We did it! Give yourself a pat on the back for surviving 2020. I’m sure we all had our own coping mechanisms for getting through this weird year, but I can assure you that my year would have been much worse had it not been for all the great new music I discovered this year. Thanks to everyone who has followed my journey over the past few weeks as I recounted my favourite songs of the year (you can check them all out here). Read on for the final instalment!
Heart’s in Your Head – Renee Blair
I really hope big things are on their way for Renee Blair. A lot of the artists I find on my various recommended playlists tend to have maybe one song that I like, add to my playlist, and then never hear about again. Not Renee – her music has managed to find it’s way into a fair few of my recommended playlists, but hey, I’m not complaining. She has a voice that puts her in the same echelon as some of my other favourites like Danielle Bradbery and Kelsea Ballerini; and is already writing with country songwriting royalty Shane McAnally. My two top songs of hers - Heart’s In Your Head and Soon As I’m Happy – hit that sweet spot of genuine lyrics mixed with a catchy melody. Well worth a listen.
https://genius.com/Renee-blair-hearts-in-your-head-lyrics
Every Other Memory – Ryan Hurd
You might be familiar with Ryan Hurd as Mr Maren Morris, but he is undoubtedly more than that. In Every Other Memory, Ryan sings about listening to ‘old school Springsteen’ – little does he know that that’s exactly what I hear when I listen to his song. Every Other Memory hits a little too close to home for me, but that’s kind of what I love about it – his songwriting is so real, whether that be the cheeky To A T or the cute recollection of his first encounter with Maren in Love In A Bar. If you’re looking for some country music with a bit more edge, Ryan’s your guy.
https://www.amazon.com/Every-Other-Memory-Ryan-Hurd/dp/B086YMW8JC
Jungle – Somebody’s Child
My recommendation for this song comes from a rather surprising source – Obi Wan Kenobi himself, Ewan McGregor. Well, I don’t know exactly how much say Ewan had in this particular song, but I discovered it while watching Ewan’s motorcycle journey in Long Way Up. Needless to say, it played as we saw sweeping shots of the South American jungle, and I immediately pulled up my phone to search this song after hearing that insane guitar intro. Irish songwriter Cian Godfrey, aka Somebody’s Child, doesn’t necessarily have a voice that I would initially gravitate to – it’s rather abrasive and raspy and honestly, not what I’m used to – but I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t a fantastic piece of music, so it definitely makes my list!
https://genius.com/Somebodys-child-jungle-lyrics
Somebody Else’s Problem – Lauren Alaina
From Somebody’s Child to Somebody Else’s Problem. Lauren Alaina is an underrated superstar - check out my reflections on C2C over the years for more on that. She has phenomenal vocals – she didn’t become runner-up of American Idol for nothing, and only didn’t take home the win because that went to another fantastic vocalist, Scotty McCreery – any other year and I’m sure she would have scooped it. Lauren has been a constant on my playlists this year, with songs like Run, Seen You In Your Hometown, and her duet with Dustin Lynch Thinkin’ Bout You, but I really like Somebody Else’s Problem. Sometimes it’s important to have a song like this to give you a reality check and know that it’s time to start treating people who don’t serve you like an old car – trade them in for an upgrade, and let them start being somebody else’s problem.
https://musicrow.com/2020/02/lauren-alaina-reveals-cover-art-track-list-for-getting-good-ep/
Missing June – Miki Ratsula
Time for some soft, easy, and very very vibey indie music right now. Missing June made it’s way into my life just at a time when I needed to take a chill pill. Miki’s high vocals are a gift for the ears, as is the production, the lyrics, the bridges – it’s a full package. It’s the type of song that you want not only as the soundtrack to your roadtrip, but to your life. I may not be missing June of this year (thank goodness that’s over), but it’ll get you nostalgic in all the right ways.
https://genius.com/Miki-ratsula-missing-june-lyrics
Some artists just transcend time – you like them as much as you did back then, even though their music is completely different. Why? They evolve, just like you do. Take Aly & AJ. They provided the soundtrack to my Disney Channel teenage years with songs like Potential Breakup Song, Chemicals React, and Like Whoa (all of which are still absolute bangers) and now they’re providing the soundtrack to my mid-twenties with songs like Take Me and Slow Dancing. In the same way I hope I have, Aly & AJ’s music has matured like a fine wine. Plus, some more stunning lyrics: “I don’t need anything fancy, I just need me and you slow dancing. Hell’s bending keeping me captive, Heaven’s here, it’s right where you’re standing, slow dancing.” Listen to this song – that’s an order.
https://www.kkbox.com/sg/en/song/Dg10046GbOq6LzJo6LzJo0XL-index.html
Pretty Heart – Parker McCollum
I credit my latest foray into the world of country broadcasting for this one. I’ve recently been presenting on a national country radio station, and that’s where I first heard Pretty Heart. I was fairly surprised when doing my research for this post that Parker is only 28 years old – his music and vocals sound older, and I wouldn’t have been surprised had someone told me that this song was actually by Jon Pardi or Luke Combs. The fact that I would associate Parker with those legends shows you just how good this song is – one to watch.
https://www.umgnashville.com/news/parker-mccollum-releases-new-song-pretty-heart/
It would have been wrong of me to finish the series of the songs that got me through 2020 without including at least one Christmas song, and I can think of none better than one by Thomas Rhett. He’s blessed us with some fantastic country songs, including his beautiful cover of The Christmas Song and this original Christmas song. I love the way that it conjures up images of Christmasses straight out of a Netflix movie – old school lights hanging off the roof, front porch mistletoe and cups filled up with some feel-good Christmas cheer. Sounds like heaven to me. Whilst I might not be having a Christmas like that this year, the idea that I one day might could just be the one thing that keeps me going through the next year too!
https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Country-Thomas-Rhett/dp/B081DHCGWQ
And there we have it! One full year summed up in my favourite songs. I hope you enjoyed reading this series as much as I enjoyed making it – I can’t thank you enough for your support in taking the time to check out my blog, and hope that you’ll join me again on my musical and (hopefully) travel adventures in 2021. If you’d like to stay up to date, you can join my email list by inputting your email address in the box in the top right, and follow me on social media @CiarasCountry. Thanks so much for reading!
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