Lexie Hayden is a rising songstress who draws inspiration from artists like Dolly Parton, Cheryl Crow, Maren Morris, and Kacey Musgraves. Although she wasn’t raised in a particularly musical family, her brother is an avid guitarist. While she is a gifted performer, her heart lies in songwriting, a passion she has honed since age 14.
In 2010, Hayden recorded an album when she was 16 but didn’t move to Nashville after graduating high school. Instead, she attended James Madison University in Virginia, where she continued to play and record music when possible.
However, after graduating college in 2015, Hayden knew Nashville was where she wanted to be.
She advised, “I don't regret any part of my college experience. I learned so much about myself and my friends in college as I played all over campus. I think it was such an important part of my life that I don't take it for granted. Getting a four-year degree was part of my journey.”
Hayden released her first EP in Nashville in 2017. She is a prolific songwriter who writes about the “stuff” that goes on in her life.
Like another famous artist, Hayden confirmed, “If you're going to be a part of my romantic life, you might get a song. I didn't ask to be hurt. I didn't ask to go through breakups. I didn't ask to have multiple relationships. It is just a part of my journey. And I'm also grateful for it because I've gotten a lot of material out of it.”
She continued, “If we've learned anything from Taylor Swift, writing your truth makes you believable and popular.”
Even if a song isn’t true to her life when she writes it, she often becomes the person in the story, which is “one of the coolest parts of being a songwriter.”
In 2021, Hayden’s song “Take Me Home” went viral. The song is not about a one-night stand. “If you really want to take me home, take me home to meet your mama,” she states emphatically.
The song resonated with many, and people started making their own videos of it on TikTok.
In 2022, Hayden was featured on MTV’s Becoming a Popstar, which gave her a platform to create and share her original music.
Since then, she has garnered 3.5 million streams across Apple Music and Spotify, and her music has earned a spot on influential playlists such as "New Music Nashville" and "CMT Next Women of Country.”
After 17 years of creating music, singles, and EPs, Hayden has released her debut album, Counting Rainbows. The record's inspiration came from Hayden watching Daisy Jones & The Six, a fictional story loosely based on Fleetwood Mac and other rock stars of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
She stated on News Channel 5’s Talk of the Town, “After watching the show, I knew I wanted to make music like the 70s but make it about today. I wanted to write a retro album.”
While the series was based on fictional characters and plotlines, the hallmark of Hayden’s music is her honesty.
She told Channel 5’s Heather Mathis, “I don’t know any other way of being. I’ve been an open book my whole life. I’ve never been able to keep secrets. I will tell everyone everything. It's the same way when I go into a writing room.”
The first track she released from the album in April was “Both Yours.” In it, she regrets her feelings for a guy and asks, “Why do I want to give you everything you need when all I do is love you and all you do is leave?”
Next, she gave us a retro romance tune, “Fingertips,” a song that could have been featured on popular TV shows like Love Boat or Fantasy Island had she been alive at the time.
In July, she released the single “Glitter,” a song about a relationship that she compares to glitter, which she can’t get rid of no matter how hard she tries.
“Nothing To Be Friends About” came out in August, and it was inspired by Hayden and her friend speculating whether country artist Morgan Wade and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Kyle Richards were dating.
Hayden asked, “Do you think they are dating?” Her friend replied, “They have nothing to be friends about.”
The sassy song questions the validity of two people who claim they are “just friends.”
But it was when I heard the song “High Enough,” a duet with long-time pal and guitarist Jason Nix, that I knew I wanted to interview the singer/songwriter.
“High Enough" is an intoxicating anthem that explores the allure of love's highs. Co-written by Hayden, Jason Nix, Alex Kiel, and Andrea Dozzi, the song captures the euphoric rush of being so profoundly infatuated that nothing compares.
Hayden stated, “The song came about very organically. Since I had so much success with Jason on “Breaking Up” (from 2022), he was the natural person to sing it. And he wrote four of the nine tracks on the album.”
In the title track, “Counting Rainbows,” you can hear the influences of 70s pop/rock mixed with a bit of Kasey Musgraves. The song gives a message of hope as she declares, Counting rainbows, not the rainy days/ I got the windows down, rolling around in my shades/ I’ve my own silver lining when the sun is shining, Oooh, I’m counting rainbows. The song is the perfect homage to the rest of the album.
Other songs out today include “Another Vice” and “Call It A Crush,” two tunes that remind us of the fantastic Laurel Canyon days of prolific songwriting between 1965 and 1975.
“The Match" has the lyrics of a modern, smoldering country love song, but when Hayden sings it, it has the throwback feel she gravitates toward.
The thing I like best about the Counting Rainbows album is its uniqueness. While so many others are trying to become country, Lexie Hayden does what she wants as she honors one of the most influential eras in songwriting history. There is something for everyone in this collection of masterpieces.
You can follow Lexie Hayden on her website, Instagram, Facebook, X, TikTok, YouTube, and all streaming platforms.
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Bethany Bowman is a freelance entertainment writer. You can follow her blog, Facebook, Instagram, and X.
Counting Rainbows Tracklisting:
- “Another Vice”
- “Both Yours”
- “Glitter”
- “Fingertips”
- “Call It A Crush”
- “Nothin’ To Be Friends About”
- “High Enough”
- “The Match”
- “Counting Rainbows”