Kaitlin Butts already has three studio albums to her name, a pursuit that commenced 11 years ago. And yet it was her most recent record, Roadrunner! - a concept album - that really soundtracked her emergence onto the scene. Namely, the track You Ain't Gotta Die (To Be Dead To Me) contributed to her rise to fame and has had millions of streams across multiple platforms.
It's been quite the journey for Butts, though, a singer/songwriter who, through her discography, has openly discussed substance abuse, intergenerational trauma, domestic violence and more. And yet, it's her latest LP, Hello, Honky Tonk, set for release today, that details the characters she has come across, mirrored in herself throughout her life.
In a way, the album acts as somewhat of a conceptual one, with the opening track Introducing Hello, Honky Tonk setting a scene in a bar owned by Butts. It's here that the many layers of her being assume form as a suite of characters that also exist as their own entities.
With singles I Wanna Be Bad, What More Could You Want and Never Really Mine already released, audiences have had a taste of what is one of Rolling Stone's most anticipated albums of the year. However, for Butts, despite being grateful her music is anticipated, it's more about feeling compelled to share her creativity that fuels the music.
"It feels crazy that the album is anticipated by anyone at this point because I'm really just doing it for my satisfaction," outlines Butts. "I just have to get these stories out of me whenever I'm writing or if I'm even doing anything like a music video. I'm always thinking about it creatively, as in I have to make it happen for my own artistic nourishment.
"It feels good that people are excited for it, and I just can't wait for people to hear it. This is the smallest amount of time that I've made an album, written and recorded all in the midst of touring hardcore this year. It's the hardest I've ever worked.
“Sure, I'm tired, but I'm loving it at the same time. I'm excited for it to be out so that people can sing along and I can hear it in bars and meet people in them who have heard it too."
It's this sense of conviction, purpose and necessity that is feeding Butts’ drive to get better as she continues making, recording and performing her music.
"I feel like there's a good, and in the best way, expectation to get better and better," she notes. "I just want to keep getting better at my job and just keep stepping it up and trying to get better at songwriting and putting out an album and putting something to the song. It's all about trying to put together something that is really special."
And it's been particularly special recently as Butts has featured in the lineup of the multi-location Australian country music festival Strummingbird. Split across Ballarat, Newcastle and Sunshine Coast over the last two weekends, playing the festival has offered up many new experiences for Butts, as well as a means of sharing some of the new music.
"I did my first shoey at these festivals," jokes Butts. "There was a small taste of leather. Exactly what I thought it would taste like. I'm really glad that they gave me a little vodka drink though. I didn't have to turn it down because I can't do the other stuff. But it was fun. It was great to join in the spirit of the festival and have a great time.
"So far we've been playing Never Really Mine, The Bartender, I Wanna Be Bad and some others, but we're starting to work in more and more songs as we get closer to the release."
It's the second time she has ventured to Australia this year, and certainly a love that is blossoming with each visit.
"I'm still just a new act in Australia, but everybody is really wonderful," sparkles Butts. "They just want to know the music, and they want to sing along with it. They may not know a song at the start of it, but they're wanting to sing along by the end. It's really just cool to experience that on the other side of the world.
"This is my second time coming out to see y'all. We got the offer to complete this festival, and we were just there in February, questioning if we should go, but I was just really eager to come back. Australia has really excitable energy there; it makes me want to come back any chance I can get.
"You're all fiending for it, and so it's really fun to be able to perform. It's kind of like when you order a pizza, but I feel like the delivery guy sensing that anticipation at the door."
It's no wonder that crowds in Australia have been welcoming Butts back warmly; she's been able to bring a selection of songs that speak to the diversity of the human experience.
"My first album was very dark; I was going through a dark time," details Butts. "Now I'm talking about all those things at festivals and these places where the energy can be very light, and it feels kind of hard to talk about topics such as generational trauma or substance abuse. But I feel like there's no honesty when you don't do things like that.
"For Strummingbird, I also wanted there to be this environment of camaraderie and fun, as well as allowing for realness that all comes out on the album too. All in all, it's been fun and fulfilling to play these songs at festivals because there really are some fancy wild songs from the album as well as some songs that speak to other aspects of life. Everyone seems to be coming along for the ride."
Hello, Honky Tonk is a varied journey through the personas we all carry, represented in others as much as in ourselves. The release of it is further cementing Butt's talent and knack for storytelling - a craft she is committed to further refining. It comes out October 30, acting as a must-listen for 2026.
Hello, Honky Tonk is out now via Kaitlin Butts Music and Republic Records.
