Summer has arrived!
And along with end of year office parties, carols, the new Wonder Woman trailer and Santa Claus, the holiday season also brings us new country tunes to compliment our most exciting festive moments.
And with a bunch of summer festivals on the way, it’s time to get acquainted with this season’s biggest potential country hits.
Here are eight country bangers we reckon you should check out and add to your playlists this summer!
1. The Buckleys – ‘I’m Comin’ For Ya (Love)’
The Buckleys (pictured above) caught everyone’s attention earlier this year with the release of their hit single ‘Daydream.’
That song topped the country charts and helped them score a Golden Guitar nomination for Best New Talent.
The Northern Rivers siblings were signed to Petrol Records earlier this year after fellow local and label chairman, C M Murphy recognised the band’s potential.
“I’m saying this in print – Sarah Buckley will be one of the greatest songwriters to come out of Australia. Ever!” says Murphy.
Time will tell whether that ends up being the case.
But you can check out ‘I’m Comin’ For Ya (Love)’ right now!
Check out ‘I’m Comin’ For Ya (Love)’ by The Buckleys
2. Chris Janson – ‘Done’
Chris Janson says his latest 90s country inspired single is a “turning point” track.
Following the release of hits such as ‘Buy Me A Boat’ and ‘Fix A Drink,’ Janson is now squarely focused on recording music that is purely focused on his values and influences growing up.
He has also made a point of simplifying his recording process.
“Everything on the record is about one take on the vocal. I sang it all the way through,” Janson recently told Rolling Stone.
“It was a great process and I think it’s my best [album] cause I didn’t go anywhere to do it, other than my house,” he continued.
“I was on nobody’s time schedule and had no stress of ‘We have a deadline here.’ There was no headbutting.”
‘Done’ will possibly become a classic in years to come.
Check out ‘Done’ by Chris Janson
3. Travis Collins – ‘Make Up’
While this song was released back in late September, just before Collins played at Country to Country Australia and toured with Tim McGraw, the ‘Make Up’ music video has only been recently released.
And following a euphoric crowd sing-along of this song at Country On The Beach last weekend, we thought this track had to be included in this list.
Check out ‘Make Up’ by Travis Collins
4. Abby Christo – ‘Cooler Than Me’
Ironically, ‘Cooler Than Me’ could be one of the hottest tracks of the summer!
Abby Christo, a former member of Mae Valley, scored over 1.3 million streams of her debut single ‘Kiss Me Into Monday.’
She is set to be one of the most exciting new artists to watch out for in 2020 and will perform for the first time as a solo artist at the upcoming Tamworth Country Music Festival.
Check out ‘Cooler Than Me’ by Abby Christo
5. Blackjack Billy – ‘Drinking All Weekend’ featuring Tim Hicks
What would summer in regional Australia be like without a lot of drinking tunes?
Simply unbearable obviously!
With that in mind, ‘Drinking All Weekend’ from Blackjack Billy and Tim Hicks has been timed perfectly.
Hicks has also become a favourite with Australian audiences and will perform at CMC Rocks Qld for the second time next year.
While it’s been a while since Blackjack Billy have been to Australia, it’s great to see they are still pumping out the party hits!
And this isn’t the first time Blackjack Billy and Tim Hicks have collaborated.
They previous recorded ‘Got A Feeling’ which appeared on Hick’s 2014 album Throw Down.
Check out ‘Drinking All Weekend’ by Blackjack Billy and Tim Hicks
6. Cory Marks – ‘Outlaws & Outsiders’ featuring Travis Tritt, Ivan Moody and Mick Mars
To say this debut from Canadian artist Cory Marks is Country/Rock in it’s truest form would be an understatement.
It’s big… it’s loud.. and it most certainly rocks!
Joining Marks on the track is Ivan Moody of Five Finger Death Punch and Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe, along with one of country’s all time greats in Travis Tritt.
Check out ‘Outlaws & Outsiders’ featuring Travis Tritt, Ivan Moody and Mick Mars by Cory Marks
7. Casey Barnes – ‘No Other You’ featuring Missy Lancaster
This is Barnes’ follow-up to his recent release ‘A Little More’ which currently sits in the top #5 on the national country airplay chart.
This super chilled new love song was written by Seaforth and Hayley Warner.
This is also the first release featuring Missy Lancaster since the release of her debut album Piece Of Me on 2018.
That album included the CMC #1 hits ‘Heatwave’ and ‘Forget.’
Barnes is also nominated for Best New Talent at the upcoming Golden Guitar awards.
Check out ‘No Other You’ featuring Missy Lancaster by Casey Barnes
8. Leigha Moore – ‘Ain’t Your Girl No More’
Leigha Moore is considered one of the genuine chances to win the 2020 Toyota Starmaker contest.
‘Ain’t Your Girl No More’ is the first taste of a new EP she’ll release during the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
Written by Kelsea Ballerini, Jesse Lee and Forest Whitehead, this one is perfect for party playlists.
Check out ‘Ain’t Your Girl No More’
