5 Must-Hear New Country Songs: Megan Moroney, Kenny Chesney, Dierks Bentley, I'm With Her & More
Kenny Chesney and Megan Moroney, 'You Had to Be There'
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On this breezy, jaunty summer tune, Moroney reminisces on a summer filled with music and magic, first as a fan soaking in music from the nosebleed seats, then as an artist. She chronicles her journey from attending a Chesney concert in Atlanta seven years ago, to being an opener on his 2024 tour. Chesney joins on the second verse, his warm, conversational voice offering advice on lines including 'Keep your heart on your sleeve and your chin held high.' The song has a classic Chesney feel and serves as an excellent vehicle for their intertwined voices.
Dierks Bentley, 'Standing in the Sun'
Dierks Bentley offers another preview of his upcoming album Broken Branches (out June 13). His latest song, written by Kyle Sturrock, compares life's hardships to hurricanes and freezing snows, but maintains that his lover's affections are life-refreshing, noting that 'noise dies down and life slows up' when he's with the one he loves. Gently rippling guitars and a laid-back tone echo the song's sentiments.
Julie Williams, 'The Women Who Made Me'
Williams, known for her work on her 2024 EP Tennessee Moon and her 2023 self-titled project, offers up a new song dedicated to confident, resilient women. Jangly guitars and serene fiddlework lace with Williams' honeyed vocal as she pays tribute not only her mother, but also the influence of many of country music's female greats. She namechecks songs including The Chicks' 'Wide Open Spaces,' Trisha Yearwood's 'XXXs and OOOs' and Sara Evans's 'Born to Fly,' and celebrates the strength and wisdom of her mother, who 'carried a heavy load/ Never let on,' and taught her to lean into music as a solace.
Leftover Salmon feat. Sam Bush and Del McCoury, 'Let's Party About It'
Venerated jam band Leftover Salmon has been known for its latticework of country, bluegrass, jazz and rock for more than three decades, and on the new LP, Let's Party About It (which released May 9 on Compass Records), it's clear the group has no intention of pausing its eclectic, free-wheeling brand of music and dedication to top-shelf musicianship. The project's title track further spotlights Leftover Salmon's communal approach to music-making, and highlights Dave Matthews Band's Jeff Coffin on soprano saxophone, as well as Sam Bush on fiddle. The rollicking tune pulls listeners in with its lively spirit and urges them that is better spent united in partying rather than in harmful division.
I'm With Her, 'Wild and Clear and Blue'
This celebrated trio of Sarah Jarosz, Sara Watkins and Aoife O'Donovan released their first collaborative album as I'm With Her in 2018, with See You Around. They return with a new release via Rounder Records. On the project's title track, backed by a mesh of violin, guitar, piano and mandolin, they reminisce about childhood moments spent soaking in music that played in their mothers' cars, finding a gem of an album in dusty record bins, and how those moments spurred their musical passions and have stayed with them as the years have passed. Their shimmering harmonies are tightly woven purity, giving the song's nostalgic message ample space to take center stage. The project marks a glorious return for this talented trio.
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As he releases his 11th studio album Broken Branches, out today (June 13), Dierks Bentley knows more than a bit about constructing an album — and a career — that's going to endure. After two decades spent notching 18 chart-topping Country Airplay hits and establishing himself as seasoned headliner, the artist, who spent nights early in his career soaking in bluegrass music at Nashville's Station Inn and who collaborated with the bluegrass stalwarts Del McCoury Band on his debut 2003 album, says he's tried to approach his career like a bluegrass band does a performance. 'It's very collaborative, and all the pieces are important. You can't make bluegrass music without all those unique instruments and unique voices,' Bentley tells Billboard. 'I've tried to work with great people in every aspect of my career. It's mixing my love of bluegrass instrumentation with my love of playing big rooms, and that requires big electric guitars and drums and bass. 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'She's exactly who she is offstage as she is onstage, and she is awesome. I sent the song to her, and she was in Scottsdale [Arizona]. She went into a studio we found out there and put down the vocal. She's one of the true trailblazers in country music.' When Bentley heard the song 'Broken Branches,' written by Zach Abend, Beau Bailey and 'Oil Money' hitmaker Graham Barham, he says it 'gave us a story' to construct the album around.' He invited Riley Green and Country Music Hall of Fame member John Anderson to sing with him, linking together three generations of country hitmakers. Green was Bentley's first call. 'Right away he was in on it and a couple of days later we were in the studio. While he's singing, I was thinking, 'How can I make this even more special?'' he recalls. 'John Anderson came to mind, because the link between 'Broken Branches' and [Anderson's 1983 hit] 'Black Sheep,' just subconsciously hit me. He came in the studio by himself like a week later. What a legend. He came off the road—he drives himself in his RV to all his gigs, which is so classic. His RV had broken down in Valdosta, Georgia and he spent three days in a motel—hard M—waiting to get it fixed. He's the real deal and always has been.' The song wraps with a bit of good-natured, ad-libbed ribbing as Bentley, Green and Anderson ended up recording the ending together. 'You hear us talking [like on] Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffett's 'It's Five O'Clock Somewhere,' I like that stuff,' Bentley says. 'It's funny and it sticks out in my mind when I listen to those records. This song, it was all done together. It wasn't no AI, no overdubbing or editing, just us around one mic kind of giving each other crap.' The song naturally felt like the title track that tied the project together. 'When I'm looking for songs, I'm trying to find those songs that are like little broken branches off the family tree,' Bentley explains. 'Not the big popular ones, not the ones that sound like a big hit on radio. Those are great, but I'm trying to find songs that are a little bit different.' He adds, 'That really started with the [2014] Riser record and the song 'Riser.' I heard 'Broken Branches' and thought it's a great song because I'm a broken branch. Most of my friends are broken branches. All the people I know that came to Nashville to do something in music are doing something that their family probably didn't do. And they're doing it; they love country music.' Throughout his career, Bentley has prioritized lifting up the next generation of artists, sifting through sounds and championing those artists whose music catches his ear. Burgeoning artist Stephen Wilson Jr. co-wrote two songs on the album, 'Cold Beer Can' and 'Something Worth Fixing.' Bentley has also shared the stage with recent breakout artists like Red Clay Strays and Zach Top, the latter of whom is opening for Bentley on his the Broken Branches tour. 'I love the spot I'm in in country music. I've been around a lot of the older cats, and I love those guys—but I also love watching what the younger artists are doing,' he says. 'I love what's happening in country music right now and I love seeing those guys have that success. I first saw Red Clay Strays play at our Seven Peaks Festival a while back. I probably personally told like 500 people about those guys. Same with Zach. I've known about him since his bluegrass days, just [through] having a bunch of bluegrass guys in my band. Watching him come over to country and do what he's done, it's been fun to watch.' The album ends with the reflective 'Don't Cry For Me,' which Bentley wrote with Jim Beavers. The song finds him taking stock of his life and career thus far and assuring that he's happy with how it's all turned out. 'It's very personal for me just knowing that one day it all does come to an end, whether it's your music career or your life,' he says. 'I've been really blessed in my time here in Nashville. It's just been a great career and I've still got a lot left, hopefully, to do.' One thing not on that list? Making movies. Though many of Bentley's music videos, including the clip for 'She Hates Me,' make use of his natural comedic talents, that's as far as he's likely to go as an actor. 'I love making music videos, but I don't have any desire to do anything beyond that,' he explains. 'I get sent some stuff, and sometimes people think, 'Hey, everyone just wants to be in a movie,' and I just don't. I love film and movies and shows, but I think I'm pretty good in my lane.' But it's likely fans could see him once again revisiting his bluegrass roots: 'I think about that all the time when I'm listening to [SiriusXM channel] Bluegrass Junction. It'd be fun to make another record like that.' 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