In honor of her EPIC Super Bowl LVI National Anthem performance, we are rounding up all of our Mickey Guyton reviews to date.
Vocal powerhouse Mickey Guyton has released a new female anthem, “Sister.” This will likely be every girls go to ‘friendship’ song when thinking of their genetic sister or best friend. While “Better Than You Left Me” is still our favorite track of Guyton’s to date, this is a great follow-up. We are still not sure how Guyton has not broken through at country radio. Anyone who has seen her perform live can attest to the pure power and emotion that she brings to her music.
Listen to “Sister” below.
White people, we need to do better and be better – and listento what Black people are saying. That’s why Mickey Guyton’s new song “Black Like Me” is a vital message (this week and any week). Through twinkling piano keys, she depicts her story as a Black woman in this country. “Little kid in a small town / I did my best just to fit in / Broke my heart on the playground / When they said I was different,” she weeps on the first first.
Meant as a healing agent, “Black Like Me” quickly soars and gets to the crux of it all on the hook. “It’s a hard life on easy street / Just white painted picket fences as far as you can see,” she sings. “If you think we live in the land of the free / You should try to be black like me…”
It’s urgent, gut-wrenching, and heartfelt. Let’s listen to her.
Listen to “Black Like Me” below.
I swear it feels like Mickey Guyton is the only mainstream country artist speaking out these days. Black squares in solidarity are fine, but actionable steps are crucial now. On the heels of her stirring and outstanding “Black Like Me,” she returns with the equally powerful “Heaven Down Here,” on which she sends up a prayer.
She attempts to reconcile her faith and the ongoing brutality against Black people, as well as a presidency that cares so little about human life. “Hey God, I know I don’t hit you up that often / But the world is turning upside now,” she sings. “I swear it feels like all we got is problems / And there’s so many, I’m losing count.”
Listen to “Heaven Down Here” below.
Mickey Guyton has nothing to lose. She’s been actively pushing for change in the country music world this year ─ sometimes alone, other times with allies. Now, with her long-awaited new EP, she seeks for connection and a lifeline to truth. The title cut, “Bridges,” doesn’t skimp on reality, rather utilizing it as a way to meet in the middle somehow.
“There’s fire in the streets / People on their knees,” she sings. Her observations are ripped from the headlines, her voice a guiding light, and it’s meant to drive the conversation forward. “What if that space between changed / If we started building bridges?” It’s the question of our lifetime.
Listen to “Bridges” below.
If you haven’t gotten the memo, Mickey Guyton is finallyreleasing her debut LP. Her latest taste test is the rock-tinged “All American,” a boot-scuffer etching out the notion that we’re all literally American. “We’re different in a million ways. But at the end of the day, ain’t we all all-American?” she questions on the bridge, production fading away.
Listen to “All American” below.