Oct 20, 2021

Best New Songs of the Summer

Country music always seems to shine a little bit brighter in the summertime. From huge country music festivals, to country tours, to the genre itself, these things come alive during the warmer months. Grab a koozie, a beach chair, and head on down to the ocean with a playlist full of this summer’s hottest country music songs.

Here are our picks for the best new songs of the summer!

1. “Fancy Like” – Walker Hayes

Released on June 4th, 2021 just in time for the start of summer, “Fancy Like” depicts Hayes’ fun side. This upbeat, high-energy track is an ode to the little things in life. He credits everything in his life that makes him “fancy” including Wendy’s, Applebee’s, milkshakes, and more. He sings, “Yeah, we fancy like Applebee’s on a date night / Got that Bourbon Street steak with the Oreo shake / Get some whipped cream on the top too / Two straws, one check, girl, I got you.”

2. “I Was On A Boat That Day” – Old Dominion

“I Was On A Boat That Day” marks the band’s first release since 2019. This summer anthem has been in the works for a while and found its debut just in time for summer 2021. Written with Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne in North Carolina, the song fixates on a brush-up with heartbreak. Its lyrical content walks us through a breakup with a girl and how she walked out on him. All of the drama will be dealt with another day though, because he’s currently on a boat having fun.

“Is she gone for the summer, gone for the night? / Gone for the weekend or the rest of my life? / Was she laughing, was she crying / As she walked away? / I can’t say / I was on a boat that day.”

3. “Same Boat” – Zac Brown Band

Another boat song for the summer. “Same Boat” is the realization that we are all doing and feeling the same things as everybody else. Written by frontman Zac Brown, Ben Simonetti, and Jonathan Singleton, the song begs for coexistence and harmony between one another. He sings, “We’re all in the same boat / Fishing in the same hole / Wondering where the same time goes / We’re all in the same boat.”

In a press release Brown stated, “Same Boat is really about the human condition. It’s about how we all go through the same things, all together. It is a chance to be able to remind people to be positive, be good to each other and show empathy. You don’t know what it’s like to walk around in someone else’s shoes. We’re all human beings. Let’s spread some love around and show kindness to each other.”

4. “Famous Friends” – Chris Young & Kane Brown

Written by Chris Young, Cary Barlowe, and Corey Crowder, Young enlists his good buddy Kane Brown to acknowledge all of their hometown heroes; all of the important people that live in the shadows that make a huge difference. Young has collaborated with Brown before on his 2017 release, “Setting The Night On Fire.”

5. “Wine, Beer, Whiskey” – Little Big Town

“Wine, Beer, Whiskey” was written for the band’s ninth studio album Nightfall. Although it was released in June 2020, the song is seeing its truest potential this summer as everything is opening back up for the first time since COVID. Written by all four members of the group plus Sean McConnell and Tofer Brown, the song utilizes horns that keep the song fresh-sounding.

6. “Things A Man Oughta Know” – Lainey Wilson

Lainey Wilson’s “Things A Man Oughta Know” has brought her through the door to the forefront of country music. Written by Wilson, Jason Nix, and Jonathan Singleton, the song was released as the lead single for the songstress’s sophomore studio album. The song is about a man’s good character and what is believed to be things that a man should know, and that Wilson can do all of those things herself. She sings, “How to / know when it’s love / How to stay when it’s tough / How to know you’re messin’ up a good thing / And how to fix it ‘fore it’s too late / And yeah, I know a boy / Who gave up and got it wrong / If you really love a woman, you don’t let her go / Yeah, I know a few things a man oughta know.”

To hear more of country music’s best new releases, head to our Playlists Page and follow The Nash New Releases playlist on Spotify. For the latest in country music news follow The Nash News on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok, and don’t miss our brand new newsletter.