Lainey Wilson and Hardy revisit a classic country trope — the murder ballad — in their new duet, “Wait in the Truck,” which came out last week.
Country fans haven’t heard as many murder ballads recently as they once did on the radio — though Chris Janson’s recent collab with Eric Church, “You, Me & the River,” is an exception — but Lainey remembers when they were a much more prevalent part of the genre.
“I remember when, listening to things on the radio, [you’d hear] [Garth Brooks’] ‘The Thunder Rolls,’ [The Chicks’] ‘Goodbye Earl,’” the singer tells the Tennessean. “It is a murder ballad. But I think it’s starting a conversation — probably a conversation a lot of people don’t wanna have.”
“Wait in the Truck” opens up a conversation about domestic violence, with Hardy playing the role of the guy who runs into a badly beaten woman — Lainey — and kills her abuser, then goes to jail.
“It’s something that’s not talked about a lot. Things that happen behind closed doors,” Lainey continues. “But I think it really is our job as artists to sing about things that people are scared to talk about.”
If you are affected by abuse and needing support, or know someone who is, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). You can also chat online at thehotline.org or online.rainn.org, respectively.
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