Country music, even in its most modernized forms, has a unique nostalgic charm to it. Country songs often tell tales of heartbreak and romance, but finding country songs about lesbian dating isn’t so easy in an industry where heterosexual male artists are getting most of the credit and recognition. Luckily for you, we’ve compiled a list of five lesbian musicians you should be listening to.
k.d. lang
k.d. lang is an award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter and longtime supporter of LGBT+ equality and animal rights. Her career started to flourish in 1988, but didn’t reach mainstream fame until the release of her second album, Ingénue, in 1992. She bravely came out that same year through an article in The Advocate magazine. Back then, she was one of few celebrities who were out and proud, and some stations even refused to play her music following the news.
Lang’s music transcends genres, and throughout her career, she has been recognised for her contributions to pop, country, and rock & roll. Her first studio album, Shadowland, is regarded as the essential country album.
Amythyst Kiah
Tennessee-born Grammy-nominated Amythyst Kiah describes herself as “funny-talking, sci-fi loving, queer Black”. Her music is a fusion of alt-rock, folk, country and blues. She recorded her latest album, Wary + Strange, with three different producers before she was satisfied with the sound. A popular track on the album is Wild Turkey, named in the top 50 songs of 2021 by Variety.
Kiah has also taken part in Our Native Daughters, a band made up of four Black female banjo players. In 2019, the group released Songs of Our Native Daughters, an album which features “reinterpretations of slave and minstrel stories; personal tales of sexual abuse, suffering and survival; and accounts of remarkable female perseverance carried across time and geography”. The story of how the band came to be is told in the documentary Reclaiming History: Our Native Daughters.
Brandy Clark
The critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter has received a total of 12 nominations from the Grammy Awards, ACM Awards, and CMA Awards. She has written with Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, Keith Urban and more, including songs such as Follow Your Arrow, which won a CMA Song of the Year award. Clark has released three studio albums, with her latest, Your Life Is a Record, being nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Country Album.
On being a gay woman in country music, Brandy says, “The great thing for me was there was no career suicide to commit because I was already out of the closet. Whatever happened for me, once I became an artist, it was icing on the cake.”
Brandi Carlile
Brandi’s impressive career is marked by 18 Grammy Award nominations, of which she has won 6. By the Way, I Forgive you – her sixth studio album – is regarded as one of her most popular and successful releases, having reached #5 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Brandi’s musical style combines several genres, including alternative country, folk, pop, and rock. Her songs have made it onto show’s like Grey’s Anatomy, Super Bowl commercials, and even former president Barack Obama’s annual playlist.
In 2019 Brandi co-founded the country music supergroup The Highwomen. One of the songs on their self-titled album, If She Ever Leaves Me, is undoubtedly a gay country anthem. Here’s an excerpt from the lyrics:
If she ever leaves, it’s gonna be for a woman with more time
Who’s not afraid to let her dreams come true
If she ever gives her careful heart to somebody new
Well, it won’t be for a cowboy like you
Aside from being a talented musician, Brandi is a proud activist who has campaigned for voter participation alongside Alicia Keys, LGBT+ rights, and women’s empowerment.
Chely Wright
Chely Wright is an award-winning country singer, actress, and activist. Chely came out 10 years into her career for fear of it hindering her success. Following the news, Chely suffered a drop in sales, and had to start a kickstarter campaign to raise funds for I Am The Rain, her eighth and last studio album.
As part of her coming out process, in 2010 Chely released a memoir entitled Like Me: Confessions of a Heartland Country Singer. The memoir was succeeded by a 2012 documentary: Wish Me Away. In her memoir, Chely writes: “I hear the word ‘tolerance’—that some people are trying to teach people to be tolerant of gays. I’m not satisfied with that word. I am gay, and I am not seeking to be ‘tolerated’. One tolerates a toothache, rush-hour traffic, an annoying neighbour with a cluttered yard. I am not a negative to be tolerated.”
Since coming out, Wright has been an active supporter of LGBT+ issues, including causes such as transgender rights and youth support.
