Elle King Talks Collaborating with Miranda Lambert and Diving Head First Into the Country Genre – Country Now

Singer/songwriter and mom-to-be, Elle King has made a huge step in immersing herself in the country music community with her first official country radio single, Drunk (And I Dont Wanna Go Home).

From indie,Americana and rock all the way to country music, King has shown that she can shine in pretty much any genre, but her career journey hasnt always been smooth sailing. In an interview with The Ty Bentli Show on Apple Music Country,King shared her thoughts on the country music genre and the impact it has had on her life already.

Its just fun because the shows are so great because its hardworking people. They save up for months and this is their night to let off some steam and let their hair down and go sing along to their favorite country artists, King explained. Thats what I started to see when I came into country music, I was like, These people, they dont care. They want to have fun tonight and they want to see you having fun, because were all in this together.'

I dont know, country music has just really grabbed me and grabbed hold of me, and its really opened up my career and its kind of changed my life in a lot of ways, King added. Its just been amazing, and I felt really, really embraced. I feel like its my people.

Kings debut solo single, Exs and Ohs quickly rose up the charts and peaked at No. 1 in 2015 on Billboards list of Greatest of All Time Adult Alternative Songs. A year later, she branched out into the country genre for the first time as she joined Dierks Bentley on his single, Different For Girls.

Now, with her very own country single, King is ready to embark on her next chapter within the genre. She revealed the writing process behind Drunk (And I Dont Wanna Go Home) and how she came to join forces with superstar Miranda Lambert to record the single.

I started writing it when I was 24, much, much drunker, King revealed. I was really living that life too. I wrote it with Martin Johnson and then we wrote two songs in two days. The other song was Americas Sweetheart and Americas Sweetheart made the record. I always knew that the chorus of Drunk was a banger chorus. It was a big chorus. I always felt like I had that in my back pocket, but I didnt like the original verses.

Six years go by, and then Martin reaches out to me to ask me if I would sing on something. I was like, This is perfect because this is my segue into rewriting the verses,' added King. I was like, Yeah, Ill do you favor. Ill do you a favor. Well, we have to rewrite Drunk. I was going back to Nashville from tour with Miranda, and I was working with Martin and we were writing songs, we were rewriting Drunk, and then it was done by the end of tour. I was like, Okay, this is good. We were just going to put it out, and then this idea came, Miranda and I, we were becoming friends and everything. We were like, Wouldnt it be crazy, but wouldnt it be fun if Miranda sang on this? She thinks so too.

King and Lambert gave an electrifying performance of Drunk on stage as they opened the 2021 Academy of Country Music Awards. This powerful duo brought the same energy to the music video for this single, which showcases the pair living it up at an 80s-era wedding.

When it came down time to the video, I was like, How can we make this really fun, so that its one day of her life that she enjoys, and that if we had to sing it together, shes going to be happy about it. I was like, Why dont we play characters and take the pressure off of Elle king and Miranda Lambert, she recalled. Honestly that music video day, that was one of the most fun days Ive ever had working because it was just me and Miranda in these ridiculous costumes and we laughed the whole time.

Although her songs are full of vigor and fun, King revealed that her daily life doesnt quite match that energy anymore. She opened up about previous drinking habits and feeling blessed to be pregnant after two miscarriages.

Its weird to be putting out a song thats like all about partying and raging and being outside of your house, when Im very much inside my house, baby chickens, lots of animals, baby inside here, many naps, King reflected. Its weird, cause I feel like I always have to really live up to the music that I put out. This is weird, but I also feel like Ive been drunk enough my entire life that people get that. They know Im pregnant. They know how I got pregnant, probably drinking, and so I feel like its fair game. I dont know.

This summer King joins Chris Stapleton as a special guest on his All American Road Show tour beginning July 28 in Gilford, NH.

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Elle King Talks Collaborating with Miranda Lambert and Diving Head First Into the Country Genre - Country Now