Miranda Lambert joins Kelleigh Bannen on Today’s Country Radio for an intimate conversation about her latest album, ‘Postcards From Texas.' Throughout, Miranda reflects on the significance of recording this project in her home state of Texas, and how her husband, Brenden, encouraged her to embrace the more vulnerable and raw songs. Plus, the two discuss the vital role her fans have played in keeping her honest and grounded throughout her career.
Listen to the full interview anytime on-demand with an Apple Music subscription at apple.co/_TodaysCountry
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music The “Ugly Truths” Are Hers
I signed up as a singer-songwriter to tell the truth and a lot of those truths, especially the ugly ones, are mine, and here we are. And that's it. Because I'm a human being and I am a passionate one and I'm a Scorpio on top of all that.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music About Hearing ‘Armadillo' for the First Time
We were driving through the mountains in Austria and I put in my earbuds and I just turned on, Aaron [Raitiere]’s like, “Here's one.” And it said, “I met Armadillo out in Amarillo, and he asked me for a light.” And I was like, “okay, yes. A hundred percent yes. I'm cutting this.” And I didn't even hear any more. I handed [my husband] Brendan an earbud. He was like, “Yes, a hundred percent.” He was like, “This should be the first song on the record.” Just because it's fun and funny and I'm all about having… If you're going to have an album full of songs and there's going to be so much emotion, you've got to make sure you have the fun.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music How She Knows When It’s Time to Close a Chapter in Life
I think it just somehow is just clear. Somehow the big ones to me in my life of “this is done,” is just clear. And I don't know if that's also, as you go through things in your life and as you get a little bit older, you're like, “oh, well now I've seen what happens if you let it fester,” so you just learn to cut it off… Marianne and I, my manager, we've been together for 21 years and our saying forever is “if it's a maybe, it's a no.” We don't do maybes.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music that ‘Postcards From Texas' Feels Like a Snapshot of the Last Two Decades, Rather Than the Last Two Years
This record, because I have had so much full circle happen lately, just like I said, with turning 40 and a new record label, and I felt new freedom, and with that freedom, all I wanted to do was go home to reset so I could get strong to take on a whole new journey. And so I think this record is a snapshot of more like two decades versus the last two years… There's emotions that I've felt for the last two decades as a woman, as an artist in this album.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music Her Husband, Brendan, Pushed Her to Release the Vulnerable Songs on ‘Postcards From Texas'
Brendan was there the whole time. He was a part of the process. He loves it. He's just so in it… He loves music in general and he loves the process and he has been now part of three albums and he just loves because it's been with three different teams of production and musicians, and so he's just intrigued by the whole thing. It gets boring and then he goes to play golf, but he came to Austin with me and was there for a lot of it, and he was the one that was pushing for the ones that I was a little on the fence about as far as vulnerable and raw… Like, “Run,” for example. He was like, “You have to cut that song.”
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music About Feeling Like She’s a “Runner”
I think the reason that I love horses and I love Airstreams and I love the bus, is because it is a way to run to something, not necessarily away from something… but also away if you need to. I think that's why I've always been obsessed with trailers or I don't know if it's growing up on a tour bus or whatever, but I just feel like I can chase my dream but also have a piece of home. And I feel like that's the gypsy lifestyle in me is that's what I love about it.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music the Loretta Lynn Quote She Loves
Loretta said it, she said, “Go live your life so you have something to write about.” That was the quote that I love by her because it's a good reminder all the time. Go see things and do things and gather songs. If you're an artistic person, you got to gather information and you can't do that in your same environment all the time.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music ‘Run' is an “Admission of Human Error”
I wasn't ever ready to perform it until now… That’s what songs are for, and you may not be ready at that one time to sing about something really raw or sing about alimony. You might be going through divorce or whatever, you know what I mean? At the time it might not be funny or at the time it might feel too raw, but then it can come back around… And it's an admission of human error too. It's an apology… But it's also a resolve.
Miranda Lambert Admits to Apple Music She Tries to Sit in the Hard Times Now
People that say, “I have no regrets.” I'm like, “well, you probably have done something wrong in your life. Are you perfect? Because I've never met anybody that's perfect.” I don't think you should live in them, but there's definitely so many situations where I'm like, “I could have handled that different or handled it really immaturely or made the decision too quickly or whatever it is.” I definitely have regrets. And I think learning, we don't learn when everything's going great, you know what I mean?… That’s all fine and good, but that's a season and the high is great to enjoy because you're going to hit another bottom. It's a roller coaster and I feel like I try to sit in it now, the hard stuff, instead of numb it or panic about it or flip out or whatever. I'm like, “well, I'm supposed to be learning something, so maybe I should sit here and listen to the universe right now.”
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music that ‘No Man’s Land' is Not a Warning
I don't think I could have written a song like this till now. Because this is one of the newest on the album, and… it was Luke Dick who had the idea and I just love him because he really, he gets girls… I love this song so much, but it didn't need to be a… “I'm no man's land” with your finger in the air. That's not what this is. I want to be in your space. I want you to be in my space. I want you to understand love her but leave her wild. I want you to know that I want you here, but I need to be me. And that's the song. Just I think we really made sure to get that point across that it's not a warning… it’s a letter… it’s an invitation.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music About Writing ‘Alimony' with Natalie Hemby and Shane McAnally
My parents were private investigators and they were mostly child custody… My whole life was mom and dad following somebody that was trying to pin something on the other person to get their alimony. So that's just, was literally the dinner conversation as a child, which probably why I'm a country singer. It's on brand… We did one last push for writing for the record, and I'm like, “I'm making a record in Texas. I need a shuffle. Dang it. I need a shuffle. I have to.”… Me and Nat were writing and she called [Shane] and he was in Santa Barbara… He was like, “I'm getting on a plane tomorrow.” And I was like, “Great.” So he walked in the barn… And he was like, “Well, I got a title.” And I was like, “What?” He was like, “If you're going to leave me in San Antonio, remember the alimony.” And I was like, “I could literally punch you in the face right now.” Dang it. Why didn't I think of that?… And it was so fun. We got to use all of our little Texas puns and it was fun.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music About Writing ‘I Hate Love Songs'
It's older. I mean it's about six or seven years old, I think. But it was just like, that is like sitting in the pain… I'm smart, but there's been times where I'm literally like, this is terrible for me. I'm going to go touch it… This is going to burn me. Can I… Here, this tastes terrible. Have a bite… I think it's because we're hungry and creative and I don't know. There's a longing and sometimes that's for something that's going to teach us something that we need to learn, but we're going the hard road… And this song doesn't have any structure either, which I love. It doesn't have a chorus or a bridge or anything. It's just verses of I did this.
Miranda Lambert Tells Apple Music the Fans Help Her Stay Honest
I mean, the fans are the reason that have stuck it out from ‘Kerosene' and now they're bringing their daughters to my shows and they're 16. And they're like, we grew up on your music. But that encouragement helped me keep telling the truth and helped me not be afraid. Whatever the story I was telling, it was their story too. And it's like, okay, I'm going to keep doing that then. Because you're validating, I'm not in this alone and neither are you. Let's do it together.
Check out Miranda Lambert's new album ‘Postcards From Texas' in all the usual places now!
