The start of September means a season full of cozy sweaters, colorful leaves and everything apple cider- or pumpkin spice-flavored is around the corner. It also means a month packed with new country music you can’t miss.
Jon Pardi, Kane Brown, Kelsea Ballerini, LeAnn Rimes, Zac Brown Band and other fan-favorite artists will debut new music throughout the month of September. Many of the artists have previously released (or announced) singles to offer an impression of the full projects that lie ahead.
Jana Kramer, for example, revealed that her next single will be “The Nicest Thing,” after she invited her social media followers to choose between two possibilities. Kramer confirmed that “The Nicest Thing” will release on Friday, September 16, she announced on Instagram. Danielle Bradbery and Tenille Townes are kicking off the first weekend of the month with respective new songs on Friday (September 2). Bradbery 's is a new anthem — written by Maren Morris, Shane McAnally, Sasha Alex Sloan, and Jimmy Robbins — that marks the beginning of a new era of music for the Voice alum. Townes' is an emotional tribute to experiences with loved ones, realizing that people often don't realize they're experiencing something for the last time until the moment has already passed.
Dustin Lynch is switching gears from “Party Mode”-style anthems that are perfect for the single life, releasing a smoldering ballad on Friday (September 9). “Wood On The Fire” depicts a “type of relationship that, even when it’s fizzled down to smoke, you just can’t get enough of it. It’s a relatable message and we had a good time writing this one.”
Breland has released a few songs (and teasers of the others) from his debut album, which is due this month after years in the making. Mitchell Tenpenny’s sophomore album is also slated to release in September, marking a massive comeback with a 20-track project. Zac Brown Band will expand on last year’s The Comeback with a 21-song deluxe edition (complete with collaborations with Blake Shelton, Cody Johnson and others). Maddie & Tae will follow Through The Madness Vol. 1 with its highly-anticipated second volume, and Little Big Town will soon share their 10th studio album, Mr Sun.
Conner Smith announced an acoustic ballad featuring singer-songwriter Ryan Hurd, who co-wrote the track with Smith (along with Mark Trussell) in 2021. Smith explained that “Take It Slow” is “pretty simply just about a night with a girl that you don’t want to end,” as he announced he'd debut the acoustic version with Hurd on September 16.
Jordan Davis finally confirmed that he’d teamed up with Danielle Bradbery on a new duet after sharing teasers on his social media channels. Davis and Bradbery performed the song for the first time during a show in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on a tour stop with the reigning iHeartRadio Music Awards Country Artist of the Year, Luke Combs. Davis confirmed that the song would release the following weekend, on September 23. After winning the Poet's Award for her songwriting at the 15th Annual ACM Honors, country music icon Shania Twain confirmed that she would kick off a new chapter with her song “Waking Up Dreaming” on September 23. That same day, Dolly Parton shared that Christmas is coming early with her rendition of “Silent Night,” one of the tracks on her deluxe holiday album that's set to release next month. Lainey Wilson also revealed her third track to release from her highly-anticipated upcoming album, Bell Bottom Country, the sentimental tribute, “Live Off.”
Darius Rucker has teamed up with fan-favorite contestants on the latest season of America’s Got Talent, Chapel Hart. The trio of sisters and cousins — Danica Hart, Trea Swindle and Devynn Hart — captivated viewers ever since their golden buzzer-worthy audition, when they performed an original song inspired by Parton's legendary 1970s hit, “Jolene.” Rucker, “blown away” by the performance, worked with Chapel Hart on the gospel-inspired love song, “Ol’ Church Hymn,” set to release on September 30.
Ashley McBryde — known for fan-favorite tracks like “One Night Standards,” “A Little Dive Bar in Dahlonega,” “Girl Goin’ Nowhere” and her smash-hit heartbreak anthem with Carly Pearce, “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” — finally announced that her album, Lindeville, would release on September 30. She made the announcement after she and Brothers Osborne shared the same mysterious teaser on their social media channels, stirring anticipation for the upcoming project.
Here's a list of some of the country music set to release in September that you won't want to miss... and one of the previously-released tracks from each album:
Jon Pardi, Mr. Saturday Night
Jon Pardi is set to release his fourth studio album, Mr. Saturday Night, on Friday (September 2). The 14-track collection includes the well-written title track, the honky tonk anthem “Fill ‘Er Up,” the Midland collaboration “Longneck Way To Go” and, the first song Pardi shared, “Last Night Lonely”:
Breland, Cross Country
Breland will debut his first full-length album on September 9. He made the announcement earlier this summer during an appearance on TODAY With Coda & Jenna, saying at the time that he’s “so excited for y’all to hear what I’ve been working on for the past two and a half years.” Breland also performed his Shania Twain-inspired summer single, “Natural”:
Kane Brown, Different Man
Kane Brown is releasing his highly-anticipated album Different Man, on September 9. The 17-track album will include some tracks that are already fan-favorites, including “Like I Love Country Music,” “Go Around,” “One Mississippi,” and, his history-making song, “Grand”:
Mitchell Tenpenny, This Is The Heavy
Tenpenny will drop his massive follow-up to 2018’s Telling All My Secrets on September 16. Tenpenny co-wrote each of the 20 songs on the project, which includes “Truth About You” and a few other tracks he released. In early August, Tenpenny debuted the repeat-worthy “Always Something With You”:
Little Big Town, Mr. Sun
Little Big Town is set to unveil their 10th studio album on September 16. The beloved country quartet — Jimi Westbrook, Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman and Phillip Sweet — describes Mr. Sun as “focused on better days ahead…” Previously, they released “Hell Yeah,” “All Summer” and, 10 years in the making, “Rich Man”:
LeAnn Rimes, god’s work
Country music icon LeAnn Rimes will debut her highly-anticipated album, god’s work, on September 16. The 12-track collection is one that Rimes said “is beyond special to me…” She explained she opted to lowercase every letter “to focus on the messages, rather than the nuances.” She’s already released, among others: “the only,” “how much a heart can hold” and “awakening”:
Maddie & Tae, Through The Madness Vol. 2
Maddie & Tae will follow their hit 8-track EP with its second volume on September 23. The award-winning country duo confirmed confirmed exclusively to iHeartCountry earlier this year that Vol. 2 would release in September, with two tracks releasing before then. Those tracks are “Spring Cleaning” and “Every Night Every Morning”:
Kelsea Ballerini, Subject To Change
Kelsea Ballerini will finally share her long-awaited album, Subject To Change, on September 23. She finally confirmed the news after dropping major teasers, and so far, fans have been loving the songs from the project with ‘90s country vibes. That includes: “The Little Things,” “Love Is A Cowboy” and “HEARTFIRST”:
Rita Wilson, Rita Wilson Now & Forever: Duets
Rita Wilson is set to release Rita Wilson Now & Forever: Duets on September 27. The star-studded project includes: Jimmie Allen, Jackson Browne, Elvis Costello, Vince Gill, Josh Groban, Tim McGraw, Willie Nelson, Leslie Odom Jr., Smokey Robinson and Keith Urban. McGraw’s wife, fellow country superstar Faith Hill, said she listened and got “chills. …I was genuinely blown away. I believe you will agree.” Listen Wilson’s version of to “Songbird,” by Christine McVie, with Groban here:
Zac Brown Band, The Comeback Deluxe Edition
Zac Brown Band is set to close out the month with the extended version of The Comeback, which released last year. The deluxe album will release on September 30. When the eight-member group released the original 15-track album in 2021, frontman Zac Brown hailed it “the best album that I’ve ever made.” The extended album, among other collaborations, will include “Wild Palomino” featuring Cody Johnson:
Ashley McBryde, Lindeville
Ashley McBryde finally confirmed that her next album would release this month after sharing a few teasers on her social media channels about “Lindeville.” She teamed up with several others — Aaron Raitiere, Brandy Clark, Benjy Davis, Caylee Hammack, Pillbox Patti and Brothers Osborne — to bring the project to life.
“This one time my friends and I had an idea… Then we made it a reality,” McBryde said in an instagram caption on September 14. “And now we get to invite you to enjoy it with us. Welcome to Lindeville.” Lindeville is set to release on September 30. See McBryde's teaser here: