Great Divide,” the first single off his much-anticipated album of the same name, should pierce the heart of every Christian. 

I was drawn to Kahan’s music a few years ago after hearing “Paul Revere” pop up on my husband’s playlist. I immediately wanted to know who sang it, and quickly devoured the music from Stick Season. 
While there were moments on that album that addressed religion, “The Great Divide,” both in song and as a full album, speaks more to religious trauma. 

When I first heard ‘Divide,’ I felt uncomfortable the first time I heard the chorus lyrics: 
“I hope you settle down, I hope you marry rich / I hope you’re scared of only ordinary shit / Like murderers and ghosts and cancer on your skin / And not your soul, and what He might do with it.” 

I wasn’t sure where to go with this. How could I sit here and sing this song, which felt like an insult to Jesus, who is all good and merciful? Because a person should be concerned about their soul, not from the perspective of being terrified of God, but from a healthy understanding of his love and what it means to follow him. 

And then I remembered that preacher’s words.

There’s a difference between hearing preaching about following God’s will and bringing our sins to God in his great mercy and being told you’re going to Hell if you don’t repent. It’s not the same, and these song lyrics are a direct result of the latter. 

Our misunderstandings of this and what we say to people can ultimately lead to lyrics like, “I hope you threw a brick right into that stained glass.” The lyrics should make Christians uncomfortable. 

Jesus told us, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” And how good are we as Christians at sharing our personal story of Jesus and how he is our way, truth and life? Are we trying to get people to convert, or are we radiating the light and love of Christ by our actions? 

The great divide in how Christians share their faith in today’s society is between judgment and mercy. Each person has to make the daily decision to let Jesus judge and work in someone’s life, or try to take that power away from the Lord and become a judge themselves. I have not always done a good job with this call, but God is ever patient, working on my heart each day. 

Now, when I hear the lyrics, “And not your soul, and what He might do with it,” I think of all the people hurt by a human distortion of God. As I listen, it’s a gut-check for me and how I’m doing walking the walk as a sinner, but also a beloved daughter of Christ in the way I interact with others. It’s a chance for me to pray each time I hear it for those who are listening and no longer follow Jesus because of the pain they’ve experienced. I pray that people are not terrified of what God may do with their souls, but instead that they get to know him in this life and understand how deeply they matter to him. 

Having that perspective is how we can begin to lessen the great divide. 

by Julian Spivey

It’s weird. ZZ Top isn’t a group I think would rank in my 100 favorite musical acts of all time, but they have been the one group I’ve been chasing longer than any to see live in concert. However, because of family outings or work or what have you there has always been something that comes up every time ZZ Top has been in my neck of the woods over the last 15-plus years that has kept me from seeing them.

When it was announced they would be co-headlining on the Dos Amigos Tour with one of my all-time favorite country music artists, Dwight Yoakam, and making a trip to the Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, Ark. on Friday, April 17, I knew this would likely be the last chance I had to see the group.

ZZ Top still sounds great, but it’s not really the same ZZ Top that became a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame act, or the same one I had the chance to see in the past. Bassist and original band member Dusty Hill, one of the big-bearded duo up front on the stage, died in 2021.

Elwood Francis, who was Hill’s longtime guitar technician, replaced Hill and Hill’s request in the trio following his death.

Drummer Frank Beard, though technically still a member of the band, has missed time over the last few tours with ailments and injuries, and was not part of the Dos Amigos show in NLR on Friday. Michael Monahan filled in for Beard and did very well.

The band opened up Friday night’s show with a performance of “Got Me Under Pressure,” off what’s potentially their most well-known album, 1983’s Eliminator, with Francis playing a bright yellow 17-string bass that’s probably the most ridiculous-looking instrument I’ve ever seen performed live in concert. It was the only song in which the bass was used.

The classic blues-boogie rock band performed most of their hits on Friday night, the ones that made the band famous with their comical music videos on MTV back in the day, which featured scantily clad women and a famous 1933 Ford Coupe hot rod (the one on the Eliminator cover). These are the songs that I, as a novice ZZ Top fan, appreciated hearing – the kind you hear often on classic rock radio formats.

It was these Eliminator tracks I had the most fun hearing live, like “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” “Legs” and “Sharp Dressed Man,” but potentially my favorite ZZ Top song of the night was “Cheap Sunglasses,” which the band released four years prior on Degüello.

They, of course, played some of their standards from earlier in their career, like “Waitin’ for the Bus” and “Jesus Just Left Chicago,” from 1973’s Tres Hombres, which I frankly should be more familiar with than I am. It was the stuff I was less familiar with in their repertoire that I struggled with during the show, as vocalist and guitarist Billy Gibbons’ growly, gravelly voice isn’t the easiest to hear over blaring instruments, and Gibbons, Francis and Monahan were louder as a trio than most live acts I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing.

Other highlights from the band were their covers of the Sam & Dave classic “I Thank You” and the Merle Travis-written country standard, “Sixteen Tons,” which I’d certainly never heard performed in quite that way (though sans some of its original verses).

One of the disappointments of the set was the lack of collaboration with Yoakam, who had told the audience during his portion of the evening that he and Gibbons had considered doing this joint tour for years. Yoakam had memorably covered ZZ Top’s “I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide” for his 2004 covers album, Dwight’s Used Records, but when the band performed it on Friday night, he was nowhere to be seen.

ZZ Top ended the evening with a two-song encore that began with “Brown Sugar,” off the group’s 1971 debut aptly titled ZZ Top’s First Album, and finished with the epic “La Grange,” which might be their most famous song ever, and one of those that certainly was on my “to see live” concert bucket list.

Yoakam is an artist I’ve seen, I believe five times now, and had seen as recently as last September when he powered through food poisoning to finish a show in Jonesboro, Ark. He’s one of my all-time favorite live performers, and he was in great spirits on Friday night, with his frilly, rhinestone denim jacket and his side-to-side leg-shaking dance moves.

His set was remarkably similar to the one I’d seen in Jonesboro last year but was truncated a bit because this was a co-headlining tour.

Yoakam performed most of his “greatest hits,” some deep cuts that he must really love, like 2005’s “Blame the Vain,” which he performs often, and some newer stuff from his latest release, 2024’s Brighter Days.

Among my favorite performances were hits like “Guitars, Cadillacs,” “Streets of Bakersfield,” “Little Ways,” “A Thousand Miles From Nowhere” and “Turn It On, Turn It Up, Turn Me Loose,” which I’ve probably seen him do every time I’ve seen him live. They’re classics that just don’t get old.

A surprise from the show was hearing “Bury Me,” off his 1986 debut, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc., one of the greatest country music albums ever, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last month. This was my live debut as a fan. It’d be nice to see Yoakam do his debut from start to finish sometime.

Yoakam finished his set with a rip-roaring performance of “Fast as You,” off his 1993 album This Time, much to the approval of the audience.

The night’s music kicked off right at 7 p.m. on the dot with a performance by country-rock band Southall out of Oklahoma. The music sounded good, but unfortunately, not being familiar with their work, I couldn’t make out much of what frontman Read Southall was singing, especially with the old folks behind me yakking it up the entire set after a day of day drinking.

 
While Coachella is often headlined by the biggest stars in pop music – like Sabrina Carpenter and Justin Bieber this year – it also highlights legends of the past, like David Byrne and Iggy Pop.
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There was only one Coachella set I made the time to check out on the California festival’s YouTube channel during this busy weekend that included spending time with old friends and watching the Masters Tournament, and that was Byrne’s delightful 13-song set that featured heavily on Talking Heads greatest hits.

Byrne was, of course, the frontman for the Talking Heads, the art-pop group that mostly met at an art school in Rhode Island before taking New York City by storm in the late ‘70s with its unique sound and Byrne’s beguiling on-stage presence with his unusual dance movements.

Byrne has been performing with a large ensemble of musicians, backup vocalists and dancers, who all stroll across the stage in unique ways, often with instruments like drums and keyboards strapped to their bodies so they’re not stationary. The artists dress the same, and the show is as much an art installation as a rock concert, making for a unique blend of the arts you’ll likely only see from someone like Byrne.

At almost 74 years old, Byrne has the on-stage stamina of someone much younger than himself, of which the majority of his bandmates are.

Byrne’s set opened on Saturday night at the Outdoor Stage of the Indio, Calif., festival grounds with a performance of “Everybody Laughs,” a single off his most recent album Who is the Sky? (2025).

Byrne’s set began 30 minutes late (for reasons unknown to me) and was opposite of Saturday’s headliner, Justin Bieber, which, according to reports from the festival, led to many, unfortunately, missing out on this wonderful performance.

I can’t imagine people wanting to see Bieber, whose set was reportedly super lackluster, over an artist of Byrne’s magnitude.

The first of the Talking Heads classics came early with “And She Was,” off 1985’s Little Creatures. Byrne told the crowd that the song was inspired by a former classmate who was always happy and used to lie down in a field near the Yoo-hoo chocolate beverage factory and just drift away. He added that the reason was that she was on acid.

Among other notable Talking Heads performances during the first half of Byrne’s set were “This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody) and “(Nothing But) Flowers.”

Among his most recent works, a highlight was “When We Are Singing,” which I first heard the week before, when he appeared on CBS’s “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and performed it. It’s a lovely piece of work.

Following this, Byrne finished his Coachella set in the most epic way imaginable with what could very well be the four greatest (or at least maybe most known) Talking Heads hits: “Psycho Killer” (1977), “Life During Wartime” (1979), “Once in a Lifetime” (1981) and “Burning Down the House” (1983).

“Psycho Killer” was my favorite performance of the set, overall, as it’s always been my favorite Talking Heads song, as one who’s admittedly a novice when it comes to the Talking Heads' complete discography. Byrne has always been an interesting figure to me, and the more I learn about him and the more I listen to his music, the more of a fan I become. Maybe I won’t be a novice for long?

I forget which song Byrne prefaced with a wonderful anecdote of which he heard from filmmaker and actor John Cameron Mitchell when Byrne said: “[Mitchell] said that love and kindness are the most punk things you can do right now. It was a little confusing for me; I thought, ‘Oh, loud, angry music, love and kindness.’ I didn’t quite get the connection. And then I realized: yeah, he’s right. Love and kindness are a form of resistance.”

There was a lot of love and kindness from Byrne on Saturday night, of course, it was in addition to that great song about a psycho killer.

by Julian Spivey

Charles Wesley Godwin returned to The Hall in Little Rock, Ark., on Friday, April 10, for his first headlining show of 2026 after taking the last few months off.

When I saw him at The Hall in 2024, it was an electric night of music with one of the best club shows I’d seen from an act in a while, with him and his band, The Allegheny High, on absolute fire that evening.
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Friday night’s show didn’t quite have the same feeling – partially due to a decision on Godwin’s part and partially due to the crowd within the venue.

Don’t get me wrong, there were still magical moments throughout the set, as Godwin’s deeply personal songs hit on themes and feelings that are universal, and he has a bunch of stuff in his repertoire that should already be considered his greatest hits, despite only having three albums under his belt.

When he was performing stuff the crowd knew and loved like “Strong” and “Jesse,” off his sophomore album How the Mighty Fall (2021) or “Another Leaf,” “Miner Imperfections” and “The Flood,” off his most recent release Family Ties (2023) he had the whole room eating out of the palm of his hand.

Before Friday’s show, I saw a post from Godwin on his Facebook page saying there would be “lots of new music in the set.” Typically, if an artist breaks out new songs in front of a live audience, it’ll be like two or three songs, but Godwin performed seven songs that, by my account, are previously unreleased.
From what I can tell, these songs will be fantastic when his fourth studio album is released. Undoubtedly, he must have one coming out sometime soon with this much new material. However, a live club show on a Friday night, when, unfortunately, too many of the audience members would rather drink and chatter than listen to new stuff, makes it hard to make out exactly what the singer is saying. So, I’m sure when that album is released, I’ll love new songs like “Try Again,” “Better That Way,” “Hey There Son” and “I Caught the Sunrise,” but on Friday night, I was struggling to comprehend.

Another thing I can’t comprehend is how these artists, who are pouring their heart and soul on stage, feel when folks in the audience are acting a fool, doing just about anything but listening to the music. It’s a real downer for those of us who attend shows for the music. If you want to drink, chat and party, there are plenty of other (and cheaper) places you can do this. It feels like ticket prices aren’t the only thing rising for live music; so are poorly behaved concertgoers.

When Godwin and the Allegheny High were at their absolute best, and the crowd was most into the show, were during those greatest hits of his I mentioned earlier: “All Again,” “Family Ties” and a stirring solo acoustic performance of “Seneca Creek,” a highlight from his 2019 debut Seneca, which ended the main set.

This energy ran through to the encore, which began with “Cue Country Roads,” which had been his show opener the last time I’d seen him, and into “Hardwood Floors,” which may be his biggest song overall with his fan base and finishing with a terrific cover of John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” which showed off his pride of being a son of West Virginia.

Jason Scott and the High Heat opened the show on Friday night, and things started out pretty well with some fun stuff like “If We Make It Til the Mornin’” and “High Country,” before throwing some real stinkers out toward the end of their set like “Cowboy Cold Beer” and others I don’t know the name of. The group feels like it could do some good work if they set their mind to it.

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​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.  

Eric Church brought his Free The Machine tour to North Little Rock’s Simmons Bank Arena on Thursday, February 19, for a fantastic night of music that included his latest album, Evangeline vs. The Machine, in order from start to finish and a whole lot of greatest hits.

At 48, Church isn’t as raucous as he used to be in concert, and it hasn’t even been that long since I’ve seen him live (the summer of 2023 was the last), but he seemed as if he was more fulfilled on Thursday night. Maybe it was just me, but it felt like he was more emotional, almost bowled over by the response and love he received from the crowd all night.

The set began with his eighth studio album, Evangeline vs. The Machine, played in order, which might be the first time he’s done that in his career. It’s at least the first album I’ve experienced him doing it live. It’s not my favorite Church album, and I honestly don’t understand it all, as it feels like Church views it as a linear, complete piece, yet it doesn’t seem to connect thematically for me. That being said, there are some great Church songs on the album, like “Bleed on Paper” and “Hands of Time,” two of my favorite country songs from 2025.

Church has changed his sound a little bit for the ‘Evangeline’ album, with horns, more strings and a choir included, which led to a huge ensemble on stage with him for the tour. Some longtime fans of Church have had a hard time adjusting to the new sound and added musicians, but I think it’s a unique foray into something different for the veteran performer – and let’s face it, stuff like “Hands of Time” and “Bleed on Paper” are quintessentially Eric Church.

Following the eight-song ‘Evangline’ album, it was essentially a “greatest hits” performance for the remainder of the set, with every album throughout Church’s career having at least one hit performed.
This portion of his set began with “Desperate Man,” from his 2018 album of the same name, and went into hit after hit like “Homeboy,” “Creepin’,” “Give Me Back My Hometown” and more.

One of the most fun moments of the night was when Church’s “Smoke a Little Smoke,” off his 2009 album Carolina, melded into the Creedence Clearwater Revival/Ike and Tina Turner hit “Proud Mary,” sung by Joanna Cotten, Church’s longtime backup vocalist. This mix was one of the highlights of the night with the horn section and choir, which remained on stage for most of the “greatest hits” portion of the set.

My favorite Church songs: “Mr. Misunderstood,” “Sinners Like Me” and “Springsteen” were all played in the vicinity of each other in the set, with “Springsteen” being the final performance with the extended group of musicians before the choir, horns and string section left for the evening.

The next segment of the evening featured just Church, Cotten and the Eric Church Band, the band that’s been with him his entire career. They performed some of Church’s most notable hits like “Drink in My Hand,” “Record Year” and “Talladega,” before ending with the non-single “Pledge Allegiance to the Hag,” from his 2006 debut album Sinners Like Me.

Church and Cotten then finished the evening out alone on stage with just their voices and Church’s guitar, a segment that Church truly seemed to enjoy and get emotional about. The two performed “Like Jesus Does,” “These Boots,” “Some of It” and “Mixed Drinks About Feelings” together. Church told the audience he hadn’t planned on ending the evening this way before launching into the night’s final performance of “Holdin’ My Own,” off his 2015 album Mr. Misunderstood. It was a fitting way to bring his 29-song set to a close, focusing on his career, which is hard to believe is celebrating 20 years in 2026.    

Virginia country-rock band 49 Winchester opened the show on Thursday night with a fantastic set mixing songs from their albums III (2020), Fortune Favors the Bold (2022) and Leavin’ This Holler (2024), as well as the new song “Bringin’ Home the Bacon,” off their upcoming album, Change of Plans, which comes out on May 15.

My favorite performances from their set were the incredible “Russell County Line,” “Tulsa” and “Anchor.”

If you haven’t heard of 49 Winchester before, I highly recommend checking them out.

by Tyler Glover

They don’t make as many Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits as they used to in this streaming music era, playing a role in how the charts are compiled. That’s a big reason why there were only nine Billboard No. 1 hits in 2025, not counting Mariah Carey’s perennial Christmas classic “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” which once again found its way onto the chart this holiday season, and has now spent more weeks at No. 1 than any song in Billboard Hot 100 history.
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Here is a ranking of all of the year’s new No. 1s from best to worst… 
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1. “The Fate of Ophelia” by Taylor Swift 
Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia” is the best song of the year that went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has spent eight weeks at No. 1, tying “Anti-Hero” as Swift’s most successful single to date. Upon the release of Taylor Swift’s twelfth studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, “The Fate of Ophelia” was released as the lead single. Something Swift is notoriously known for among her fandom is how, sometimes, she does not always pick the most successful single that represents the album, or they feel others may have performed better. There is no doubt that this was the correct choice. “The Fate of Ophelia” has Swift rewriting Shakespeare's “Hamlet” into a happy ending. This is something she first did with “Love Story” on her second studio album, Fearless, which re-wrote the tragic love story “Romeo & Juliet.” “The Fate of Ophelia” is a bop that will surely be remembered by the Grammys in 2027 and be nominated for Record and Song of the Year. It is one of Taylor Swift’s best singles to date. 
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2. “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars 
“Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars is not only one of my favorite songs that topped the Billboard Hot 100 this year, but also already one of my favorites of all time. “Die With A Smile” won the Grammy for Best Pop Duo Group Performance for Gaga and Mars and was nominated for Song of the Year. “Die With A Smile” was the most listened to song of 2025 on Spotify, and it is not shocking to see why. There is just something incredibly romantic about someone saying that when the world is ending, that you are the person they want to be with. It tugs on the heartstrings and makes us all want to sway to the powerhouse vocals by Gaga and the incredibly charming Mars. In 2025, “Die With A Smile” was No. 1 for five weeks. It is a genuinely touching song that will be remembered for decades not only as a No. 1 hit but also as one that touches people’s hearts. 
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3. “Golden” by HUNTR/X: Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami 
​“Golden,” the incredibly popular song from the blockbuster phenomenon, “KPOP Demon Hunters, went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks. “KPOP Demon Hunters” was a movie I was a little late to, but finally gave in to the hype and had to see what all the excitement was about. After watching the incredible film, I was in love with the phenomenal soundtrack. “Golden” is my favorite song from the film, but all of the songs are incredible. ”Golden” has been nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Original Song and is considered a frontrunner for the Academy Award in the same category. Anytime a song from an animated “children’s” film reaches No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, it shows that the music has transcended the film and into mainstream pop culture. “Golden” is a powerhouse anthem sung by the fictional K-pop female group, HUNTR/X. It is an inspiring song that makes us all believe that anything is possible and that we can achieve our dreams. It has also been nominated for Song of the Year at the Grammys and is considered a major contender in the category. “Golden” will definitely be seeing some gold in the coming months of this award season. 
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4. “Manchild” by Sabrina Carpenter 
Sabrina Carpenter’s lead single, “Manchild,” from her seventh studio album, Man’s Best Friend, only managed to go No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for one week in its debut week. That does not diminish how amazing it is! Carpenter chose the perfect lead single for the album, and it is equally catchy as her previous top-10 Billboard hits, “Taste,” “Please, Please, Please” and “Espresso.” “Manchild” is nominated for Record and Song of the Year at the upcoming Grammy Awards. It is a song in which Carpenter criticizes an ex-boyfriend for being “stupid, slow, useless” and incompetent. Carpenter feels like she only attracts the boys who can’t seem to work on becoming men. It is a playful, catchy song for anyone who has dealt with difficult boyfriends.  

5. “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar 
“Not Like Us” was the winner of the Record and Song of the Year Grammy Award this year. The song went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for one week this year. Lamar has had quite a year: he performed at the Super Bowl, won two of the most significant Grammy awards of the night and released the single “Luther,” which spent many weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Not Like Us” is a catchy rap song that attracts people who are not even casual rap listeners. I absolutely love the song, and rap is something I never really choose to listen to. It is a diss track to fellow rapper Drake, but through the power of music, we all identify with this by inserting our own enemies into Drake’s place. Lamar’s ability to attract more listeners to the rap genre is remarkable.
​

6. “Luther” by Kendrick Lamar feat. SZA 
“Luther” is a really personal song. The “Luther” in the song refers to the dearly departed R&B singer Luther Vandross. It interpolates his hit song, “If This World Were Mine.” The song, featuring Grammy winner SZA, is a romantic love song in which the lovers tell each other what they would do for each other if the world were theirs. The expression of love in this song is the kind of love we all hope to achieve in this world. We all want someone not only to choose us but to make us their world. “Luther” went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 weeks, making it the longest-running No. 1 of 2025. It is nominated for Record and Song of the Year at the upcoming Grammy Awards and is considered a frontrunner by many pundits. The song is one of the best of the year, and one of the best love songs of all time. 

7. “Ordinary” by Alex Warren  
Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for nine weeks. I personally don’t get the appeal at all. Every time it comes on the radio, I want to skip it, but my daughters love it. The fact that this No. 1 hit is one of the few that didn’t receive nominations in the big Grammy categories makes me believe I am not alone in not seeing the appeal. “Ordinary” is a song that has a sweet sentiment: the person they love makes them feel that life is extraordinary. That alone does not save a song, though. It is such a boring song that lacks any real drama or significant depth, and it will be forgotten in years to come. 
​

8. “What I Want” - Morgan Wallen feat. Tate McRae 
Morgan Wallen has some good songs, but I won’t listen to them because I genuinely don’t think he is a good person. I ranked this Billboard Hot 100 above Travis Scott simply because I do prefer country music, but this song, even though it became a hit, will not stand the test of time.  
​

9. “4x4” by Travis Scott 
Travis Scott’s song, “4x4,” went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for one week. Rap is not a genre that I normally vibe with, and this song is a clear example of why. I want to listen to music that really tries to say something and speak to the world we live in. Songs like this lack depth and are not catchy enough to really vibe with. It is difficult for me to form an opinion about this song.
​

9. "Truest Colors" by Jason Boland & the Stragglers
My husband and I go to a lot of concerts, and the red dirt/Texas country band Jason Boland and the Stragglers ranks high on the list of artists we’ve seen the most. I remember hearing “Truest Colors” for the first time last year at the Peacemaker Festival in Fort Smith, Ark. I was immediately hooked and then promptly disappointed the song wasn’t released yet. I was thrilled when it was released on their 2025 album The Last Kings of Babylon. The song is upbeat, fast and catchy, while its message is less upbeat — it’s a song about how some people just suck and it’s best to move on. I’m a sucker for a creative lyric, and I love these two: “I′ll be back around when Satan needs coat” and “Fare thee well, it′s been hell.” Boland’s twangy voice makes the lyrics even more fun. AHS

8. "The Subway" by Chappell Roan
Chappell Roan is easily one of the most exciting artists to come out in the last couple of years. She has an unbelievable way of making us all feel connected to her material by telling her stories with honest and raw vulnerability. “The Subway” is one of her most haunting songs. The song talks about her running into an ex on the subway, imagining running into her in her places, and how it still haunts her. She longs for the day that her ex will be another “girl in the subway.” It is a feeling we can all relate to, especially when we are in the trenches of trying to get over the person we loved, who we can’t anymore, for whatever reason. One of the most heartbreaking aspects of the songs is when Chappell Roan transitions “She’s got a way” to “She got away.” She cleverly sings it so many times in a row that upon first listen, you are taken aback. The emotional impact of this song will continue on forever. TG

6. The Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift 
A lot of people have various opinions on The Life of a Showgirl and where it ranks among Taylor Swift’s 12 albums. I wouldn’t call myself a true “Swiftie,” but I have come to appreciate her music and songwriting more in recent years. ‘Showgirl’ is not an album that really showcases her writing — it’s more about fun melodies — but the first track and single, “Fate of Ophelia,” is a total earworm. She discussed on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” how she wanted to blend classic and new, weaving in more polished lyrics like “The venom stole her sanity” to the modern, “Pledge allegiance to your hands, your team, your vibes.” The premise is her love story with fiancé Travis Kelce, which fans ate up. I loved how ‘Ophelia’ created a moment with so many people recreating the dance moves. It’s just a fun song and sets the tone for the whole album. AHS

5. "Twilight Zone" by Ariana Grande 
My most-listened-to song of 2025 was “Twilight Zone” by Ariana Grande. Grande has always been a very talented songwriter, but she is absolutely slaying on this one. “Twilight Zone” is a song that uses the metaphor of the twilight zone to express the bewilderment of a former relationship that happened. Some of my favorite lyrics are “I hope you win for Best Actor cuz’ I had you completely wrong” and ”Does she know you’re not who you say you are?” It is a haunting synth-pop song that stays with you forever. Sometimes, relationships leave us with the mindset: “I cannot believe all of this happened: the good, the bad, that this person came into my life and was all I needed for a while.” Grande truly captures some of the nuances of the tragic consequences of an ended romance perfectly. I think the song manages to be something that many of us can relate to in so many different situations and circumstances. It truly is the kind of song that helps you heal. TG

3. "Searching for a Light" by Turnpike Troubadours
Evan Felker is one of my favorite songwriters, so I was so happy when they released another album, The Price of Admission, this year, just two years after A Cat in the Rain, following the band’s indefinite hiatus in 2019. His stint in rehab and his sobriety have really set the band on a better path, and this album proves it. I like several songs on this album: “Heaven Passing Through” is likely the best one, and “Be Here,” about his journey toward sobriety, is definitely near the top for me. But the lyrics of “Searching for Light” resonated with me the most. Written by Felker and fellow Oklahoma musician John Fullbright, ‘Searching’ is a redemption song, likely about Felker, but the choruses do not point to a clear subject. It honestly makes the song more relatable. It was released at a time when I was in the midst of grief and needed a song that sat with me in that brokenness with lyrics like, “Forgive me of my nonsense, I’m still out here chasing shadows,” but also that still had a hopeful message with words like, “But I will not trade tomorrow for a pain I feel today.” This song pierced my heart differently. AHS

1. "Opalite" by Taylor Swift
While the reviews of Taylor Swift’s latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, have been mixed, there is one thing not up for debate. The third track on the album, “Opalite,” is one of the best pop songs of her entire career. The beat is so insanely catchy that even non-Swifties in my life are uncontrollably dancing. In her song, “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,” Swift sings, “put narcotics into all of my songs, and that’s why you’re still singing along.” I can guarantee that she definitely put some narcotics into this song. This upbeat pop song is a love song about Swift being really happy. She uses gemstone metaphors in her lyrics that contrast the dark “onyx” nights of failed relationships with the bright, opalescent sky of her life now. The song brings so much joy and makes us all want to dance and forget all of the problems of the world. What more can we ask of music in these dark times? TG

by Julian Spivey

The First 50
*these are listed alphabetically by artist

The Top 50

50. "It's the Little Things" by Charles Wesley Godwin
Album: Lonely Mountain Town EP
Songwriter: Charles Wesley Godwin

Charles Wesley Godwin, one of my favorite up-and-coming singer-songwriters on the outskirts of mainstream country, didn’t even release a new album in 2025, and still placed multiple songs on this year-end list. My favorite of those was “It’s the Little Things,” which sees the down-to-earth West Virginian, opining about never taking the little things in life – like a day’s first sip of coffee or a loving look from your significant other – for granted. ​​
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49. "Four on the Floor" by Adam Hood & Brent Cobb
Album: Non-Album Single
Songwriters: Adam Hood, Brent Cobb & Jason Saenz

Adam Hood and Brent Cobb are a great fit together on “Four on the Floor,” which they co-wrote with Jason Saenz. “Four on the Floor” has soulful guitar licks all the way through, with Hood and Cobb taking turns on lines that ooze with Southern swagger. It’s a whole lot of fun, like the two are just in a room jamming together. 
​

48. "Bad Girls" by Steve Earle & Reckless Kelly
Album: Non-Album Single
Songwriters: Steve Earle & Reckless Kelly 

Steve Earle and Reckless Kelly weren’t a collaboration I ever saw coming, but I’m damn sure glad it happened. Earle and the veteran Texas country band share a similar country-rock style, and Earle was no doubt an influence on the kind of music Reckless Kelly has recorded for nearly 30 years. The collaboration brought two singles in 2025, “Bad Girls” and “Dead or Gone to Dallas,” both excellent, but “Bad Girls” is the one that made this list with Earle and Reckless Kelly frontman Wily Braun trading off lines about having a thing for the bad girls - the kind who like to hang out in bars and honky tonks and listen to artists like, well, Steve Earle and Reckless Kelly. 
​

47. "Trailblazer" by Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert & Reba McEntire
Album: Non-Album Single
​Songwriters: Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert & Brandy Clark

“Trailblazer” is one of the collaborative highlights of 2025 in country music with two of today’s finest and brightest country female vocalists, Lainey Wilson, the current CMA Entertainer of the Year, and Miranda Lambert, the most honored female in CMA history paying tribute to the great female country singers that came before them and paved the way like Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette and Loretta Lynn. The song truly becomes incredible when Reba McEntire, essentially the torchbearer from that generation to today’s generation, joins in to help show that the future is in good hands. 
​

46. "Nothing Like You Nowhere" by Walker Montgomery 
Album: Non-Album Single
Songwriters: Mitch Oglesby & Phil O'Donnell

Walker Montgomery has neo-traditional country music in his veins as the son of ‘90s hitmaker John Michael Montgomery. It seems the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree with a song like “Nothing Like You Nowhere,” a beautiful love song written by Mitch Oglesby and Phil O’Donnell that feels like it couldn’t have come out anytime in the last 35-40 years. “Nothing Like You Nowhere” talks about some of the great things the narrator has seen, like Merle Haggard at the Ryman Auditorium and Dale Earnhardt finally winning the Daytona 500 in 1998, but how none of it compares to the sight of the one he loves. 
​

45. "Los Diablos Tejanos" by The Wilder Blue
Album: Still in the Runnin'
Songwriter: Zane Williams

Zane Williams, songwriter and lead vocalist for the Texas country band The Wilder Blue, has been one of the genre's finest storytellers for a while. The band’s latest album, Still in the Runnin’, features a handful of terrific story songs with “Los Diablos Tejanos,” a story about Texas Rangers battling with outlaws at the Texas/Mexico border, standing out as a nice country-rocker with Paul Eason on lead guitar and Lyndon Hughes on drums as particular standouts.   
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44. "Big Money" by Jon Batiste
Album: Big Money
Songwriters: Jon Batiste, Mike Elizondo & Steve McEwan

The term Americana comes from the melding of roots music that developed in the United States, much of it coming from African American traditions. Jon Batiste’s music combines many of these roots genres: blues, soul, R&B, etc., into one big melting pot that sounds glorious, and makes you want to get up on your feet and dance. “Big Money,” off his latest album of the same name, is a joyous number about a mama’s advice to her son, most importantly about how “you can be living the life but not living the dream.” 
​

43. "Hands of Time" by Eric Church
Album: Evangeline vs. The Machine
Songwriters: Eric Church, Jay Joyce & Scooter Carusoe

Eric Church has been worrying some longtime fans, whether rightly or wrongly, because his sound has leaned more toward soul and gospel lately. “Hands of Time,” the first single from his latest album Evangeline vs. The Machine should’ve gone a long way in quelling those worries, as the North Carolina country-rocker feels in his sweet spot with a tune about helping him remain young by reliving all the great moments and songs of his past with terrific name and song drops of Bob Seger, Tom Petty, Waylon and Willie and more. 
​

42. "Game I Can't Win" by Charley Crockett
Album: Lonesome Drifter
Songwriter: Charley Crockett

Charley Crockett’s output is unmatched among his peers. He released two albums in 2024, including one of my favorites of the year, $10 Cowboy. He released two more albums in 2025: Lonesome Drifter and Dollar A Day. “Game I Can’t Win” was one of the standout tracks on Lonesome Drifter. It’s not a stranger of a theme for Crockett as he croons about the state of the music business and relationships with the quip: “I’ve always loved a game I can’t win.” 
​

41. "Yellow Rose" by Tony Logue
Album: Dark Horse
​Songwriter: Tony Logue

If there were one singer-songwriter under the radar I’d love to see break out the most, it would be Tony Logue, who has released some of my favorite songs over the last few years, but still seems to be flying under the radar. His fourth album, Dark Horse, has been one of my favorites this year with a heartland rock sound and real-life grittiness in his songs that is striking, like “Yellow Rose,” an ode to a stripper who is doing what she has to to provide for her family while her man scrapes and struggles to find ways to make a living, so that one day she can lay the fishnet hose and that life behind. 

40. "Bible Belt" by Vandoliers
Album: Life Behind Bars
Songwriters: Jenni Rose, Dustin Fleming, Cory Graves, Mark Moncrieff, Trey Alfaro & Travis Curry

​How hard must it be growing up in a strict, religious community when you’re a different kind of person – one that some Christians who don’t follow Jesus’s words and hold more conservative viewpoints don’t accept? That’s what Vandoliers sing about in “Bible Belt,” off their latest album Life Behind Bars, the group’s first since vocalist Jenni Rose came out as a trans woman. The lyrics find Rose singing about some of the worst moments of her youth in lines like: “I was hurt/I was broken/I was everything that you hate,” with Cory Graves, the band’s keyboardist/organist, wailing on an organ sound that mixes Elvis Costello’s “Radio, Radio” with the sound of church. It’s a terrific bit of cowpunk. 

39. "Solitary Tracks" by Kip Moore
Album: Solitary Tracks
Songwriters: Kip Moore, Dan Couch & Brett James

​Kip Moore broke out in the mainstream country music world in 2012 with his debut album Up All Night, which featured a No. 1 hit in “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” and a top-10 hit in “Beer Money.” I liked those songs; there was a bit of heartland rock in them that reminded me of John Mellencamp, and not some of the bad ‘80s hair bands many country stars were trying to emulate around that time. Following the debut, Moore’s music drifted a little bit outside of the mainstream; he hasn’t had a top-20 hit in the last half-decade, but he built up a loyal fan base. There wasn’t much in his work that stuck with me, until the title track of his most recent album, Solitary Tracks, which I loved from the outset. “Solitary Tracks” feels like an anthem for Moore, a lone wolf trying to do things his own way. He wrote on his Facebook page in February: “This record was accepting and finding comfort in living on the fringe away from the crowd. It’s being OK with choosing to not walk with the pack.” It might be the best song of Moore’s career.  

38. "Average American" by Colby Acuff
Album: Enjoy the Ride 
Songwriters: Colby Acuff, Chandler Brown, Noah Gunderson & Holden James Potter
 
​A lot of country music stars strive to come off as an “average American” to their legions of fans, but their view of an “average American” doesn’t really seem realistic. It at least glosses over the hardships. Colby Acuff doesn’t gloss over the real. He knows life for an “average American” isn’t always roses, and he gets honest in his song, “Average American.” The song realizes the American dream isn’t as easy as we were led to believe, and it includes struggles like debt, divorce, never being wealthy enough to own a home, etc. Written by Acuff, Chandler Brown, Holden James Potter and Noah Gunderson, it’s nice to see someone in step with what it’s actually like for many of us hard-working folks out here in the real world. 

37. "Bury Me" by Jason Isbell 
Album: Foxes in the Snow
Songwriter: Jason Isbell 

Jason Isbell’s solo album Foxes in the Snow, surely one of the Americana candidates for Album of the Year, is just his voice and guitar, featuring some of his career's most emotional songwriting and singing, with tracks split between his divorce and his new relationship. “Bury Me” opens with Isbell's fantastic voice alone for the first verse, before his guitar accompanies him on the second. It might be the countriest (particularly country & western) of his discography, with images of swinging bar doors, windy plains and typical Western iconography. However, he admits he’s neither a cowboy nor an outlaw. 
​

36. "Dollar Store" by Ben Kweller feat. Waxahatchee 
Album: Cover The Mirrors
Songwriters: Ben Kweller & Jonny Schoen

Ben Kweller has been around the indie-rock, indie-folk, etc. circles for a long time – more than two decades, in fact – but his music hadn’t yet caught my ear or attention. Then I heard “Dollar Store” early this year (probably because it features Waxahatchee on guest vocals, and my algorithm knew I’d want to listen to it), and the pain of the lyrics from a narrator who seems stuck in life without much inspiration hit me, as well as opening with this wonderfully jangly guitar tone that instantly piqued my interest, and by the end finds itself in a full-throttle barrage, as if it’s make or break time.  
 

35. "Anything But Me" by Jesse Welles
Album: Middle
Songwriter: Jesse Welles 

​Jesse Welles, a folk singer from Arkansas, has burst upon the scene relatively quickly, thanks to some songs that have gone viral on social media apps like TikTok. Don’t let the way he’s found stardom fool you, though; he’s the real deal when it comes to songwriting. My favorite track from his album Middle is “Anything But Me,” which is about everything he wishes he could have been, but himself. It includes the excellent chorus: “I should’ve been a bird/a sparrow or an eagle/a crow or a seagull/flyin’ over the sea/I should’ve been a sailor/a cowboy or a jailer/anything but me.” The chorus's vocal flow is beautiful. 

34. "Born Runnin' Out of Time" by Lukas Nelson
Album: American Romance
Songwriters: Lukas Nelson, Jon Decious & Nate Ferraro

Lukas Nelson’s “Born Runnin’ Out of Time,” which he co-wrote with Jon Decious and Nate Ferraro for his most recent album American Romance, sees the singer-songwriter (and son of legendary Willie Nelson) battling with life as a traveling musician, where it’s hard to juggle home life with road life. There’s a driving feel to the song that makes it sound like it could’ve been on an album from someone like Tom Petty or Bob Seger, and Nelson’s urgent vocal is one of the best of his career. 

33. "Returning to Myself" by Brandi Carlile 
Album: Returning to Myself 
Songwriter: Brandi Carlile  

​I wasn’t aware that Brandi Carlile needed to return to herself. Things seemed to be better than ever for the beautifully voiced singer-songwriter after years of Grammy-nominated and winning records and of performing with and becoming friends with her heroes like Joni Mitchell and Elton John. But maybe somewhere in performing with and making music with her heroes, she lost her own music and voice. “Returning to Myself,” also the name of her latest album, sees her going more inward, “returning to myself/is such a lonely thing to do/but, it’s the only thing to do.” Carlile has moments on all of her work where she hits notes that make you marvel at her vocal gift, and when she hits, “Oh, keeper, how I love you/I love you and you and you,” we feel it. 

32. "Found" by Cody Jinks 
Album: In My Blood
Songwriters: Andrew Peebles, Brett Sheroky & Ward Davis

​Cody Jinks has never shied away from being open about his fight with demons in his work, and “Found,” off his latest album In My Blood, sees him open and honest about fights he’s had in his life with the bottle, religion, etc. and wondering, “how lost is a sinner like me gonna have to be before he gets found?” Ward Davis, Andrew Peebles and Brett Sheroky wrote “Found,” but you can hear in Jinks’ performance that he’s been down this road. It’s this willingness to be open about dark matters in life that has earned Jinks a loyal fan base, and it’s nice to see he’s overcome some of his demons.  

31. "Away It Goes" by Amanda Shires
Album: Nobody's Girl
Songwriters: Amanda Shires & Lawrence Rothman

​One of Americana’s most recent tragedies was the divorce of Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires, who were basically the Americana “It” couple. Both artists laid their souls bare this year with their most recent albums: Shires’ Nobody’s Girl and Isbell’s Foxes in the Snow. There’s sadness throughout both albums, but none probably as tear-jerking as “Away It Goes” by Shires, which tells the story of a love just fading away, vanishing into thin air, with a beautiful melody and music that sort of flutters away itself and Shires’ vocal quiver fitting the emotion of the track perfectly. 

30. "Rushmere" by Mumford & Sons
Album: Rushmere
Songwriters: Marcus Mumford, Dave Cobb, Greg Kurstin & Natalie Hemby

​It might not be 2010 anymore, but Mumford & Sons are still out there, playing their terrific brand of folk-rock, featuring excellent instrumentation and anthemic vocals. “Rushmere,” the title track on the band’s fifth studio album – its first in seven years – sounds like classic Mumford & Sons with Marcus Mumford belting nostalgically about the band’s origins – Rushmere being a pond in Wimbledon Common in southwest London where Mumford, Ben Lovett and Ted Dwane first conceived the idea of forming a band. It’s a rousing good time that will make you want to scream along. 

29. "Chickasaw Church of Christ" by Muscadine Bloodline 
Album: ... And What Was Left Behind
Songwriter: Gary Stanton

​Muscadine Bloodline – the country duo of Charlie Muncaster and Gary Stanton from Southern Alabama – feels like a group that should have hit songs on mainstream country radio and be nominated for ACM and CMA awards. I’m not sure why they aren’t there yet, but they have a loyal fan base they’ve earned with real-life inspired songs like “Chickasaw Church of Christ,” a highlight of … And What Was Left Behind, one of the duo’s two albums of 2025. The song is a slice of life many have experienced with a teenage, high school love, forced to go their separate ways by impending adulthood and life changes that come with graduation. Muncaster and Stanton sound terrific together on the chorus. 

28. "Oneida" by Tyler Childers
Album: Snipe Hunter
​Songwriter: Tyler Childers  

​“Oneida” is a song Tyler Childers has had in his bag for a while. In fact, he first played it nearly a decade ago during one of his Red Barn Radio sessions in 2016. The ode to a lover who is much older than the narrator finally received a proper recording on Childers’ Snipe Hunter this year. The tune, one of the more stripped-down tracks on the album, is a lovely song about a young man learning a thing or two from a woman who is “referencing movies I’m too young to know” and remembers when Cyndi Lauper had radio hits. It’s mostly Childers and his guitar until this beautifully cacophonic of strings and horns hits near the song’s midpoint with a wondrous instrumental that exudes joy, like a boy experiencing romance for the first time. 

27. "Cerulean Skies" by Telander & Kaitlin Butts
Album: Non-Album Single 
Songwriters:  Zack Telander & Kaitlin Butts

​One of my favorite duets of 2025 was “Cerulean Skies,” by Austin-based band Telander with Oklahoma country queen Kaitlin Butts, which finds Zack Telander and Butts musing about ambition and a will to break into something bigger than their small-town life. The lines that Telander and Butts trade off on in the verses are beautiful little summations of burgeoning love like “you’re a lit cigarette when the beers are hitting me just right” and “you’re a faint little star poking through cerulean skies.” 

26. "Elderberry Wine" by Wednesday
Album: Bleeds
Songwriters: Ethan Baechtold, Karly Hartzman, MJ Lenderman, Xandy Chelmis & Richard Miller 

25. "Progress of Man (Bitcoin & Cattle)" by Hayes Carll 
Album: We're Only Human
Songwriter: Hayes Carll & Aaron Raitiere 

​Hayes Carll has been one of the best singer-songwriters in the Americana/outskirts of mainstream country music world for two decades now. His best track off his latest album, We’re Only Human, is the pointed “Progress of Man (Bitcoin & Cattle),” which he wrote with Aaron Raitiere, and explores how the “progress of man” might not actually be very progressive, hence great lines about “the world’s getting’ turned on by assholes and racists.” ‘Progress of Man’ is classic tongue-in-cheek Carll songwriting and will likely be among his many greatest works when it's all said and done.   

24. "Sailing Away" by James McMurtry 
Album: The Black Dog & the Wandering Boy
​Songwriter: James McMurtry 

​James McMurtry is known as a great songwriter with novelistic lyrics. He’s a great storyteller, but I don’t know if he gets enough credit for his melodies. “Sailing Away,” off his latest album The Black Dog and the Wandering  Boy, is an excellent example of a song in which the chorus has this terrific melody that worms its way into your head in the best way and stays there. The verses of the song tell of a weary musician having a war within themself about whether it’s even worth continuing to do what they do (“wonderin’ if I’m even worth the paper I’m printed on/it’s a judgment call”). McMurtry lays bare the mundanities of a touring musician with the type of specificity only a songwriter of his caliber can achieve. 

23. "Eileen" by Jason Isbell 
Album: Foxes in the Snow
​Songwriter: Jason Isbell 

​I suppose “Eileen” sounds better in a song than “Amanda”? Jason Isbell’s Foxes in the Snow, the first album since his divorce from fellow musician Amanda Shires, features some devastating songs undoubtedly about the harshness of the ending of a marriage. There are no heroes or villains in this quiet breakup song, just a dead relationship both played a hand in. Isbell has always been an intimate, vulnerable songwriter, but never as heartbreakingly so. 

22. "Memory Bank" by Drew & Ellie Holcomb 
Album: Memory Bank
Songwriters: Drew Holcomb, Ellie Holcomb & Cason Cooley 

​One of the best, and surely underrated, musical couples today is Drew and Ellie Holcomb, who both have successful singer-songwriter careers solo, but have made magic coming together with Memory Bank. The title track sees the husband-and-wife duo singing about how moments spent together create long-lasting memories that make a relationship fun and successful. I particularly like the opening lines: “Singing Fleetwood Mac, reading Kerouac/with an old Kodak on the dashboard.” 

21. "Casseroles" by Hailey Whitters 
Album: Corn Queen
Songwriters: Hillary Lindsey, Tom Douglas & James Slater 

​I don’t understand how Hailey Whitters hasn’t broken through as a star in mainstream country music yet, but it might have something to do with how her songwriting (though she didn’t have a hand in this one) and performance are true to real life, both the good and the bad. She has the tragedy down pat with “Casseroles,” off her latest album Corn Queen. “After the casseroles stop coming” is a terrific line about how life follows a tragedy, and such a small-town way of putting it, with the tradition of neighbors and friends bringing over food like casseroles in the aftermath of devastation. Written by Hillary Lindsey, James Slater and Tom Douglas, this can be understood by anyone who has suffered a loss. 

20. "Catch Me If You Can" by Ketch Secor 
Album: Story the Crow Told Me
​Songwriters: Ketch Secor & Jody Stevens

It’s actually somewhat surprising that Ketch Secor, the leader of Old Crow Medicine Show, took more than 25 years into his music career before releasing a solo effort. His debut album, Story the Crow Told Me, was a bit surprising in how different it sounded from his work with O.C.M.S. It’s a bit more polished in sound. That polish works well for “Catch Me If You Can,” which Secor co-wrote with Jody Stevens, and features former O.C.M.S. members Critter Fuqua and Willie Watson on backing vocals. The song both came out of old childhood nicknames and a long career on the road as a touring musician. Secor told mxdwn.com: “Ever since I was young, people have inevitably made a pun with my name. One phrase I always heard was ‘Catch Me if You Can.’ Well, last spring when I was going through this catharsis of playing back the hands of time in the proverbial rearview mirror, I sat down with Jody Stevens and wrote this song in a short bittersweet burst. I was to explore the feeling of sacrifice that it takes to love someone like me. Someone who probably is going to miss your birthday party because I’m going to be playing a show.” 

19. "Nobody Knows Your Love" by Madison Hughes & Brent Cobb
Album: All That I Am
Songwriters: Lucie Silvas, Abe Stoklasa, Daniel Tashian, Josh Jenkins & Ryan Griffin

​This has been an outstanding year for Americana/country duets. My favorite was “Nobody Knows Your Love” by Madison Hughes and Brent Cobb from Hughes’ All That I Am album. It contains one of my favorite and lovely choruses of the year: “We can be in the middle of the dance floor/fiddle and the guitar strumming along/and the raindrops drippin’/and I can’t stop trippin’ on my two left feet/and every song is you/nobody knows your love like I do.” There is such a soulful intimacy between Hughes and Cobbs, making for one of the loveliest tracks you’ll hear all year. 

18. "The Others" by Cody Jinks 
Album: In My Blood
Songwriters: Cody Jinks, Tennessee Jet & Ray Wylie Hubbard 

Cody Jinks has always found himself a champion of the “others” – the underdogs, the hard-working blue collar crowd, the cowboys and the hippies. “The Others” is his ode to all of these types who may not completely fit into the mainstream, but there are legions of them just wanting to share a moment, and they can do so at a Cody Jinks show. He told American Songwriter: “We recorded a video for that song in Chattanooga, and we had such a cool time. We had all kinds of people. You name the kind of person, and we had them. We had cowboys and punks and metalheads and goths. We had business people and just regular-looking Joes and fans.” All of these folks belong at a Cody Jinks show. 

17. "Cinnamon Blonde" by Tony Logue
Album: Dark Horse
Songwriter: Tony Logue 

​Tony Logue had one of my favorite songs of 2023 with “Thundertown,” a Bruce Springsteen-esque tune off his album, The Crumbs. He’s returned this year with another terrific album of heartland country-rock called Dark Horse. “Cinnamon Blonde” is about thinking of the one you love back home, while you’re out on the road making a living for the two of you. If you’re a fan of early Steve Earle records, you’ll enjoy this. 

16. "Bleed on Paper" by Eric Church 
Album: Evangeline vs. The Machine
Songwriters: Tucker Beathard, Casey Beathard & Monty Criswell 

Eric Church has always done things his own way – I think this is why he’s managed to carve out a little niche in mainstream country music, where he’s been able to be popular, but his music still stands out as better and different than the other popular bros of the genre. “Bleed On Paper,” written by Casey Beathard, Tucker Beathard and Monty Criswell, off Church’s latest album Evangeline vs. The Machine, is probably how he's been able to accomplish that – by putting his heart and soul into his work and never being afraid to be honest and adapt. It’s a bit surprising that Church didn’t have a hand in penning this tune (it’s the only non-cover on the album he didn’t write/co-write), but, no doubt, he identified with its message.  

15. "Bad As I Used to Be" by Chris Stapleton 
Album: F1 The Album
Songwriter: Chris Stapleton 

Chris Stapleton’s kickass bluesy-rocker “Bad As I Used to Be” was the perfect anthem for Brad Pitt’s Formula 1 driver character Sonny Hayes in this summer’s movie blockbuster, “F1,” directed by Joseph Kosinski. In fact, the scene where Pitt is testing an F1 car, with this song playing over the footage, was my favorite in the movie. “Bad As I Used to Be” sees Stapleton at full bravado, a song about knowing you’re a badass and reveling in it, and, like many Stapleton tracks, it comes equipped with terrific guitar work and solos. 

14. "Easy Money" by Charley Crockett
Album: Lonesome Drifter
​Songwriter: Charley Crockett 

Charley Crockett’s output of releasing two albums per year over the last couple of years is unmatched by anyone, especially when it comes to the quality of said releases. Lonesome Drifter was my favorite of his two this year (though this list also includes a track from Dollar A Day). My favorite track on Lonesome Drifter is “Easy Money,” which draws inspiration (at least in part) from John Schlesinger’s 1969 Oscar Best Picture winner “Midnight Cowboy” and from an old friend of Crockett’s sister, who was a stripper in Dallas. Crockett told Billboard: “It all hit me, this idea of ‘easy money,’ but if you’re poor, there’s no such thing as easy money.” Crockett’s laconic Texas drawl fits such a song perfectly. 

13. "On the Red River" by Turnpike Troubadours
Album: The Price of Admission
Songwriters: Evan Felker & Ketch Secor

​Fans of the Turnpike Troubadours know that frontman and primary songwriter Evan Felker went through Hell with alcoholism and came out on the other side a better man, and one who’s potentially more introspective than ever before. “On the Red River,” off the band’s sixth studio album The Price of Admission, sees Felker reminiscing in a country waltz on memories – some lovely, some hurtful – about living a simple life of a rancher, and how recovering from the hardship of that life and celebrating the end of the day often meant drinking. It’s not specifically a true story, but it feels as if a good amount of realism from his life snuck through. Felker told Holler: “That was based on some real people, a bunch of them, it’s not any one real story per se, but a mixture of those and my life and people I’ve known as well.” It ends with a man remembering his father after his death – thankfully for Felker, that part is fictional.  

12. "True Believer" by Jason Isbell
Album: Foxes in the Snow
Songwriter: Jason Isbell 

​Like most of the best songs on his latest album, Foxes in the Snow, Jason Isbell’s “True Believer” is an honest telling of the end of his marriage. “True Believer” mixes the many feelings that come with the end of a marriage, the sadness with the anger, the bitterness with the nostalgia. It’s Isbell at his most raw.  

11. "The Black Dog & the Wandering Boy" by James McMurtry
Album: The Black Dog & the Wandering Boy
Songwriter: James McMurtry

​“The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy,” the title track off James McMurtry’s 11th studio album, has its origins in something tragic to McMurtry and his family: his father, the legendary novelist Larry McMurtry’s aging and failing health. The mysterious figures of the title appeared to his father in hallucinations brought on by dementia before he died in 2021, and according to James’s stepmother, Faye, they were his favorite hallucinations. James McMurtry took the bit of truth and applied it to a fictional story about a character who seems to be losing his grasp on reality. 

10. "Truest Colors" by Jason Boland & the Stragglers
Album: The Last Kings of Babylon
Songwriter: Jason Boland 
​​
​Jason Boland & the Stragglers have been one of the best, and for my money the most underrated, acts in Red Dirt country music for the quarter-century they’ve been active. With each new album, Boland has at least one track that will last amongst the best work of his career, and for his latest album, The Last Kings of Babylon, that song is “Truest Colors.” “Truest Colors” sees Boland with some venom in his words and vocal on a great “screw you” song about someone or something (or both) in his life that did him wrong. Mainstream country music might be one of the devil's Boland is writing off with a line like: “to tell the truth I hate the business/it praises people I despise.” 

9. "Territory Town" by Joe Stamm Band 
Album: Little Crosses
Songwriter: Joe Stamm

​Joe Stamm Band is one of the best acts today to capture that heartland rock sound that emerged in the ‘80s, thanks to artists like John Mellencamp, which capture the highlights and lowlights of small-town life. “Territory Town,” my favorite track of the group’s latest album Little Crosses, is one of the most infectious, fun songs of the year – sort of like a modern take on Hal Ketchum’s ‘90s country hit “Small Town Saturday Night.” “Territory Town” is the tale of kids, probably late teens/early twenties, just having a blast during the summertime when there isn’t much to do but try to avoid getting into trouble. 

8. "Under a Big Sky" by Bruce Springsteen
Albums: Track II: The Lost Albums
​Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen 

​Bruce Springsteen released A TON of new music in 2025, though it was all old. Tracks II: The Lost Albums, released in June, featured 83 previously unreleased songs – all in album form (seven complete albums)- suddenly available to his avid fan base. It’s such an expansive output that I have only scratched the surface, and he’s my all-time favorite artist. The album in the compilation I spent the most time with was Somewhere North of Nashville, which would’ve essentially been Springsteen’s “country record” had it been released in the ‘90s, as initially planned. “Under a Big Sky,” a ballad that tells the tale of a man who consistently leaves behind his loved ones for the Western skies and ranching work, is the standout track. Springsteen’s vocal is one of his best, perfectly matching the plaintive cry of the steel guitar and harmonica, and the feel of the lyrics.   

7. "Old Melodies" by Paul Thorn 
Album: Life Is Just a Vapor
​Songwriter: Paul Thorn 

I’m not sure there was a line from a song this year that exemplified 2025 more than: “’Amazing Grace’ used to be our favorite song, but now it’s ‘We Shall Overcome’.” The line from Thorn’s “Old Melodies,” the final track on his latest album Life Is Just a Vapor, blew me away the first time I heard it, and it has ever since. It’s a perfect statement about the country we’re currently living in, but came out of something experienced in Thorn’s life, according to his website: “We had a family problem a long time ago, a relative that ran off the tracks with drugs and everything. When my dad was dealing with the pain of the heartache that somebody he loved was in a dark hole, he was just standing there, crying. And he said, ‘Man, ‘Amazing Grace’ used to be my favorite song, but now it’s ‘We Shall Overcome.’ Boy, that just hit me right between the eyes. They’re both great songs, but ‘Amazing Grace’ is more like a praise song. ‘We Shall Overcome’ is, ‘We got something we gotta deal with, and we’re gonna deal with it, and we’re gonna get past it.’ I thought that was a beautiful thing he said.” 

6. "Melt in the Sun" by Mason Via
Album: Mason Via
Songwriters: Mason Via & Charlie Chamberlain

​Mason Via’s “Melt in the Sun,” off his debut, self-titled album, is one of the most beautiful songs of the year, both lyrically and instrumentally, and shows the young fella, who began his career with a stint in Old Crow Medicine Show, might be a force to be reckoned with in roots genres. The song finds Via singing about an undying, timeless love over some of the year’s best picking and playing, featuring a beauty of a mandolin solo from Aaron Ramsey. The instrumentation featuring Ramsey, Via on guitar, Jason Davis on banjo, Jim Van Cleve on fiddle and Jeff Partin on dobro all meld in an intertwining glory. Via told American Songwriter: “I was inspired by watching The War on Drugs shred a sunset performance at Bonnaroo for my first time, I wanted to write something in a similar psychedelic indie rock vein of music.” 

5. "Outlaw Country" by Dylan Earl 
Album: Level-Headed Even Smile
​Songwriter: Dylan Earl 

​Ain’t it funny how many folks in this country who view themselves as “outlaw” are, in fact, a bunch of bootlicking sycophantic authority worshippers. That’s not what the Outlaw Movement in country music of the ‘70s was all about. So, I was tickled pink when I first heard Dylan Earl’s “Outlaw Country,” which torches the idea of the MAGA American male and the absurdity and hypocrisy run amok in this country. It’s a twangy, honky tonk song with a bunch of punk ethos behind it in its openness to others. It’s also a great example of how being from somewhere – as Dylan is from Arkansas and identifies with the Deep South – doesn’t mean you’re a stereotypical type of person, as folks from other regions might assume.  

4. "Sugar in the Tank" by Julien Baker & TORRES
Album: Send A Prayer My Way
Songwriter: Julien Baker & Mackenzie Scott

​Some would call the collaboration between Julien Baker and TORRES indie-rock, but I saw the term “queer country” published somewhere earlier in the year about the duo and would prefer to label, at least, “Sugar in the Tank” that. The vocals of the two meld beautifully in this tune about completely giving yourself over to another in a romantic sense, in a way that might actually be life-saving. 

3. "Heaven Passing Through" by Turnpike Troubadours
Album: The Price of Admission
Songwriter: Evan Felker

​My favorite tracks from the most recent Turnpike Troubadours album, The Price of Admission, the band’s sixth studio release, find frontman and primary songwriter Evan Felker perhaps quieter and more introspective than he’s ever been, which is interesting because this band has had many barn-burners among their best work throughout their tenure. On “Heaven Passing Through,” Felker reflects on life’s little pleasures, like stargazing with his three-year-old, and realizes that it is these moments that mean the world, and that “living in the here and now” is all one really needs sometimes. It’s beauty in simplicity, something Felker has always managed to do among the best of anyone in his field.  

2. "Raised by Wolves" by Lola Kirke
Album: Trailblazer
Songwriters: Lola Kirke & Daniel Tashian 

​Lola Kirke is cool as hell. That’s a realization I’ve come away with from listening to her music in the last few years, culminating on one of the year’s best albums, Trailblazer. Her voice has a warm, husky quality that gives it a soulful feel, which I’d consider to be indie-country. My favorite track from her excellent album is “Raised by Wolves,” which she wrote with Daniel Tashian on their first collaboration. Kirke told The Line of Best Fit about working with Tashian: “I’m a huge fan, so I was extremely nervous for our session and weirdly decided to break the ice by forcing him to let me read the first chapter of my then unfinished book, in which I say, ‘I was raised by wolves in the wildnerness, but the wolves in question repurposed vintage nightgowns as dinner dresses and the wilderness consisted of various brownstones scattered below 14th Street.’ Fortunately, he found this inspiring, not self-indulgent, and we wrote the song.” It’s a beautiful song about feeling like an outcast and finding solace in someone from a similar background. 

1. "Gravelweed" by Jason Isbell 
Album: Foxes in the Snow
​Songwriter: Jason Isbell

​No lyric hit me as hard this year as “now that I live to see my melodies betray me/I’m sorry the love songs all mean different things today” from Jason Isbell’s “Gravelweed.” Isbell and Amanda Shires were the “it” couple in the Americana musical community that I’ve loved since the first time I heard Isbell’s music more than a decade ago. They were “goals,” as the kids like to say. But the marriage ended, leaving a fan base unsure how to listen to terrific songs like “Cover Me Up” and “If We Were Vampires.” That line seems to be written just as much for Isbell’s legions of fans as it was for him and his ex-wife.