Maddie Marlow and Taylor Dye never intended to hit a nerve when they sat down on St. Patricks Day and wrote “Girl In A Country Song.” Merely expressing their own reaction to the reductive tilt of today’s BroCountry, the pair and co-writer Aaron Schwerz shamelessly skewered its Xeroxed stereotypes; “Girl” was as much a lark as it was ever “meaningful social commentary.”
Yet the response was so instant and intense, there was no denying it. NPR’s “All Things Considered” cited Maddie & Tae for “turning heads in different ways with their very first single,” Rolling Stone cited them as one of “10 New Artists You Need to Know” and David Letterman couldn’t get the plucky duo to New York fast enough. Even elevated cultural think-tank The Atlantic marveled, “Cheekily appropriating much of the sound of modern country, the two young women directly quote well-known bro-country lyrics and titles…”
No one was more surprised than the natives of Sugar Land, Texas and Ada, Oklahoma. Still in the studio tracking overdubs for “Girl,” they signed their record deal before Dan Huff had even finished four sides on the sunshine’n’moxie pair.
“We wanted to go at it from a girl’s perspective, and we wanted to put ourselves in the shoes of this girl,” says Dye. “You know, how does she feel wearing those cut-off shorts, sitting on the tailgate?”
“Boys, we love you, we want to look good, but it’s not all we’re good for,” Marlow cautions with a laugh. “We are girls with something to say. We were brought up to know how we should be treated.”
Simple as that. But there’s so much more to Maddie & Tae than the song that is either a feminist declaration, an echo of Janet Jackson’s rebuke “I’ve got a name, and it ain’t ‘Baby’,” or this year’s feel-good finger-wag to dumb boys. NPR’s lead pop critic Ann Powers agrees, “Maddie and Tae are more. They’re songwriters, powerful harmonizers, and in the video for ‘Girl In A Country Song,’ natural comediennes.”
One listen to their self-titled EP shows that. The reeling mean-girl send-up “Sierra,” with its bending steel and trotting acoustic guitar, boasts harmonies that turn in on each other and the kind of truth that’s hilarious and straight-up.
“There was this beauty-queen bully from high school who sent my friends and I home in tears plenty of times,” Marlow explains. “In order to get over it, I had to write a song. So I brought the idea of ‘Sierra,’ and started singing, ‘I wish I had something nice to say…’
“Tae and our co-writer Aaron Scherz lit up and ran with it.”
Any one who’s suffered through and survived high school can relate. But the ability to rhyme “Sierra, Sierra, life ain’t all tiaras…” and taking the rejoinder “you’re gonna find out karma’s a…” to the brink is what sets these two late teenagers apart.
Effervescent and savoring every moment, Maddie & Tae laugh when they lean into the cautionary “That high horse you’re riding… can buck you off clean,” then let their harmonies swoop free and high on the outro.
Like a lot of young women, Maddie & Tae grew up on the Dixie Chicks’ full-tilt acoustica. Both dreamers who knew what they wanted early, the pair met at 15 through their vocal coach and came to Nashville for “a summer camp publishing deal.” They met Big Machine’s SVP of A&R Allison Jones – and fate stepped in.
As Tae recalls, “She said, ‘If you really want to pursue this, you will need to move to Nashville.’ I knew that was what I wanted, but moving to Nashville also meant I had to figure out how to graduate from high school early, and Maddie had to turn down college.”
In 2013, it was decided. The pair relocated – and never looked back. Publishing deal in hand, they were immersed in creativity, seeking a voice that was both authentic and truly their own. Like Taylor Swift, the duo knew by speaking their truth, their uniqueness would set them apart.
As Marlow told Rolling Stone Country, “Our whole project revolves around keeping it real and being honest. We didn’t filter anything, because we felt like when it comes from an honest place, the truth will resonate so much better. The thing about Taylor, everything is real and relevant to what she’s going through, and that’s why people connect with her.”
Listening to the double harmonies over an acoustic guitar hope-strung-over-doubt mid-tempo “Fly,” Maddie & Tae’s conviction is evident. Will what’s been built be betrayed? How do you keep the faith when you’re so unsure? Where is the courage to maintain your place when you’re afraid of the outcome?
Not since “Wide Open Spaces” has an act embraced the will to grow so unabashedly. In perfect synchronization, Maddie & Tae sing, “Keep on climbing, though the ground might shake, keep on reaching through the limb might break/ we’ve come this far, don’t be scared now ‘Cause you can learn to fly on the way down…”
It’s the sort of song that empowers people wherever they are in life, whatever challenge they may be encountering. Yes, it is about coming of age, but it’s also facing the things that scare you – and having the faith to transcend.
“’Fly’ hits home every time we listen to it,” Dye offers. “We really wanted to write a song that was, ‘You may not have anything figured out, but it doesn’t matter.’”
Indeed. Townes Van Zant wrote, “To live is to fly…” For Maddie & Tae, their wings are in the music. What they feel, how they live, what they dream – this is where they rise. One need only listen to the tumbledown hoedown “Your Side of Town,” that’s all high jinx and higher spirits as the pair warn off a no-good man for the last time, to understand.
Even in the hardcore throw-down, all bucking backbeat and bee-sting guitar, there is a romp and a plucky audacity that shows these young ladies have no interest in letting anything break their spirits. Just as importantly, they fear no fiddles, no banjos, no steel guitars, even as they have bulked up drums that crash and guitars that slash and sting like the big boys.
While Rolling Stone observed, “Cheekily appropriating much of the sound of modern country,” there is so much more to Maddie & Tae than that. Independent thinkers, strong livers, hardcore dreamers, the pair are reaching for the sky – and winking at us all while they do it.
Sometimes, it’s the freshest faces and brightest sounds that pull us in. For Maddie & Tae, who embrace real country, it’s that merge of what’s right now and what they love that sets them apart/captures our imaginations in the best possible way.
Everywhere I'm Goin'
Maddie & Tae Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ooh
He's as cool as California
Homegrown like they do it in Georgia
With a heart as big as the Lone Star State
Hard to catch like a Kansas breeze
Strong like a Tennessee hickoryHe's smooth like the bourbon Kentucky makes
Ooh
Hot like the Phoenix sun, y'all
Ooh
I'm fallin' like a Denver snowfall
Whole world in my living room
It's all you, babe
If I could paint paradise
It'd be you, it's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been and everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh
He's my one-way outta town
Even sitting shotgun riding around
Feels like an East Coast, coastline drive
He's a take-my-breath like a Paris sunset
Takes my heart where it hasn't been yet
Whole world in my living room
If I could paint paradise
It'd be you, it's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been and everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Everywhere, everywhere, everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh
Hot like the Phoenix sun y'all
Ooh
I'm fallin' like a Denver snowfall
Whole world in my living room
It's all you, babe
If I could paint paradise
It'd be you, it's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been and everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Everywhere I'm goin', goin'
Everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh
Ooh
The lyrics to Maddie & Tae's song "Everywhere I'm Goin'" paint a picture of the singer's love interest. The first verse describes him as a combination of cool and homegrown with a big heart and strong presence. He is compared to various states and regions, including California, Georgia, the Lone Star State of Texas, Kansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky, highlighting the diverse qualities that make up his persona. The chorus goes on to explain that this person is all-encompassing in the singer's life, from the present to the future. He is everywhere she's been and everywhere she's going.
The second verse continues to highlight the love interest's impact on the singer. He is a one-way out of town, and even the simple act of sitting in the passenger seat feels like a scenic coastal drive. He takes her breath away, and has the ability to show her new parts of her heart that she hasn't explored before. The singer's world revolves around this person, and they are the most important part of her life.
Overall, "Everywhere I'm Goin'" captures the all-encompassing nature of falling deeply in love with someone. The love interest is depicted as a perfect combination of various qualities that make up his unique persona, and the singer is unable to escape his presence in her life. The lyrics are emotional and heartfelt, showcasing Maddie & Tae's ability to write deeply personal and relatable songs.
Line by Line Meaning
He's as cool as California
He's amazingly awesome and easygoing like the Californian climate
Homegrown like they do it in Georgia
He's a naturally grown man of great character like those from Georgia
With a heart as big as the Lone Star State
He has a huge and generous heart just like the enormous Texan state
Hard to catch like a Kansas breeze
He's difficult to hold onto like a gentle breeze in Kansas
Strong like a Tennessee hickory
He's tough and enduring, just like a hickory tree in Tennessee
He's smooth like the bourbon Kentucky makes
He's suave and sophisticated, like the famous Kentucky-made bourbon
He's my one-way outta town
He's the one person who can free me from my current situation and take me to a better place
Even sitting shotgun riding around
Just being near him while he drives is exhilarating to me
Feels like an East Coast, coastline drive
Riding with him seems like a scenic, breathtaking road trip along the East Coast
He's a take-my-breath like a Paris sunset
Being around him is breathtaking and beautiful like a stunning Parisian sunset
Takes my heart where it hasn't been yet
He takes me to places in my heart and mind that I've never experienced before
Whole world in my living room
Thanks to him, I feel like I have the whole world right beside me in the comfort of my own living room
If I could paint paradise
If I had the ability to visualize and create my own perfect world...
It'd be you, it's all you, babe
...he'd be the center of that perfect world, because he's everything to me
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
Every location where I've been or intend to go is marked by a red pin on the map in my possession
You're everywhere I've been and everywhere I'm goin'
No matter where I am or where I'm headed, he's always with me in spirit and in my heart
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
Whether I'm in the quiet, rural areas or in the bright, bustling city lights, he's a part of my life
Everywhere, everywhere, everywhere I'm goin'
Everywhere I go, every step I take, he's always with me, embedded in my thoughts and actions
Hot like the Phoenix sun y'all
He's extremely attractive and alluring, just like the scorching hot sun in Phoenix, Arizona
I'm fallin' like a Denver snowfall
I'm falling for him deeply and uncontrollably, like the beautiful snowfall in Denver
Ooh
Expressing excitement and joy
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Jimmy Robbins, Josh Thompson, Maddie Marlow, Taylor Elizabeth Dye
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Emily-wb6lg
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
He's as cool as California
Homegrown like they do it in Georgia
With a heart as big as the Lone Star State
Hard to catch like a Kansas breeze
Strong like a Tennessee hickory
He's smooth like the bourbon Kentucky makes
Ooh, ooh, ooh, hot like the Phoenix sun y'all
Ooh, ooh, ooh, I'm fallin' like a Denver snow fall
Whole world in my living room
It's all you, babe
If I could paint paradise, it'd be you
It's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
He's my one-way outta town
Even sitting shotgun riding around
Feels like an East Coast, coast line drive
He's a take my breath like a Paris sunset
Takes my heart where it hasn't been yet
Whole world in my living room
It's all you, babe
If I could paint paradise, it'd be you
It's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Everywhere, everywhere, everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh, ooh, ooh, hot like the Phoenix sun y'all
Ooh, ooh, ooh, I'm fallin' like a Denver snow fall
Whole world in my living room
It's all you, babe
If I could paint paradise, it'd be you
It's all you, babe
Every red pin on the map I'm holding
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
From backwoods to the neon glowin'
You're everywhere I've been
And everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh, ooh, ooh, everywhere I'm goin', goin'
Ooh, ooh, ooh, everywhere I've been and everywhere I'm goin'
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
@adamdalton9527
Such a gorgeous tune for a lazy Sunday!
@thedcp
I hate country music with a passion. But I am now questioning everything about my whole identity because of this song....Holy shit the harmonies and the lyrics are SOOOOO damn good in this song.... I need to go think on my whole life now. thank you
@adiacasey6332
Lmao was just watching your full lid friday video and had to come check this song out
@scftsmiley8514
how dare u i am a cowgirl/country girl i only listen to country music
@samdykema
Oh look, a new song to add to the playlist of songs I plan to have play at my wedding someday.
@luna-jj4cw
Very very true
@sbahale5019
drop the playlist OP
@rebeccasteele5070
Are you married yet
@rebeccasteele5070
If not ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh no one loves you
@kodyboedeker3118
Did you get married