Calling all Dixie Chicks, Sugarland, and Faith Hill fans! Finally, twenty-nine year old, country artist, Hailey Whitters, released an album that is sure to make us all feel like we’re in a time capsule. Whitters released her newest album, ‘The Dream,’ on February 28th, and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve listened to it already! I seriously love every song on this album. Never having heard Hailey Whitters music before, I listened to this album with no expectations set and I will, now, be sure to keep listening to this album and her music in general for years to come.
If you’re a fan of the Dixie Chicks and that OG blue grass/Americana country music, give ‘The Dream’ a listen. On the other hand, if you’re more on the country side with Thomas Rhett and Florida Georgia Line, you should still give Whitters’ album a listen! It might surprise you and show you a whole style of music that you forgot you loved, like me.
This twelve-track album is full of nostalgic and meaningful lyrics that give you a glimpse into Whitters’ life. My personal favorites are ‘Ten Year Town,’ ‘Red Wine & Blue,’ and ‘Living the Dream.’ While Whitters’ vocals make her songs what they are, the stories behind the lyrics are a huge bonus that are sure to hit home no matter who’s listening. ‘Ten Year Town’ is about Whitters’ struggle of trying to make it as a singer in Nashville. The beautiful, soft, and raw ballad is a tear-jerker if you really listen to it. She uses an acoustic and traditional country melody to share with her listeners that following your dreams is hard, but you should never give up. My next favorite, ‘Red Wine & Blue,’ is a heavy heartened love song written from the perspective of someone who is giving up on the love that they thought was real. Finally, ‘Living the Dream,’ the final song on ‘The Dream,’ is sure to bring you to tears. Whitters gets personal in sharing the things she has learned on her journey to becoming a singer, as well as entering adulthood.
I know my three favorites are sorrowful, raw ballads, but don’t worry, there are still happy songs on this album! Whitters’ unique and smooth vocals make every song worth a stream. Hailey Whitters is said to currently be “Nashvilles’s New Unsigned Star” according to the Rolling Stone, so after this ‘self-financed’ release, I’m eager to see what’s coming up in her future music career. There definitely could not have been a better time to drop ‘The Dream,’ considering it is the perfect soundtrack to go with every spring break trip. I know it will be mine! Go give ‘The Dream’ by Hailey Whitters a listen – you won’t regret it!
Rating: 9/10
Top Tracks: ‘Ten Year Town,’ ‘Red Wine & Blue,’ ‘Living the Dream,’ ‘Dream, Girl’
‘The Dream’ is available to stream on all major platforms!
