Single Cover Courtesy of The Valory Music Co.
NASHVILLE, TN (May 20, 2022) – With her honey-smoked whisper and lingering delivery, Mackenzie Carpenter arrives at all music streaming partners today with “Can’t Nobody,” a languid midtempo that moves at its own pace. The 22-year-old who signed to The Valory Music Co. earlier this week, sings on the strength of a song that’s a misdirected amble through all the most definitive pleasures in the world – and the boy who haunts like no other.
Acoustically grounded, leaning into live musicians, she worked with producer Brandon Hood to dial in her sound. Laughing now, the young woman who co-wrote Lily Rose’s “Villain,” confesses, “I always wanted to be a country music singer. There are videos of me at age six, going, ‘I’m Mackenzie and I want to be a singer.’ And that was always the dream.”
“I didn’t know much about the music industry, but my dad inspired me to start writing songs, so that’s what I did. I wrote songs every day, and I believed that one day I would know what to do with them. I figure I could’ve released the music before this, but there is something to be said for a little mystery.”
And now “Can’t Nobody” introduces a fresh-faced take on being young, being wise and being alive. Employing a slow-strummed guitar, a quiet high hat against her tumbling alto, Carpenter paints a picture of the picture-perfect Romeo who’s ultimately more heartbreaker than happily ever after. Wistful, but accepting that some things are too good to be true, the lithe songwriter who evokes Deana Carter in her prime.
Putting the emphasis on the details of who he is and what he does in the verses, the chorus sweeps in with the metaphors that matter. “Can’t nobody write a song like Dolly/ Can’t no whiskey get me tipsy like Jack..,” she sings. “Can’t nobody knock’em out like Rocky… Can’t nobody love June like Johnny/ Can’t nobody break a heart like you…”
“I am always going to show up and show y’all my tacky truth,” said Carpenter. “I’m in between cut-offs and sparkles, girly girly and edgy… I guess that’s what you get growing up with two brothers.”
“I call it tacky country, I guess, because this world I’m trying to create is visually bold and lyrically bold, something like a country fair. It’s a little bit Southern fun, but not everything’s kitschy. It’s honest and true to the heart and it’s corn dogs, funnel cakes, zebra prints and trailer parks. These songs are a place where people can show up, say and feel what they want, you know? It’s a place where you can speak your truth, not button it up because you don’t take yourself too seriously.”
Whether Carpenter’s taking herself too seriously or not, this is a young writer who’s got her finger on the pulse, tracks that have a slow burn that unfold with every listen and a sultry voice that tempts and taunts. Currently in the studio working on her full-length debut, look for Carpenter to drop even more gloriously honest country in the months to come.
Watch the “Can’t Nobody” lyric video here.
