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It's time for our weekly roundup of all of this week's biggest and best new releases from the world of country and Americana, and there's no time to waste. We've got a lot of new music to get through, including big new ones from Bailey Zimmerman, Russell Dickerson and Morgan Wade, plus lots more.
You can listen along to this week's Best New Country on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon and YouTube.
Best New Country Cover Star
This week's Best New Country cover star is Zach Top. The 'Beer for Breakfast' singer unveils the second track from his highly anticipated sophomore album, Ain’t In It For My Health, due out on 29 August. 'South of Sanity' is one of Zach Top's classic big weepers, as he loses his mind over losing a girl.
The new project follows last year’s breakthrough debut album, Cold Beer & Country Music, and comes on the heels of Top recently achieving his first #1 song at country radio with 'I Never Lie,' being named ACM New Male Artist of the Year.
New Country and Americana Singles
It's another busy week in Best New Country this week, with big new songs from Gabby Barrett, Tim McGraw and Chris Janson. Plus, country rock superstar HARDY has confirmed his new album COUNTRY! COUNTRY! for September with the intriguingly titled, 'Bottomland.'
The straightforwardly country ballad is a stripped back grungey, softly strummed cut reminiscent of Stephen Wilson Jr., as HARDY pleads with the listener to let him be buried in the place where he was born and raised.
HARDY and his co-writers are behind 'The Easy Part,' the new single from country powerhouse Gabby Barrett too.
“I enjoyed writing on this one," shared Barrett. "It captures that emotional moment when someone thinks leaving is ‘The Easy Part,’ but what they don’t realize is that the memory of who you were to them will be the hardest to forget. It’s not about encouraging walking away, but about the weight that love can carry even after it’s gone. In some ways, it feels like a distant cousin to ‘I Hope.’ It’s a different kind of heartbreak, one that settles in slow and quiet.”
Elsewhere in this week's Best New Country we get another taste of Bailey Zimmerman's forthcoming sophomore album, Different Night Same Rodeo, before it comes out next week with 'Chevy Silverado,' and Russell Dickerson continues to tease his new long player with the playful country punk pop summer anthem, 'Worth Your Wild.' Co-written with longtime collaborators Parker Welling and Casey Brown, the track delivers catchy melodies, heartfelt lyrics, and a whole lot of country charm.
“‘Worth Your Wild’ is a high-energy heater with a beat that just sticks with you - we added it to the tour setlist immediately,” said Dickerson. “It’s everything I loved growing up - Blink 182, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The 1975 - all coming together in one catchy, feel-good Russell Dickerson song.”
We've got a new single from our favourite country girl group, Just Jayne. 'Breathe' marks the group's fifth release this year, as the memories come flooding back when a relationship ends and they distract themselves with a little post-breakup denial. While Colbie Caillat forms a country supertrio of her own when she teams up with Maddie & Tae for 'Live Without.'
The track, co-written by Caillat - alongside frequent collaborator and Hall of Fame songwriter Liz Rose and producers Eric Arjes and Jimmy Robbins - offers a fresh and uplifting take on heartbreak, blending heartfelt lyricism with a feel-good melody.
“This is a new song that really hits home in what I’m experiencing in life right now,” shared Caillat. “It’s an upbeat song that releases you from heartbreak. I’ve known Maddie & Tae for many years - they’re two of the sweetest, most humble, genuine women with so much talent and excitement for life. They’re a great example of healthy women in the music industry, and I’m proud to call them my friends.”
Watch them in the studio recording the song in the video for 'Live Without' below.
Elsewhere, Kayley Green releases the vulnerable ballad, 'Dollars,' Ashley Kutcher is celebrating the simple things on 'Fancy (The Elantra Song)' and Austin Williams is hoping 'Somebody Single' he's seen at the bar won't be single when she leaves at the end of the night.
Described to us as sounding like "if Alex Chilton decided to make a The Who album", Of The Dell are made up of twin brothers Corey and Cody Hatton, joined by powerhouse drummer Jeffrey McClelland, and their new harmony soaked single, 'Care if I Ride?' has been getting a lot of love in the Holler offices this last week.
“This song was written a few years back in Jeff’s studio and kind of as a joke," Cody Hatton of the group shared. "It was quoting a friend from work who asked me for a ride home. We showed it to Kory and he really hit it home. He really loved it and relayed a whole new meaning behind it.”
Brit country troubadour Jack Browning releases the brilliantly titled 'Speak Your Mind (But Ride A Fast Horse)' today.
"This one came from a place of frustration and clarity at the same time,” Browning shares. “I had folks I’d never even met deciding they didn’t like what I was doing because of their own insecurities, but it took time for me to realise that it wasn’t on my account. The cliques, the discrediting, it started to get to me and I got in my own head for a time. But you’ve got to say your piece — even if it ruffles feathers. Just make sure you’ve got the horsepower to keep charging forward with a healthy boldness and authenticity.”
Plus we've got new songs from Tyler Rich, Kaylee Bell, Paul Cauthen, Karen Jonas and Maddox Batson, while Ramona and the Holy Smokes release the brilliant 'Gonna Be Mine' and we've got an intriguing new single from Holler fave Anna Bates.
New Country and Americana Albums and EPs
We've got songs from big new albums from Eli Young Band, The Wood Brothers, Chris Janson and Sunny Sweeney this week. Plus our Holler pick from Morgan Wade's new album, The Party Is Over (recovered).
Anne Wilson releases God Story EP and we've got the title track from Zandi Holup's new long player, WILDFLOWER, a revelatory body of work that finds her embracing her singular eccentricity. Holup joined forces with producer Ryan Hadlock and spent a month recording at Bear Creek Studios in the woods of northwest Washington. With the help of several musicians from nearby Seattle, Holup and Hadlock dreamed up an intentionally simplistic but exquisitely detailed sound firmly centered on her voice and lyrics.
Sam Barber treats us to five more new songs with the full release of his 7-track EP, Music For The Soul, and we've got the title track in our playlist today.
The EP begins an exciting new chapter for Barber following the breakout success of his 2024 debut album, Restless, and includes the previously released 'Home Tonight' and 'Man of the Year.'
Spotlight Song of the Week
Every week we turn on Holler spotlight on a song that we feel deserves a little extra light shining on it and this week we're showing some love for 'Strawberry Thief,' the lovely new single from Kolton Moore & The Clever Few.
A tender ode to the joys of fatherhood, it's the latest taste of their upcoming album A Place That I Call Home, due out in September.
“This one is close to home, probably my favorite song on the record,” says Kolton about the new song. “For me, the line that says it all is, ‘Butterflies and dandelions / A little strawberry thief,’ about my daughter always getting to the ripe strawberries in the garden before me or my wife can make it to them. It’s about me coming to the realization that memories like that won’t ever be recreated; they’ll always just be memories.”
“I knew this video would be an emotional experience, but as we shot the video and I kept seeing the clips of our little girl growing up — all the emotions of the song really came flooding in," he adds about the video. "The idea for the home video / projector look came from my wife. I was kind of at a loss as to how we could visually capture this song and it make sense to everyone. The projector depicts how the memories look like in my head. Our evening fishing trips, swimming in the summer sun, making funny faces with mommy, eating all of the strawberries out of the garden before we even make it inside … this is what ‘Strawberry Thief’ is to me.”
Watch the video for 'Strawberry Thief' below.
Check out this week's new country and americana song releases and listen to the full playlist below:
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1.
South of Sanity
Zach Top
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2.
Chevy Silverado
Bailey Zimmerman
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3.
Bottomland
HARDY
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4.
Music for the Soul
Sam Barber
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5.
'Til The Road Runs Out
Anne Wilson
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6.
Worth Your Wild
Russell Dickerson
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7.
The Easy Part
Gabby Barrett
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8.
Parking Garage
Morgan Wade
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9.
Breathe
Just Jayne
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10.
Dollars
Kayley Green
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11.
Fight For A Girl
Chris Janson
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12.
Live Without (feat. Maddie & Tae)
Colbie Caillat
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13.
Whiskey Told Ya (feat. Corey Kent)
Eli Young Band
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14.
King Rodeo - Live from the Inaugural Music City Rodeo
Tim McGraw
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15.
Wildflower
Zandi Holup
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16.
Somebody Single
Austin Williams
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17.
Fancy (The Elantra Song)
Ashley Kutcher
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18.
Family Tree
Austin Snell
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19.
No More
Maddox Batson
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20.
Find It Where I Can
Sunny Sweeney
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21.
Cattleman's Call
Scott Wolverton
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22.
The Interview
Anna Bates
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23.
Redneck Weekend
Josie Sal
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24.
Oreo Ice Cream
Orillia
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25.
arson games
Karen Jonas
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26.
Thankful
Paul Cauthen
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27.
Gonna Be Mine
Ramona and the Holy Smokes
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28.
Low High
Omer Netzer
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29.
Puff of Smoke
The Wood Brothers
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30.
The Thing About Us
Kaylee Bell
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31.
Lost Time
Tyler Rich
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32.
Don't Leave - Jolene Remix
Chase Matthew
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33.
Hennessy in Tennessee
Jake Banfield
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34.
Strawberry Thief
Kolton Moore & the Clever Few
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35.
I Love Leavers
The Band Loula
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36.
Didn't We
Adam Doleac
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37.
All 'Bout
Tep No
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38.
Your Cheatin Heart (Live At The Opry)
Ashley McBryde
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39.
You Don't Love Me Anymore
Gannon Fremin & CCREV
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40.
Man I Used To Be
Dax
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41.
REAL ONE
Jon Langston
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42.
I'm Leavin' You
High Valley
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43.
A Few Things
Canaan Cox
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44.
Hold You To It
Timmy McKeever
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45.
Remind Me
CeCe
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46.
Take That Buckle Home
Wade Forster
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47.
Same
Sam Grow
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48.
Summer Like You
David J
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49.
Cheating (Acoustic)
Kaylee Rose
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50.
Born Again
Sammy Arriaga
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51.
Down The Road
Leon Majcen
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52.
If a Bar Served You
Blake Tyler
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53.
Under Covers
Annika Catharina
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54.
Fight With Misery
Levi Bloom
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55.
Here for the Beer
Wynn Williams
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56.
Scenic Route
Anna Vaus and Madison Hughes
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57.
Longer Than A Little While
The Prairie States
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58.
Wildflower
Sydney Mack
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59.
Can't Outrun The Heartache
Colby Lee Swift
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60.
Care To Look
Keller Cox
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61.
Easy Mode
HENRY
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62.
Good Clean Fun
Maddie Medley
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63.
Cloud And Fire
Josiah Queen
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64.
Always Flowers
Kylie Frey
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65.
Dirty (feat. Creed Fisher)
Colt Ford
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66.
Care if I Ride?
Of The Dell
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67.
Garbage
Angela Autumn
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68.
Just Another One
Greazy Alice
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69.
Take the money and run
Ollie Hawkins
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70.
Speak Your Mind (But Ride A Fast Horse)
Jack Browning
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71.
Rebel Rose
Travis Roberts
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72.
Lonesome & Blue
Alyssa & Wayne Brewer
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73.
'94
Hunter Root
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74.
Callin Ya
Emily Hines
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