Maren Morris on Being Part of the Highwomen: ‘None of Us Really Needed This’

Much has been made of Maren Morris joining The Highwomen, as her own solo career is taking off. But “The Bones” singer says the conversation should actually be the fact that all of the women – including Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby and Amanda Shires – were doing quite fine on their own as well.

“We knew from the get-go with this band that we all have our own solo endeavors,” Morris told Billboard. “They have families. We’ve said [that] none of us really needed this group, which is, I think, why it’s so special: none of us need the money or the fame. We all have our own things going on, so this was really four people that really believed in the songs that we were turning in for it, and the message behind it.”

The Highwomen’s self-titled freshman album will be out on Friday, Sept. 6, 12 songs that were all written by one or more of the four females. But of all the personal songs, it’s “Crowded Table” that Morris is most excited about, and feels best embodies the message The Highwomen want to share.

“We have no interest in making angry, political music,” Morris maintained. “I think there’s enough sh–– in the world and it makes me super depressed. This record is extremely medicinal. There’s no bashing on it… People can’t even talk to their families because politics are so volatile and polarizing. You can’t even sit at a table and have opposing opinions and break bread. That’s what the message of ‘Crowded Table’ is.”

The Highwomen introduced themselves with their debut single, “Redesigning Women,” which pokes fun at the way women have been portrayed. Instead of ignoring a topic that most would suggest not even discussing, The Highwomen wanted to bring it front and center

“I think it’s really awesome [that] we’re singing about our daily, domestic lives,” said Shires. “We’ve been allowed to do that, but it isn’t a thing people really encouraged as much. It felt like it was a bunch of encouragement that way, like, ‘Yes: there’s more to you than just unrequited love.’”

It’s Hemby who was mostly behind the scenes until now, penning songs for artists like Morris, Miranda Lambert and more. But now that she’s part of the quartet, there’s nowhere she would rather be.

“Honestly, we didn’t even know each other,” Hemby reflected. “It’s like we got married and we had to get to know each other and our dynamic and what our roles are. We fell into our own specific roles, but we had to get to know each other and our personalities, and what our creative strengths are.”

“We really all four are different, but we really all four work really well together and compliment each other, and we have a dynamic that’s very special and unique,” she added. “It’s not like we were all hanging out all the time and decided to join a band. We put our heads together.”

Pre-order The Highwomen’s debut album by visiting their website.

Photo Credit: Getty images / Cindy Ord