Maren Morris is over it!
The longtime country singer is headed in a new direction after fighting for change in an often ultra-conservative genre. On Friday, the musician dropped a two-song project titled The Bridge, which includes the tracks The Tree and Get the Hell Out of Here — and the last one seems particularly noteworthy here since she’s literally getting the hell out of country music!
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, the 33-year-old announced she is going in a new direction with her career and has officially begun releasing music on Columbia Records — instead of Columbia Nashville. Wow! Guess we might be hearing a lot more songs like her smash pop hit The Middle soon?!
Related: Fans Think Kelsea Ballerini Used ‘Sorcery’ In Stunning Outfit Change At The VMAs!
But why’s she leaving? Her decision to “take a step back” comes after she felt “very, very distanced” from the country music industry and especially its politics, the Grammy winner explained:
“I thought I’d like to burn it to the ground and start over. But it’s burning itself down without my help.”
For months, Maren has been advocating for the genre to be more inclusive, especially for the LGBTQ+ community — even striking up a feud with Jason Aldean‘s wife Brittany Aldean over her transphobic comments. She’s also been supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement. So, it’s obviously heartbreaking to see her back away from the good fight. But, ultimately, she has to do what’s best for her mental health! On this big departure, she expressed:
“I’ve always been an asker of questions and a status quo challenger just by being a woman. So it wasn’t really even a choice. The further you get into the country music business, that’s when you start to see the cracks. And once you see it, you can’t un-see it. So you start doing everything you can with the little power you have to make things better.”
The My Church artist added:
“But I’ve kind of said everything I can say. I always thought I’d have to do middle fingers in the air jumping out of an airplane, but I’m trying to mature here and realize I can just walk away from the parts of this that no longer make me happy. […] Being one of the few women that had any success on country radio, everything you do is looked at under a microscope. You’re scrutinized more than your male peers, even when you’re doing well. So I’ve had to clear all of that out of my head this year and just write songs. A lot of the drama within the community, I’ve chosen to step outside out of it.”
The songwriter went on to address some of the aforementioned controversies, like Jason’s song Try That in a Small Town, adding:
“People are streaming these songs out of spite. It’s not out of true joy or love of the music. It’s to own the libs. And that’s so not what music is intended for. Music is supposed to be the voice of the oppressed — the actual oppressed. And now it’s being used as this really toxic weapon in culture wars.”
Jeez. She credits the years after the Donald Trump administration for putting “people’s biases” on “full display,” saying “they were proud to be misogynistic and racist and homophobic and transphobic,” resulting “in [this] hyper-masculine branch of country music.”
Her two new songs and music videos are littered with references to the scandals surrounding her lately — such as nods to Tucker Carlson calling her a “lunatic country music person.” Check them out (below):
A really powerful goodbye to country music…
No matter how much she wants to stand up and be an ally for marginalized communities, all the hate must’ve taken a toll. Which is so sad. The country music community needs more Marens, Kacey Musgraves, Shania Twains, and Dixie Chicks!!
We hope this next phase of her career brings her everything she wants — and maybe more room to speak her truth without as much pushback from haters! Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let us know what YOU think about this decision (below)!
Related Posts
