Maddie & Tae

Maddie & Tae can’t help themselves. Since bursting into public consciousness with the power-acoustic slayer “Girl In A Country Song,” which skewered BroCountry’s female stereotypes and received the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame’s coveted I Wish I Wrote That Song honor, the ride-or-die besties have been speaking truth about what it means to be smart, young women. “Die From a Broken Heart,” their second No. 1 which went RIAA Gold at the same time it hit country’s Top 40, was an unblinking look at the way being dumped can lay one out. But Maddie Font and Tae Kerr have never been ones to be defeated; instead, the pair of brazen songwriters come back stronger. Love & Light , their 16-song take on what a woman should know over what people tell them, is a festival of freedom, fun, reality, what it takes to chase dreams, and how powerful acceptance can be. Even more than the acoustic-forward – chiming acoustic guitars, well-deployed dobro, banjo and resonator guitar, as well as pools of steel guitar and mandolin shine – it’s the pair’s sleek harmonies and sharp writing that define what will most likely be called the Country Music Association Award winners’ “coming of age record.” “Back to resilience: We always figure it out; that’s given us confidence of knowing, ‘Okay, I’ve been down seven bajillion times​,​ but I’ve gotten back up seven bajillion times too. So, I’ve got this,’” Font begins. “Tae and I always want our records to be comforting to people at the end of the day. Whether it’s empowerment, a badass breakup song or whatever, we want everyone who hears these songs to know: you’ve got this.” “With each album,” Kerr adds, “we’ve realized our sisterhood and girl anthems, our heartbreak anthems, that’s what makes us us. We’ve lived it, you know? We’ve lived ‘Drunk Girls In Bathrooms’ together. We’ve lived through ‘Kissing Cowboys,’ both of us! When we were single, kissing frogs and looking for princes – and your best friend’s saying, ‘GIRL! Go get him!!’ or ‘That one’s a piece of shit! Ditch him, and try again…’ Whether the melodic “Chasing Babies & Raising Dreams,” which digs into the balance of raising children while committing to a demanding career, the plucky come-on “Fall In Love & Find Out” or the breezy get stuffed dismissal of “Only Jesus” and feisty, funny swagger of “Girl In Alabama,” the women New York Newsday praised for their “heart on your sleeve twang that should fill the void created by Taylor Swift’s move to pop” continue creating a full range of music that delivers the soundtrack for women coming into their own – whether breaking out, breaking up or creating a safe space for friends. Whether the melodic “Chasing Babies & Raising Dreams,” which digs into the balance of raising children while committing to a demanding career, the plucky come-on “Fall In Love & Find Out” or the breezy get stuffed dismissal of “Only Jesus” and feisty, funny swagger of “Girl In Alabama,” the women New York Newsday praised for their “heart on your sleeve twang that should fill the void created by Taylor Swift’s move to pop” continue creating a full range of music that delivers the soundtrack for women coming into their own – whether breaking out, breaking up or creating a safe space for friends. Indeed, “Heart You Didn’t Break” serves as an homage to those ride-or-die friends who show up when it all goes down. “Sad Girl Summer” makes getting one’s shine back a team sport with extra empowerment, a jolt of truth about one’s real value and a plan for one heckuva night out. It doesn’t end there. Laughing, Maddie confesses, “I feel like I’ve metabolized bullshit for such a long time just to people please. Tae and I both are finally to a place where people-pleasing isn’t our priority. We’ve found our voices and know how to use them. I hope this album encourages our fans to value their peace, their knowing, their self-worth, and be confident in it!” They can also do it with an all-star band of players who deliver a gleaming co