3 Country Hooks That Every Young Songwriter Wishes They Thought of First

Everybody has those song lyrics they can’t seem to forget. Here are a few country hooks that every young songwriter wishes they had thought of first.

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“A Little Bit Stronger” by Sara Evans

I know my heart will never be the same
But I’m tellin’ myself I’ll be okay
Even on my weakest days
I get a little bit stronger.

Written by Luke Laird, Hillary Lindsey, and Hillary Scott, “A Little Bit Stronger” gave Sara Evans one of the most enduring songs of her career. And she gave all of us the ultimate ballad to scream-sing along to in the car (more times than we’d like to admit). The contrast of “weakest days” and “a little bit stronger” is just too good to ignore. That is why it had to make this list.

“The House That Built Me” by Miranda Lambert

If I could just come in, I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothin’ but a memory
From the house that built me.

As far as well-written country songs go, this one is the blueprint. Written by Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin, this song was originally supposed to go to Blake Shelton but ended up being a huge hit for Miranda instead. So much so, it even gave her her first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

“Cry Pretty” by Carrie Underwood

You can pretty lie and say it’s okay
You can pretty smile and just walk away
Pretty much fake your way through anything
But you can’t cry pretty.

Written by Hillary Lindsey, Liz Rose, Lori McKenna, and Carrie Underwood, “Cry Pretty” is easily a standout country song from the 2010s. On her website ahead of the single’s 2018 release, Underwood touched on the song’s main theme.

She shared, “The title refers to when emotions take over, and you just can’t hold them back. It really speaks to a lot of things that have happened in the past year and I hope when you hear it, you can relate those feelings to those times in your life.”

Cry Pretty was also the title of Underwood’s 2018 album.

Photo by: Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images