Lainey Wilson is one of the biggest stars in country music today. In the last couple of years, she has taken home a trophy case full of awards including the 2023 CMA Entertainer of the Year Award and a Grammy for Best Country Album for Bell Bottom Country. However, the Louisiana native wasn’t an overnight success. She released her first album, Tougher in 2016. Since then, she’s been fighting her way to the top.
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Today her hits like “Watermelon Moonshine,” “Heart Like a Truck,” and “Things a Man Oughta Know” are pulling in hundreds of millions of streams on Spotify alone. However, there is so much more to her than just the hits. With that in mind, let’s dig into some of the great lesser-known songs in her catalog.
“Gravel” (Lainey Wilson)
Wilson opened her 2016 debut album Tougher with “Gravel.” As a result, it feels like the perfect place to start this short dive into her best deep cuts. It’s a great rocking country track and a stellar introduction to Wilson as an artist. If you only hear one song on this list, it should be this one.
“Gravel” sees Wilson singing about the simple things in life and not needing her man to be rich. She just needs the necessities to make her happy. The final lines of the chorus drive the song’s point home: All I want is a home to come home to / Somebody to kiss, baby, don’t you / Ever start to wonder if times get tough. / I’d hate life on a silver platter/ Love looks better standing in the gravel.
“High on Somethin’” (Wilson)
Wilson is an expert at making foot-stomping tracks that make listeners feel good and want to get up and move “High on Somethin’” is a great example of that.
She released “High on Somethin’” on April 20, 2018. However, the track didn’t make it onto a larger release. It would fit like a glove among some of her more rocking up-tempo songs like “Wildflowers and Wild Horses.”
“Middle Finger” (Wilson)
Wilson included “Middle Finger” on her 2018 self-titled EP. Throughout the first verse and chorus, it sounds like she’s singing about an incredibly close and loyal friend. However, at the end of the first chorus, she reveals that it’s an ode to her middle finger.
There’s so much on display on this track. First and foremost, it showcases Wilson’s smart songwriting. At the same time, it gives listeners a long, hard look at the renegade attitude that makes the current CMA Entertainer of the Year a favorite among country fans everywhere.
“WWDD” (Wilson, Casey Beathard, Michael Heeney)
Wilson included this rockin’ ode to Dolly Parton on her 2021 album Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’. It falls just a few songs after her breakout single “Things a Man Oughta Know” on the album. Unfortunately, this track doesn’t get the love it deserves.
Interestingly, Wilson still lives by “W.W. Double D”—What Would Dolly Do?—in 2024. With a good sense of humor, a strong backbone, and more than enough kindness to go around, Parton is always a good influence to follow.
This is one of those under-appreciated songs that just about anyone who enjoys Wilson’s output could dig into.
“Two Story House” (Lainey Wilson, John Henderson, Neal Coty)
Wilson released “Two Story House” as a single in August 2021, months after Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’ dropped. However, it didn’t make it onto Bell Bottom Country in 2022 which is a shame.
“Two Story House” reflects on two sisters who grew up in the same house and took drastically different paths in life. More than that, it showcases some great storytelling and smart wordplay. In the chorus, Wilson sings, How can two kids with the same raising / Wind up on such different pages / We all got our different callings / Yeah, I guess that’s why they call it/ a two-story house.
Anyone who enjoys her slower stuff will love this track.
Featured Image by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for ACM
