Kacey Musgraves Helped Maren Morris With Her Country Career Before She Moved to Nashville
Maren Morris and Kacey Musgraves are two of the most popular country singers. Combined, the women have seven Grammy Awards, 11 studio albums, and millions of fans.
Morris and Musgraves both got their start when they moved permanently to Nashville in 2014 to launch their careers. But they were longtime friends on the tour circuit in Texas long before they landed in Tennessee.
Kacey Musgraves and Maren Morris crossed paths touring in their native Texas
The List discusses how Musgraves, from Golden Texas, and Morris, from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, frequently met as they toured local music venues, dive bars, and smaller auditoriums.
Even better, the two faced off during a Battle of the Bands contest. (Joel Adam Russell won when he was all of 14 years old with his band, Minority, according to Whiskey Riff.)
During these tours in The Lone Star State, they both became two of country music’s most recognizable stars. Although they were technically rivals in Texas, Musgraves and Morris became friends chasing the same dream to Nashville.
A visit to Nashville changed Morris’s life forever
As Wide Open Country reports, Musgraves enlightened Morris on what it was like in Nashville.
“Kacey played a big role in my life just by getting my ass to this town,” the “Bigger Man” singer explained. “I had no idea before I moved here that songwriting was a ‘five days a week’ job. She enlightened me and it was really cool to see because I was like, ‘Oh my God, I can actually write for a living and go into an office.’ I felt like it was very grown up, even though you’re still writing songs.”
Along the way, Musgraves introduced Morris to the movers and shakers in the industry: “She showed me around her publishing office. It opened up this world for me: People go in, Monday through Friday, sit down and write a song. I was like, ‘Holy s***, this is the best job ever.”
Morris was just 20 years old when she arrived in Nashville. Her first hit song? Last Turn Home for Tim McGraw’s hit album Sundown Heaven Town in 2014.
Maren Morris owes a lot to her longtime friendship with Kacey Musgraves
Although the pair have yet to collaborate on a song, either writing or singing, Morris owes a lot of her professional and personal success to her friendship with Musgraves. The decision to move to Nashville was the first step. Working hard as a songwriter was the second step.
Along the way, Morris met her future husband in 2014 when writing McGraw’s song. She became a solo artist with her debut album and hit song “My Church” in 2016. Currently, Morris is going on her Humble Quest tour alongside her 2-year-old son.
The future looks bright for the 32-year-old country songstress as her career moves forward.
