Lainey Wilson is having a moment right now, and I’m so here for it.
The Louisiana native has had what many would call a breakout last year or two (that even feels like an understatement), though she was in Nashville for right around a decade grinding and busting her ass to get to this moment.
Suffice all that to say, she’s more than earned it and certainly deserves it, and as a longtime fan of hers, I absolutely love to see her getting so much attention and becoming the superstar that I know she’s always been.
I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting her yet, either, but from what I’ve seen and heard, it sounds like she really is the absolute gem that she comes across as, so of course, I think all of us are rooting for her and hope she is happy and in love with whoever she chooses to date.
And in a recent feature with American Songwriter, she opened up about her relationship with boyfriend Devlin “Duck” Hodges former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, who she debuted on the ACM Awards red carpet earlier this year, more than she ever really has.
The former quarterback was a four-year starter at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama before being signed as an undrafted free agent by the Steelers in 2019.
He was named the starter during the 2019 season when Mason Rudolph went down with an injury, going 3-3 as a starting quarterback before being waived by the Steelers and signed to the practice squad prior to the 2020 season.
Hodges then played one season for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League before retiring from college football.
And Lainey says that she’s very happy with him, adding that they have a very “healthy” relationship and Duck loves the songs she writes about him the most… and what man wouldn’t? He’s one lucky guy.
She also said that the next record she’s working on will have a few love songs, kind of a first for her, adding sweetly that “he makes it very easy” to write those kinds of tunes:
“Of course, the songs that I write about him are his favorite. During this really busy season of life that I’m in, I want to write about things that make me feel grounded or make me feel like I’m at home because I’m never at home.
This next record, it needs to be different. Let’s not try to fix what’s not broke at this point, but it needs to be a step up. It needs to show a different side of me.
It’s going to be really easy to show that different side of me because I am in a very healthy relationship, and you’re gonna be hearing things out of me that I didn’t even know I was capable of…
I’ve never written a love song in my life until the last two and a half years. He makes it very easy for me to do that.”
She continued, saying that it’s been cool to let some of her walls down and admit that she’s “happy, healthy and in love” because she didn’t know if she’d ever really be able to say that:
“It’s really cool when you can completely let those walls down. I’m learning things about myself right now that I didn’t even know was possible.
I’m able to share more of my life. Being able to say, ‘Hey, I’m happy and healthy and in love,’ it’s something I didn’t know I was gonna get a chance to say.”
Of course, part of what makes Lainey so special is her authenticity and relatability, and that’s of course a huge piece of her songwriting magic:
“If I’m going through things, if I’m going through a breakup, or if I’m dealing with a family member being super sick, I’m writing about that.
I’m really trying to tune into those things, those true feelings. It’s important for me to take advantage of those feelings and not be scared of them.
If anything, it helps me navigate my way through the entire situation and helps me out on the other end of it.”
While it sounds like she’s still in the early stages of writing and cutting songs for the next project, I, for one, absolutely cannot wait to hear all the love songs she’s come up with and everything else she’ll deliver on the next album.
It might just be her best work yet because it sounds like she’s happier than she’s ever been, which is amazing to hear because she’s such a queen and truly one of the good ones.
Lainey’s current single at country radio is “Watermelon Moonshine”:
