Sounds like my kind of music.
Today, Nashville native and up-and-comer Lauren Watkins announced her debut album The Heartbroken Record, which is slated for release on June 21st.
Lauren is a fantastic songwriter, releasing several great EP’s over the last couple years called Introducing: Lauren Watkins and Introducing: The Heartbreak that showcase her unique writing and vintage, throwback sound that is always so simple and beautiful.
Obviously, she has a thing for writing sad songs and making sad music (and I love it), and she says this project represents the past several years of her life, which, as you guessed it, have been filled with heartbreak and she’s ready to finally get it off her chest:
“I didn’t want to just put an album out – I wanted it to be purposeful. It’s the past several years of my life, and that was just so much heartbreak and dramatic girl-feelings, but I think in a really deep and relatable way… and it just needs to get off my chest.
It’s exactly the space in country I thought was missing and wanted to fill. It’s sweet and warm, but also gritty and tough at the same time, and that’s my favorite thing. I love it.”
Lauren is featured as a songwriter on all 17-songs on the tracklist, and it features co-writes some of Nashville’s best writers in Jessie Jo Dillon, Ashley Monroe, Luke Laird, Nicolle Galyon and many more.
Lauren also managed to land Sheryl Crow on “Set My Heart On Fire,” which I can’t wait to hear:
“I feel like these songs have been in me since I was born, I just needed to live a little so I could write ‘em down! I can’t wait for you to hear it.”
In addition, Lauren released a new song today called “Settling Things,” which was written by Lauren along with Lauren Hungate and Luke Laird.
It’s a gorgeous, heartfelt tune about settling down in the town you grew up in, with hopes and dreams for bigger things but no real way out. She admits that she’s happy sometimes, and it’s not all bad, but she can’t shake the feeling of wanting more for her life:
“We’re all goin’ to heaven
But no one gets the hell outta dodge
The high heels mama lived in
Don’t fit but we’re stuck with
Setting down, settling scores
Living a life we shouldn’t settle for
We settle like rust on the chains of the porch swing
This town has a way of settling things”
When I first listened to it, the song immediately reminded me of Kacey Musgraves’ “Merry Go ‘Round” in terms of the sentiment, and that’s one of my all-time favorite songs so of course I’ve already fallen in love with “Settling Things” and highly recommend you check it out too:
The Heartbroken Record tracklist:
Leavers Leave (Lauren Watkins, Lance Miller, Brad Warren, Brett Warren)
Mama, I Made It (Lauren Watkins, Rocky Block, Lauren Hungate)
Heartbroken Record (Lauren Watkins, Will Bundy, Caroline Watkins)
Sad Songs And You (Lauren Watkins, Lauren Hungate)
Set My Heart On Fire (feat. Sheryl Crow) (Lauren Watkins, Emily Landis, Summer Overstreet, Lydia Vaughan)
Stuck In My Ways (Lauren Watkins, Will Bundy, David Garcia, Emily Landis)
Gatlinburg (Lauren Watkins, Jessie Jo Dillon, Carter Faith, Lauren Hungate, Ashley Monroe, Caroline Watkins)
Anybody But You (Lauren Watkins, Rodney Clawson, Mark Holman, Ernest Keith Smith)
Settling Things (Lauren Watkins, Lauren Hungate, Luke Laird)
One Trick Pony (Lauren Watkins, Will Bundy, Lydia Vaughan, Caroline Watkins)
Fly On The Wall (feat. Jake Worthington) (Lauren Watkins, Andy Sheridan, Brad Warren, Brett Warren)
Shirley Temple (Lauren Watkins, Nicolle Galyon, Meg McRee)
Pretend You’re Coming Home (feat. Ashley Monroe) (Lauren Watkins, Ashley Monroe, Mark Trussell)
Jealous Of Jane (Lauren Watkins, Brad Warren, Brett Warren, Caroline Watkins)
Cowboys On Music Row (feat. Carter Faith) (Lauren Watkins, Jessie Jo Dillon, Carter Faith, Lauren Hungate, Ashley Monroe, Caroline Watkins)
Burn The Bridge (Lauren Watkins, Will Bundy, Emily Landis, Mark Trussell)
Too Much To Dream (Lauren Watkins, Forrest Finn, Nicolle Galyon)
