With ‘Anna,' rising country-pop star Dasha pulls back the curtain on the person behind the viral success of ‘Austin (Boots Stop Workin’).' It’s a bold and deeply personal step for an artist who’s already achieved the kind of milestones most dream of: over a billion streams, a People’s Choice Country Award for Song of the Year, and high-profile nominations at both the MTV VMAs and iHeartRadio Music Awards. After a whirlwind year that’s seen her headline her own sold-out tour and join Thomas Rhett on the road, Dasha’s new EP isn’t about chasing another hit — it’s about rediscovering the woman who made them possible. “I’m still learning about Dasha,” she admits, “but I’ve remembered who Anna is.”
More than just a collection of songs, ‘Anna' is a world-builder. Each track explores a different corner of Dashville, the cinematic universe Dasha has been sketching for her fans since her breakout. If ‘What Happens Now?' established her as a major new voice in modern country, Anna gives that voice a backstory — equal parts diary and confessional. It’s intimate, reflective and self-aware, a record that reframes Dasha’s glossy pop-country persona into something more human and raw.
The EP opens with ‘Work On Me,' a breezy slice of California-country fusion that instantly sets the tone. A Springsteen-style harmonica introduces a track that quickly slides into a Fleetwood Mac-meets-Taylor Swift groove, all soft percussion and sun-drenched swagger. “I’m a California girl with a southern heart,” Dasha sings, confronting the duality at her core — half west-coast dreamer, half Nashville romantic. There’s cheeky flirtation here too: “What’s the worst that can happen from a little fun?” she teases, her phrasing and melodic cadence nodding unmistakably toward Taylor Swift’s early storytelling style.
If ‘Work On Me' is all sunshine and teasing smiles, ‘Not at This Party' brings a flash of neon-lit loneliness. Driven by banjo and handclaps, it’s a kinetic pop-country banger that captures the sting of pretending to have fun while your heart’s somewhere else. Dasha’s at a wild party, but her mind’s on the one person who isn’t there. The clash between the buoyant rhythm and her anxious lyrics highlights just how clever her songwriting has become. She’s turning the tension between sound and feeling into something electric.
‘Please Stop Changing' pares things back beautifully. The banjo and fiddle do most of the talking as Dasha pleads with an ex who’s outgrown her. “You don’t ask me how I’m doing, how’s my family,” she laments, the sparse arrangement amplifying every crack in her voice. It’s one of the most vulnerable tracks here, steeped in classic country heartbreak but stripped of melodrama. The intimacy recalls early Kacey Musgraves or Maren Morris, artists who know how to make small moments feel cinematic.
The momentum picks back up with ‘Gimme a Second,' a fiery, full-throttle country-pop stomper. It opens with a foot-tapping beat and barrels into an explosive chorus of drums and guitars as Dasha wrestles with rejection and pride. There’s playful desperation in her delivery — “It’s obvious it’s all for me,” she sings, watching her ex flirt across the bar. You can almost picture the eye roll between lines. It’s one of the EP’s most danceable cuts, balancing angst with irresistible rhythm, a reminder that Dasha’s pop instincts remain razor-sharp even in her most confessional moments.
The tone shifts on ‘I Don’t Mean To,' a tender acoustic piece that channels the breezy intimacy of Colbie Caillat and early Swift. “I got this little problem,” Dasha admits in the opening line, waking up beside one man but wishing she were with another. “I miss how the world looks through your lens,” she confesses in what feels like a voice note sent too late. It’s an honest, unfiltered glimpse into messy young love — vulnerable, relatable and delicately produced.
‘Train' is perhaps the emotional centre piece of ‘Anna.' A quietly stunning acoustic ballad, it uses the steady rhythm of passing trains as a metaphor for time, change and finding home again. “6:35, 7:30 and 8:29 / That thing was always on time,” she sings, her voice hushed but sure. Later, when she sighs, “Wake up and realise one day / That you don’t hear the train anymore,” it’s devastating in its simplicity. Though it’s her first outside cut, it fits seamlessly within the EP’s themes of movement and memory — a song that, as Dasha says, “feels like it was written straight out of my own diary.,” describing her move to Nashville to study at Belmont University and the dislocation that brought.
The closing tracks bring Anna full circle. ‘Like It Like That' finds Dasha caught between reason and desire, admitting “You ain’t a keeper” but unable to walk away. It’s sexy, playful and knowingly self-sabotaging — “I might be going crazy thinking that this might last,” she grins, the funky percussion and snappy melody pushing the song into pop-soul territory. Then comes ‘Oh Anna!', a poignant finale that feels like a letter from Dasha to Anna herself. “I miss you, I need you, I left you, didn’t mean to,” she sings, confronting how fame and image have pulled her from her roots. The image of her rediscovering Anna in a dirty bar bathroom on Broadway is poetic, grounding and entirely in character for an artist determined to stay real.
With ‘Anna,' Dasha delivers a project that feels both like a continuation and a rebirth — the next chapter for a woman learning how to balance vulnerability with ambition. It’s a brave, lovingly crafted collection that doesn’t just expand her world but actually reveals it. By the time the final note fades, one thing is clear: Dasha isn’t just building Dashville. She’s building a legacy, one honest, hook-filled confession at a time.
Tracklist: 1. Work On Me 2. Not At This Party 3. Please Stop Changing 4. Gimme A Second 5. I Don't Mean To” 6. Train 7. Like It Like That 8. Oh, Anna! Release Date: October 10th Record Label: Warner Records Buy ‘Anna' right here
This article contains an affiliate link. Purchases through this link may result in us earning a commission.
