Ella Langley - Hungover

Ella Langley did not sneak up on anyone so much as kick the door in. hungover, her debut album, arrived in August 2024 on Sawgod and Columbia, and the duet at its center went on to become one of the most decorated country songs of the decade. "you look like you love me," featuring Riley Green, gave Langley her first Billboard Hot 100 entry, went to number one on Country Airplay, and took Musical Event of the Year at the 58th CMA Awards. A year later it made history at the 59th, becoming the first song ever to win Single of the Year, Song of the Year, Music Video of the Year, and Musical Event of the Year in a single night.

The Alabama-born singer and songwriter has a voice built for rafters and a writer's refusal to soften anything. Across 14 songs recorded in Nashville with producer Will Bundy, she works the seam between honky-tonk tradition and rock and roll grit, with enough pop instinct to make it all go down easy. "nicotine" and "paint the town blue" show the range, and the spoken-word conceit of "you look like you love me" flips the usual barroom-pickup script by letting the woman make the first move. The album debuted at number 11 on the Top Country Albums chart and climbed steadily on the strength of word of mouth and a fanbase that found her long before radio did.

The record closes with something you cannot stream anywhere: a monologue poem written by Langley and her mother, Heather, included exclusively on the vinyl.

That vinyl-only ending is the whole argument for owning this one on wax. A debut that turned into a phenomenon, with a final piece that only exists here.