Kelsey Waldon

If you like Margo Price, Jamey Johnson, Lilly Hiatt...

A singer and songwriter whose music combines a contemporary lyrical outlook with a sound that harks back to country music of the '50 and '60s, Kelsey Waldon sings like a honky tonk angel, with a voice that's sweet, spicy, and as authentic as the day is long. Her vocals and arrangements are informed by Nashville's past, but the stories she tells are rooted in the here and now, with a dash of down-home feminism and no-frills politics. Waldon's 2016 album, I've Got a Way, was a powerful set of tough retro-country, but it was the endorsement of songwriting legend John Prine that gave her a serious break; he issued 2019's White Noise/White Lines through his Oh Boy label. 2022's No Regular Dog gave her music a bit of gritty, outlaw atmosphere while still speaking from her heart and soul.