She’s a drifter / Miles from it all / With no one around her / Or a place to call home, singer Victoria Bailey delicately warbles against a lonesomely loping tune.
Videos by American Songwriter
Her new single, “A Cowgirl Rides On,” finds the country singer weaving a wistful western narrative of resilience and unwavering faith.
The song was influenced by the book, Distant Skies by Melissa A. Priblo Chapman, a true story that chronicles a young girl’s journey across the country on horseback. “I was so inspired by this woman and her ability to find so much strength in the solitude of her journey,” Bailey tells American Songwriter. “Her story and her heartbreaks and lessons learned along the way somehow coincided with pieces of my life at the time.”
The heartworn song showcases the artist’s classic country lilt and is the perfect vehicle for her stunning songcraft, skills worthy of the country queens you came before her.
“The lyrics and story of this song really became woven into the reality of what was going on in my personal life at the time,” she details. “I was going through a lot of life changes and a really tough breakup as this song was developing.” The song ended up serving as a reminder to her, she says, “to keep my head up and my mind focused on this project while my heart healed and I moved on.”
The song became a catalyst of sorts for an album to be born. “‘A Cowgirl Rides On’ ended up being the title track, and it paints a picture of the project as a whole and really defines the life and strength of a cowgirl,” she says of her forthcoming record, A Cowgirl Rides On, set to drop on October 20.
“The album is full of surprises, but it all grew from the same intention and heart of the record, which is something very raw and pure and a lot of it is faith-based,” she describes, adding the songs will encompass a variety of sounds and stories. “This record really is just so many pieces of my heart mashed up into one, with all my favorite sounds and instruments, yet so simple at the same time.
“I’m just really proud of it,” Bailey says of the song and the coming album, as a whole. “It’s a big piece of my heart, my faith, life’s hard parts and sweet parts, and everything in between. I hope you find a little strength in it as well.”
Get a taste of A Cowgirl Rides On from the title track below.
Photo by Stefanie Lee Johnson / Courtesy of Rock Ridge Music
