Let’s go girls! It was the girls that got me into country music back in the mid-2000s. The first country song I ever liked was the Dixie Chicks and artists like Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, and a young Taylor Swift dominated my playlist. Even before I would have admitted to you that I enjoyed country. But now I couldn’t love it more. And I will always be a huge advocate for the girls in this industry. While I didn’t experience it in real time, the 90s were dominated by the women in country. But for years if you weren’t Taylor before her shift to pop, Carrie, or Miranda it was tough goings to get airplay. There were some really really rough times but recently we’ve started to see a shift.

I’ve been a huge Kelsea Ballerini fan since day one and she continues to impress me album after album. The vulnerability and top-tier songwriting showcased in her EP Rolling Up The Welcome Mat can’t be understated. I think Carly Pearce’s 29: Written In Stone was one of the two best country albums of 2021. Like her personality or not Maren Morris has released some fantastic music and seen success in both country and crossing over to pop. And we can’t forget Lainey Wilson who has catapulted herself into another stratosphere over the last year.

But now that that generation is multiple projects in, we are starting to see new players emerge in the industry. And there are so many incredible artists to be excited about. If you love girl power, songwriting, and all around talent then you’ll want to make sure each of these 5 women in country is on your radar. Some I’m sure you’ve heard of while others this may be your first introduction to. But I bet it won’t be the last.

• Megan Moroney

  You’ve likely heard of Megan Moroney. “Tennesee Orange” was a huge song this fall and her stop at Coyote Joes in Charlotte last December was sold out. She’s secured a spot on Kenny Chesney’s stadium tour for 2024, so things are definitely going well. But if you haven’t done a deep dive or listened to her full project Lucky you need to. Moroney’s songwriting shines through in tracks like “Mustang or Me” and “Traitor Joe”. Her spunky personality is highlighted in her current single “I Ain’t Pretty”.

• Ashley Cooke

  You may have seen her on The Bachelorette or on tour with Luke Byran last year. I don’t remember what video it was that caught my attention on TikTok several years ago, but something did. I’ve been lucky enough to see Ashley a few times mainly in intimate acoustic settings and she impresses me more and more each time I see her perform. Her recently released project features 24 tracks. Highlights for me include “It’s Been A Year”, which is one of my favorite songs released in a while, “Running Back”, and “Your Place”.

• Nicolle Galyon

  I can almost guarantee you’ve heard Nicole Gaylon’s songwriting even if you didn’t know it. She’s been a part of a large number of hit records including Dan + Shay’s “Tequila”, Miranda Lambert’s “Automatic”, and Kenny Chesney’s “All the Pretty Girls”, so yeah like big-name cuts. Over the last couple of years, she’s released two autobiographical projects of her own firstborn (2022) and second wife 2023.  Some of my favorite tracks include “winner” and “self care”. I also love to just find playlists of songs she’s written even if she’s not the artist on the track. If that wasn’t enough Nicole Gaylon also has her own label that is part of Big Loud (the home of Morgan Wallen, HARDY, etc) called Songs + Daughters. She even works with the next artist on this list in that capacity.

• Lauren Waktins

  The first time I heard “Shirley Temple” I instantly said who is this? The clever songwriting displayed not only in this track but others including “Ole Miss”, “Anybody But You”, and “Sleeping In My Makeup” (just to name a few) had me hooked. Seriously the ideas and parallels she comes up with are incredible. Lauren is just getting started but I had the chance to see her on tour the other week with Connor Smith and she has such a bright future.

• Alana Springsteen

  It’s no surprise that this track “Taylor Did” is the one that first drew my attention to Alana Springsteen. And I couldn’t love this track more, as someone who also grew up with Taylor Swift and felt like she understood me when no one else did. But her project Twenty Something is full of great songs including duets with Chris Stapleton and Mitchell Tenpenny. “Different Kind Of Country” and “You Don’t Deserve A Country Song” are some of my other favorite tracks.

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