Margo Price is an artist who has had a massive influence in country and Americana music for years. Hailing from the small town of Aledo, Illinois, Price began singing and playing piano at a young age. She had an interest in dance and theater, and she majored in those creative subjects during her time at Northern Illinois University. Price eventually moved to Nashville, where she worked various jobs — including waitressing, teaching dance and more — while chasing her country music dream. She released her debut album, Midwest Farmer's Daughter, in 2016, and she's been continuing to blaze her successful trail ever since. Price is known for her vintage country sound, and she co-writes many of her songs with her husband, Jeremy Ivey. This success has led to Price garnering a committed fanbase and becoming a musical staple in the Nashville community and beyond. Here are six of her best songs so far.
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6. "Learning to Lose (featuring Willie Nelson)"
In this song (just one of her collaborations with Nelson), Price and the country legend croon about losing certain battles in life. The song was written solely by Price, and it's very poetic, beginning with Price describing a gloomy December day during which she ponders her path in life. She recalls the struggles she has endured to become who she's meant to be, and she asks herself: " is winning learning to lose?" Nelson takes his own verse in the tune, and the two sing together, as they both wonder and pontificate on the secret to success. Sonically, the song features a classic country/Western-inspired sound with simple acoustic guitar instrumentation.
5. "Hurtin (On the Bottle)"
Price goes full classic country in her tune, "Hurtin' (On The Bottle)," which is primed and ready for any honkytonk. The song is essentially an old-fashioned drinking tune, as Price, accompanied by fiddle, guitar and pedal steel, describes drinking "whiskey like it's water" to get over an ex-love. Although the lyric sheet for the song is quite short, Price repeats the chorus multiple times, and the song features a musical interlude reminiscent of classic country tunes from the past, further cementing Price's reverence for traditional country music.
4. "Twinkle Twinkle"
It's clear when listening to Price's music that she has a deep respect for classic country music, but she also infuses influences from other genres into her tracks. In "Twinkle Twinkle," Price sings against a landscape of vintage, 1970s-inspired gritty rock. The production isn't the only thing about the tune that's nostalgic, but the lyrics are as well. The song is autobiographical, as Price looks back on the simple days of her childhood and teenage years, to her young adult years when she was working to pay rent. She also details her road to success and ends the song with a sage piece of advice: "If it don't break you, it might just make you rich."
3. "Four Years of Chances"
Price's song "Four Years of Chances" is the ultimate country breakup tune. In this tune, Price details a four-year, dead-end relationship, and she's finally ending it. Singing to her deadbeat ex-partner, Price says she gave him "four years of chances," and while she was working hard taking care of him, he was staying out late and generally not treating her right. In the end, Price reveals that she has found someone new who does love her the way she deserves. The tune features Price's signature country throwback sound and harkens back to songs by artists like Loretta Lynn that feature strong female characters.
2. "A Little Pain"
Recorded for her All American Made album, released in 2017, "A Little Pain" finds Price singing about the hurdles of life. It's not clear whether she wrote the tune about her journey to stardom or not, but either way, the songs finds Price describing the sort of arduous hustle every person must make to reach the top of their industry. Although she decries her struggles throughout the tune, she holds on to one positive: "A little pain never hurt no one." Overall, the tune serves as a country-tinted ode to hard work.
1. "Hands of Time"
"Hands of Time" is the first track on Price's debut album, Midwest Farmer's Daughter, and it serves to introduce the singer to listeners. Price essentially tells her life story through the song, and she shares her motivations for finding success. In the song, she details leaving her home in Illinois to move to Nashville to become a star. She reveals that her family fell on tough times in her childhood when her father lost their farm and had to work in a prison. The song also reveals Price's desire to be successful in order to buy her family's farm back and turn back the "hands of time." The original version of the song runs more than six minutes, and it serves to introduce Price as a person and an artist.
