Kacey Musgraves is “trucking along in my own lane” when it comes to writing songs.
The 26-year-old singer won a Grammy award for her 2013 album Same Trailer Different Park.
She’s now preparing to release a follow-up record, but admits she doesn’t stick to the same formula as many of her fellow country stars.
“I'm kind of in my own little corner, you know?” Kacey said during an interview with America’s Cosmopolitan magazine. “I'm inspired by traditional country music. I love Willie Nelson. A lot of this record was inspired by Glenn Campbell, Roger Miller, he was really humorous. I'm just trucking along in my own lane.”
One of country’s hottest young stars, Taylor Swift, famously uses her relationships and breakups to inspire her songs. And Kacey says she also uses real-life experiences to help her write.
“A lot of times, I'll be having an argument or a conversation with someone, and I'm like, Oh, that's a lyric!” she said. “Then I think, Focus back on the conversation. Or it's stuff my parents, sister, or friends have gone through. I could see a sign and think, Oh, that's an interesting perspective.”
Kacey formerly caused controversy with her hit song Follow Your Arrow, which many radio stations declined to play because of the lyrics about same-sex kissing and smoking marijuana.
However, Kacey insists she hasn’t let the incident affect her songwriting.
“I don't let other people, what they would be into, really dictate anything that happens in my music,” she said. “It honestly, selfishly, starts with making a song that makes me happy. If I'm truthful to that, and if I write a good song, then it will resonate with people. And I just don't try to worry about pleasing every single person's taste palate because it's just not going to happen.”
