Erin Kinsey is no stranger to working hard. During her visit to The Long Road Festival this summer, she and her band “flew in like bats out of hell” from other tour locations, driving straight from the airport to the stage. Kinsey now sits in front of me backstage at her headline show at The O2 Academy in Islington — a quick chat and she’s right back on stage.
In October 2024, Kinsey released her eight-track album, Gettin’ Away With It, a sass-filled, powerful piece of work that overflowed with female empowerment. “I felt relief when the album dropped, cause I wanted it to be out, and I almost didn’t release some of the songs cause they felt too personal or whatever. I was really motivated to do whatever it took for people to hear the songs.”
Gettin’ Away With It is the most relatable piece of work Erin Kinsey has created in her career so far. “I have released a lot of music over the years, but I think I have never believed in music the way I believed in this album.” What’s particularly notable about her demeanour is her ability to connect so quickly to those around her. Immediately when entering her dressing room, I felt nothing short of welcomed in as if I was being accepted into the club of girlhood, as if she saw me and said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ve been there too!’ “I feel like I put my heart on the line, and girls go through all the same stuff over and over. So if audiences just hear these songs, they’ll relate to them and love them. I am proud of the album.”
Song-writing is a whole other world to performing, “I wish there was a key to it or magic. I go in with different things all the time. I write a lot. Like when I’m home, I write four or five songs a week. I go in pretty blind — I’m like I don’t know, let’s see where the day takes us.” Much of Kinsey’s writing stems from personal experience, where she accurately captures her feelings, picks up one of the seven instruments she plays, and works out what comes next.
When in the studio creating ‘Matchmaker’, “we were trying to write this sweet love song, and I said, I’m gonna be so fair with you guys right now… I pull out the picture of my ex and ex-best friend being engaged, and I was like, I feel like we should talk about this.” The elephant in the room is often the best concept for a piece of art; it’s daring, it’s cheeky, and it’s what audiences want to scream about. Instead of victimising herself by singing a heartbreaking ballad, or fooling us all into thinking she’s in love, Kinsey stared down the barrel of the gun and looked reality in the eyes — the result? An upbeat bop that makes you want to put on your cowgirl boots and toss back a shot of tequila with your girls.
A signature staple to Kinsey’s musical image is her ability to pick up seven different instruments and go to town. “I particularly love guitar, it’s fun shredding the solos and stuff during the shows, people don’t expect it. I also love sitting there with my acoustic guitar. I write a lot of my songs on that. So that’s probably my favourite.” In the modern music era, artists are favoured based on a plethora of characteristics: vocals, lyricism, image, sound production, but more than ever, the industry has seen a shift to appreciating artists that radiate authenticity and individualism. Kinsey’s abilities as a musician cause her to stand out as a songwriter, performer, and overall artist.
I learn that Kinsey’s shredding abilities are about to come in handy as she’s “about to start leaning back into rock stuff again”! If only her dream collaborator, Keith Urban, would invite her to collab on a song, all her dreams would come true: “whatever he wants to do, like, if he wants to just breathe on it, that’s fine.” There is one more dream of hers that defines ‘pop-country star from a Texan small town’, and that’s her bucket list venue to play; “I come from a high school that’s got a big old football stadium. I went, and I was in the drum line, and I would go to all the football games. It was me, my younger sister and my parents. I think it’d be so cool one day to do a show there in my hometown at that big old football stadium.” I can’t help but smile and hope that someday she gets that chance.
For any musician who worries about changing their sound or image, Kinsey has thoughts: “I’ve learned that now and then somebody will try to figure out what my sound is; however, there are no rules. I can do stuff so far in whatever direction I want, and luckily, it feels like my voice is the thing that brings it all together. So, I’m leaning into the different corners of things that I love… nobody has come for me yet.” My personal thoughts when leaving the dressing room were that Erin Kinsey represents a beautifully kind and welcoming young artist who hasn’t let her successful career get to her head; a breath of fresh air.
Erin Kinsey continues to tour the States for the rest of 2025, accompanied by her newly released single ‘Get Ya’ Back’ (and yes, there is a Performance Video). Listen now via Spotify, Apple Music, or anywhere you can get your hands on her bold, daring country gold.
