When Maren Morris released her freshman Hero album in 2016, she was single, and maybe a little cynical about love, which resulted in songs like “I Could Use a Love Song,” her first No. 1 hit.
But now, as Morris prepares to release her sophomore record, the 28-year-old is happily married to fellow singer-songwriter, Ryan Hurd, who became the muse for much of her second set of tunes.
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“I’ve been in this amazing relationship and I got married in the time that I’ve written and started recording this album,” Morris tells Country Living. “The new record, it has a lot of love in it. I don’t shy away from topics [like love], so I’m really excited for people to hear it.”
Hurd has become not only the inspiration for Morris, but also her sounding board, even moreso as she puts the finishing touches on her next project.
“I really trust his opinion, especially if I have a new song that maybe we didn’t write together, I always play him the mix the second I get it back, because I really trust his ear,” explains Morris. “I love that we’re such different artists … But he’s always been my biggest fan when it comes to my music and vice versa.”
Morris and Hurd initially met as songwriters, co-writing “Last Turn Home” for Tim McGraw‘s 2014 Sundown Heaven Town album. From that writing session, Morris and Hurd became friends, which over time evolved into romance.
“I think that’s why I gravitated towards him in the beginning, because he’s such a dork and he makes me laugh and is, obviously, very good looking!” says Morris. “We’re just always joking around. I think, sometimes, you can take your job too seriously, especially [being] under a magnifying glass as an artist, so it’s nice to be with someone who gets exactly what you’re doing and can talk you down if you’re having a bad day and is just right there with you. He’s that for me.”
Although the newlyweds have only been married three months, Morris says they have already talked about expanding their family.
“[We’re not] in any kind of hurry,” Morris reveals. “What’s so great about [Hurd] is that we’ve always talked about it in a really open way and neither of us have really shied away from that topic.”
Morris is currently serving as the opening act for Niall Horan, part of a whirlwind couple years that included headlining her own Hero Tour, as well as opening for artists like Keith Urban, Sam Hunt and Thomas Rhett. The busy time on the road is proof of how successful her career already is, but also makes it more challenging to have time to focus on more music.
“The song-writing process this time around is totally different,” Morris acknowledges. “I’ve been traveling so much, so I’ve brought my friends who I write with out on the tour bus and we write in the back lounge. They’ll bring their recording equipment and we’ll just basically set up a mini-traveling studio in the back of the bus.”
No word yet when Morris will release her next album. Her current single, “Rich,” presumably her last from Hero, is in the Top 40. Download the single on iTunes.
Photo Credit: Getty images/John Shearer
