Miranda Lambert already had a lot of strings to her bow. She is, of course, a record-breaking country artist, with three Grammys, 14 CMA Awards and a host of No.1 albums and singles to her name. She’s also a restaurateur, fashion brand owner, and the founder of dog charity MuttNation Foundation, to name just a few more of her activities.
But this year she’s not only released her 10th album, the brilliant Postcards From Texas, she’s also been making some big moves behind the scenes. For one, the record is her first for Republic Records, having spent her entire career previously on Sony. And that’s not all. Lambert has also teamed up with her fellow artist and collaborator Jon Randall to launch their own record label, Big Loud Texas – an imprint of Big Loud Records. And, as Music Week finds out, she’s taking the whole process of being a label founder very seriously.
Here, we catch up with the country superstar to talk about life as a label executive, and find out more about her latest record…
So you've teamed up with Jon Randall to launch your own record label. What does that look like in practice for you?
“I'm so excited about it. We're already really in the thick of everything, because we're getting it off the ground. And it's a lot of… It’s a lot! I'm learning so much about the label side versus the artist side the whole time. I'm so happy, I've never really heard of a label hiring or bringing on board artists for the artist. And I just think it's so smart, like there's certain things that only we know, because only we live through it.”
Could you give an example of that?
“For instance, I got a call – and she doesn't care if I tell this story – from Lainey Wilson. It was some random time of day and she called and said, ‘I just wanted to talk to you because my song just went No.1, it’s my very first one and I just wanted to talk to someone who knew exactly how that felt in the moment.’ Those are the kinds of experiences that only we live through: good, bad and ugly. And so my role as a founder of this label is like, ‘I want to be the artist’s artist’ and make sure that some of the things that I wasn't pleased with on the business side of my career, I can guide another way and also tell them what not to do for the mistakes I made. I don't hold back. I'm not hiding anything. I wish I would have somebody to always call!”
When it comes to signings, one thing you said you're looking to preserve is the tradition of outlaw country, which is interesting. Country is obviously massive right now, but that outlaw variant isn't often at the forefront anymore…
"I’m absolutely passionate about outlaw country. Think about it, there's probably not a person on this Earth that's not heard of Willie Nelson, you know what I mean? And if they haven't, well, it's time for them to learn! That music, that spirit, was grown in Texas and now it's worldwide, and I want to be part of the next generation of that. At some point [the country sound] divided between Nashville and Texas for some reason. I want to bridge the gap, because country music is country music, and there's so many amazing styles of music in Texas, it's not just country – we have everything. I want to make sure that it is nurtured and that we take care of that for the next generations to come.”
Elsewhere, it feels like it's quite a significant moment for you in your career with Postcards From Texas being your first on Republic, after 20 years at Sony. What appealed about that fresh start?
“I think, as human beings, we understand when something needs to end and when we feel there needs to be a change. I'm so inspired as a songwriter and as an artist in every part of the business right now, I wanted somebody to match that enthusiasm. And Republic did, right off the bat.”
Anything specific they said or did that made you feel like that?
“Yeah, so many things, besides their track record. Monte [Lipman] and Jim Roppo spent, like, three hours with us having old fashions in New York at a bar rooftop, just talking about music. And I was like, ‘Okay, you actually lead with art, this is great.’”
Free drinks never hurt either…
“Exactly!”
One of your great lyrical calling cards is your sense of humour, and there’s some great examples of that on Postcards From Texas, but also if you look at Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan, some of the biggest songs this year have also been really funny. What’s the key to writing a humorous lyric that stay funny over the years?
“I appreciate you saying that, and I don't know! But I do know that I think it's so important to have humour, because I'm such a sucker for a sad song so I just feel like there needs to be a balance on a record. So, I like to counterbalance the I Hate Love Songs-style tracks with one like Armadillo. You know, they say ‘recording artist’ for a reason, and it's because you can put on all these hats. It's always been important to me on almost every record to have a song that's kitschy, quippy and shows humour.”
You've also recorded Dammit Randy with your husband. How did you find that process?
“We haven't done it that much, so it's still new, because he's obviously not a songwriter by trade – he’s a retired police officer, and he's doing some other ventures now. But he's adding songwriter to his resume, and he deserves it. He had some of my favourite lines on the song, and the fact that he's so interested in it gives me inspiration. I see it all through fresh eyes. This is my third record that I've made since I've been married to my husband, and he got to watch me go through three processes, Wild Card, Palomino and now Postcards and he just sees it with such fresh eyes and fire. He’s so interested in the process and such a cheerleader, but also a truth teller. He’s not a yes person, which I love. It's really been fun. I've been doing this a long time, so having him have that enthusiasm where he's kind of in awe of songwriters, it actually get me more excited. He's just like, ‘This is crazy, you start off with air, and then you come out with a song four hours later!’ It’s really fun to have that innocence in the room.”
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