New Music Friday: March 21, 2025

My Morning Jacket, Little By Little, Melanie A. Davis, and more

Mar 21, 2025

Welcome back to Wick’s Picks! Below you’ll find my new music picks for the week, which are compiled into a larger, year-long Spotify playlist with all the other songs I’ve highlighted in 2025 at the end of this post.

As always, thank you for your support, and enjoy!

Dillon Carmichael - “Keepin’ Country Alive”

Burgin, Ky.’s Dillon Carmichael mixes 90’s era nostalgia (“I was Chipper Jones in that backyard / Fast as number three”) with a fondness for his blue collar, rural upbringing on “Keepin’ Country Alive.” With it’s polished country rock appeal the banger is also evidence of the singer’s crossover capability passed down to him by uncles John Michael and Eddie Montgomery.

Hancock & Shouse - “Lexington”

Bluegrass troupe Hancock & Shouse are back here for the second week in a row with their latest single “Lexington,” a lament about longing to return home headed by vocalist/mandolinist Chris Shouse. And if you like what you hear, there’s more on the way — the band plans to release singles each of the next four Fridays through April 18.

Little By Little - “Drink Me Down“

Murray, Ky. based singer Kayla Little waxes poetic about heartbreak with an R&B and pop-tinged sentiment on “Drink Me Down,” the latest single from her band, Little By Little. Kayla and company will join me for Wick’s Picks on Hound FM April 2 to discuss this new song and the album it’s included on — Dream (out April 4) — and much more.

Melanie A. Davis - “See You Around“

Melanie A. Davis, another Murray-based singer and friend of the radio show/podcast (check out our interview from last October if you haven’t already!), just dropped a mesmerizing full band version of her song “See You Around,” a tune originally released in a solo acoustic format on her 2023 album Honey Locust. I love both versions and dissecting their various similarities and differences. It reminds me so much of what we do on the radio show with having guests perform acoustic-style in the studio and pairing it later on with bits of their recorded material as a way of showing how songs can develop and evolve.

My Morning Jacket - “Everyday Magic“

I’m currently on my first listen through is, the new album from Louisville’s My Morning Jacket, but I’ve already fallen in love with one of its new tracks to debut today, “Everyday Magic.” With catchy riffs, anthemic vocals (why would we expect anything less from Jim James?) and lyrics of universal positivity revolving around how lasting change starts with “a ripple in the fabric,” the song is vintage Jacket through and through.

The Steeldrivers - “Outrun”

The Steeldrivers, the band Chris Stapleton helped start in 2005 before breaking away in the early 2010’s to pursue his (now illustrious) solo career, today unveiled the first single and title track from it’s forthcoming album Outrun slated for a May 23 release. The project is the band’s first for the famed Sun Records and will mark 20 years since the band’s founding, which they’ll celebrate with tour dates well into the fall that include stops in Owensboro for ROMP Fest in June along with a trio of Lexington shows — June 14 at the Kentucky Horse Park for Spirit In The Bluegrass and Sept. 19 and 20 at the Lexington Opera House.

LISTEN ON APPLE MUSIC HERE

Other News

During his long-awaited Grand Ole Opry debut on March 12, Texas and red dirt legend Robert Earl Keen was welcomed to The Circle by Kentucky’s own Tyler Childers, who described REK as “inspiration to road dogs and poets alike” and “the great American songwriter.”
Wynonna Judd announced a Greatest Hits tour on March 14 that kicks off June 13 in La Grange, Ga. and wraps Sept. 5 in Albuquerque, NM. While those dates don’t include any stops in Kentucky, the Ashland born singer will return home for a Lexington gig with Tyler Childers and S.G. Goodman at Kroger Field on April 19 and a festival gig at ROMP in Owensboro on June 28.
On Monday Sleeping In The Woods unveiled the daily schedules for its third annual gathering at Hidden Ridge Camping in Monticello, Ky. from May 16-18. Highlights include a Friday songwriter round featuring Nicholas Jamerson, Aaron Raitiere and Justin Clyde Williams and Sunday sets from Hollerhead, Abby Hamilton and Ben Sollee.
Irvine duo The Jenkins Twins recently announced their departure from the Lexington based trio Candi Jenkins to focus on their own music, with a new record anticipated for later this year. The Candi project will still continue with a new band around Katie Toupin, who just wrapped up a run of shows in Texas around SXSW. The shakeup comes less than a month after the release of the group’s debut single, “Cheap Entertainment.”
On March 14 Pineville, Ky. based singer Bill Taylor, who I included among my (5 More) Kentucky Musicians To Watch In 2025, announced his recent cross-country flight to Los Angeles to audition for NBC game show America’s Got Talent. Stay tuned for more details on if/when his audition will air to come.
Prestonsburg, Ky. based singer Emily Jamerson performed on Red Barn Radio Wednesday, March 19. You can watch the nearly 100-minute long episode here.
Also on March 19, the Master Musicians Festival in Somerset, Ky. revealed the daily schedules for it’s 32nd annual celebration set for July 11 and 12. Highlights include Friday main stage sets from Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle and hometown hero Cody Lee Meece — the latter of whom just won “Album Of The Year” at the Lexington Music Awards — along with Saturday performances from Hunter Flynn, The Kentucky Headhunters and Jamey Johnson.

Wick’s Picks Podcast

Next week on Wick’s Picks I’ll be joined by Them Lasses & The Old Dogs to talk about their collaborative, self-titled 2024 album and more ahead of their show at The Twisted Cork on March 30.

Listen “live” via 96.1 Hound FM, The Hound mobile app or HoundFM.com on March 12 at 7 p.m. ET or wait to stream it on demand either here or on Spotify.

But until then, y’all treat yourselves and others with grace, support live music, and have a great week!

Until next time,
Matt

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