NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� It's late July. is somewhere in Iowa, holding a real road dog 鈥� her French bulldog named Hippie 鈥� close to her chest. She's on her tour bus, zipping across the Midwest, just another day in her jet set lifestyle. Next month, she'll release her fifth studio album, the aptly named 鈥淲hirlwind," a full decade after her debut record. Today, like every day, she's just trying to enjoy the ride.
鈥淚t's been a journey," she reflects on her career. 鈥淚鈥檝e been in Nashville for 13 years and I tell people I鈥檓 like, it feels like I got there yesterday, but I also feel like I鈥檝e been there my whole life.鈥�
Wilson is a fast talker and a She grew up on a farm in rural Baskin, Louisiana. As a teenager, she worked as a Hannah Montana impersonator; when she got to Nashville in early adulthood, she lived in a camper trailer and hit countless open mic nights, trying to make it in Music City. It paid off, but it took time, really launching with the release of her 2020 single, 鈥淭hings a Man Oughta Know,鈥� and her last album, 2022's 鈥� a rollicking country-rock record that encompasses Wilson鈥檚 unique 鈥渃ountry with a flare鈥� attitude.
鈥淚 had always heard that Nashville was a 10-year town. And I believe 鈥楾hings a Man Oughta Know鈥� went No. 1, like, 10 years and a day after being there," she recalls. 鈥淚 should have had moments where I should have packed it up and went home. I should have went back to Louisiana. But I never had those feelings. I think there鈥檚 something really beautiful about being naive. And, since I was a little girl, I鈥檝e always had stars in my eyes.鈥�
These days, she鈥檚 a Grammy winner, the first woman to win entertainer of the year at the CMAs since in 2011 (she took home from the Academy of Country Music), she's acted in the hit and in June, she was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry.
"I was 9 years old when I went to the Opry for the first time. I remember who was playing. It was Bill Anderson, Crystal Gayle, Phil Vassar, and I remember where I was sitting. I remember looking at the circle on stage and being like, 鈥楳an, I鈥檓 going to, I鈥檓 going to play there. I鈥檓 gonna do this,'" she recalls.
Becoming a member is the stuff dreams are made of, and naturally, it connects back to the album.
鈥淭he word that I could use to describe the last couple of years is whirlwind,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 feel like my life has changed a whole lot. But I still feel like the same old girl trying to keep one foot on the ground."
"And so, I think it鈥檚 just about grasping on to those things that that truly make me, me and the artist where I can tell stories to relate to folks.鈥�
If Wilson's life looks different now than it did a decade ago, those years of hard work have created an ability to translate the madness of her life and career to that of everyone else's: Like on 鈥淕ood Horses,鈥� the sole collaboration on 鈥淲hirlwind." It features and was written on Lambert鈥檚 farm, an uplifting track about both chasing dreams and coming home. Or 鈥淗ang Tight Honey,鈥� an ode to those who work hard for the ones they love.
Wilson has leveled up on this record, bringing writers out on the road with her as she continued to tour endlessly. That's evident on the sonic experiment of 鈥淩ing Finger,鈥� a funky country-rock number with electro-spoken word.
Or 鈥淐ountry's Cool Again,鈥� a joyous treatise on the genre and Western wear's current dominance .
鈥淚 think country music brings you home,鈥� she says of its popularity. 鈥淎nd everybody wants to feel at home.鈥�
Here on the back of the bus, Wilson is far from home 鈥� as she often is. But it is always on the mind, the place that acts as a refuge on 鈥淲hirlwind.鈥� And that's something everyone can relate to.
鈥淚 hope it brings a little bit of peace to just everyday chaos, because we all deal with it,鈥� she says of the album. 鈥淓verybody looks different, but we all put our britches on the same one leg at a time, you know?鈥�
Maria Sherman, The Associated Press
