Zach Bryan isn’t the only one in the country music space with an anti-ICE song now. The surprise, early release of Mutiny After Midnight brought a multitude of political protest songs by Sturgill Simpson into existence. Though the manner in which the project arrived was surprising, the focus of the album was very much to be expected. Before it’s release, the “Swamp of Sadness” singer called the project  “a mutiny and open rebellion,” and that it was supposed to act as a protest And it’s not the type of protest people probably expected. Johnny Blue Skies went into detail about the time he’s spent around the French, and the admiration he has for how they spark change… which is mostly through “threatening injustice with a good time.” That’s why the new project focused on dance as protest: “There’s a simple goal we as a band set out to achieve: to make a dance record. So this protest, this mutiny is really more about the primary dance. The dance of all creation. To be clear, it is a protest against oppression and suppression, and the only tried and tested true antidote to that is pure, unfiltered, unapologetic, relentless disco-hedonism.” And considering half the album is about sex, it’s easy to see where that “unfiltered, unapologetic, relentless disco-hedonism” comes into play. However, one of the more blatant protest songs (besides the last track on the album, “Ain’t That A B***h”) was the second song of Mutiny After Midnight. It’s titled “Excited Delirium,” and if you’ve never heard that term before, it’s actually a controversial condition or syndrome (one that has been rejected by most medical associations) that can allegedly happen in when someone is being arrested. The FBI actually defines it as this: “Excited delirium syndrome (ExDS) is a serious and potentially deadly medical condition involving psychotic behavior, elevated temperature, and an extreme fight-or-flight response by the nervous system. Failure to recognize the symptoms and involve emergency medical services (EMS) to provide appropriate medical treatment may lead to death… These patients often die within one hour of police involvement.” So Sturgill Simpson was very surgical in choosing to write out an entire song around this term. The first verse of “Excited Delirium” hones in on police brutality, and paints a picture of someone being arrested and forced to the ground by police officers: “Boy, I’m trying to talk to you I can’t breathe and I’m turning blue What’s the problem, what did I do? I can not cooperate if you don’t want me to I hear you screaming telling me to get down I hear you telling me not to resist Hard to move with your knee on my neck Hard to have a conversation with fourteen fists” Once the song gets to the chorus, it condemns the authorities for citing “excited delirium” as something that could contribute to the cause of death of someone in police custody. It even references the George Floyd case (as it did in the first verse as well) with the last line of the chorus: “Call it excited delirium Call it whatever you need Somebody help, somebody do something Somebody call my mama ’cause I can’t breathe.” Then came the shots at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. Johnny Blue Skies evidently thought that criticism of police brutality and ICE would pair nicely in one song, so the second verse told the story of someone getting detained by ICE agents. The lyrics went on to question the role of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and inquired why the agents that work for the government agency cover up their faces with masks: “You got the wrong guy, got the wrong house You knocking down the wrong door You got a warrant to show me? Never mind, my hands are up and I’m down on the floor Why you dressed up like a soldier? What the hell are you wearing a face mask for? How the hell are you gonna protect the peace Running ’round looking like you’re going to war?” Johnny Blue Skies really didn’t hold back. Whereas Zach Bryan just held up a mirror to the modern political climate with his anti-ICE song “Bad News,” Sturgill Simpson got accusatory and angry about the current state of the world, and it all comes together in this fast-paced, two-minute-long track on Mutiny After Midnight. Track 2 – “Excited Delirium” The post Sturgill Simpson Takes Aim At ICE & Police Brutality In New Johnny Blue Skies Song, “Excited Delirium” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

One hell of a duo. After what seemed like the better half of two decades of being ignored by the industry, it seems like women in country music are finally getting the recognition that they’ve deserved for so many years. It should go without saying that female star power in the genre at large is at a high that it hasn’t seen in years. Along with all of your mainstream staples, such as Lainey Wilson, Ella Langley, Megan Moroney and other stars such as Miranda Lambert and Kacey Musgraves, we’ve seen a brand-new crop of future stars in the genre, highlighted by the likes of Sierra Ferrell, Kaitlin Butts, Carter Faith, Willow Avalon and more. Over the past few months, however, it’s become abundantly clear that Langley and Moroney are shaping out to be the biggest pair of female country stars we’ve seen in the genre, arguably since Lambert and Carrie Underwood in the 2000s and 2010s. While they’ve had an incredible amount of buzz over the past two years, in particular, this sentiment was solidified today. Riding the highs of the release of her junior album, Cloud 9, on February 20th, this afternoon, Moroney scored her first-ever #1 on the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart. Selling over 147,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending Feb. 26, according to Luminate, which “marks the biggest week for a country album by a woman in nearly two years,” the record debuted at #1. View this post on Instagram In turn, Moroney became just fifth female artist in the genre to top the chart in the last 10 years, joining the likes of Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé when she went #1 with her highly-controversial “country” album, COWBOY CARTER. Langley, on the other hand, simply cannot stop winning with “Choosin’ Texas.” Scoring her first-ever #1 hit on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 back on February 9th, she became just the seventh female artist IN HISTORY to go #1 on chart with a country song. Additionally, she became the first woman ever to triple up and score #1s on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs, Country Airplay and Hot 100 chart simultaneously. After falling to #2 last week, thanks to Taylor Swift’s always-reliable method of reissuing singles on physical media and going #1 with “Opalite,” today, Langley has returned to #1 on the Hot 100 with “Choosin’ Texas.” Of course, this marks the Alabama native’s first-ever multi-week #1 entry on the all-genre chart. What makes this double up for Langley and Moroney so notable is the fact that they are now the only female country duo in history to top both the Billboard Hot 100 and 200 charts simultaneously, a feat that legends such as Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert and many more all-time greats in the genre have never done. The fact that two separate country artists, regardless of gender, occupy the top spot on both charts simultaneously is so rare, in fact, that it has only happened five separate times in the history of Billboard. In case you were wondering who was topping the charts the other four times this has happened, here’s a full list. Cloud 9 – Megan Moroney & “Choosin’ Texas” – Ella Langley (March 7, 2026) Beautifully Broken – Jelly Roll & “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” – Shaboozey (October 26, 2024) F-1 Trillion – Post Malone & “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” – Shaboozey (August 31, 2024) Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) – Taylor Swift & “Last Night” – Morgan Wallen (July 22, 2023) Hotel California – Eagles & “Southern Nights” – Glen Campbell (April 30, 1977) Before you go, fire up their hottest songs at the moment, “Choosin’ Texas” and “Who Hurt You?” “Choosin’ Texas” “Who Hurt You?” Ella Langley Tour Dates 5/7/2026 Toledo, OH Huntington Center (+,&) 5/8/2026 St. Louis, MO Chaifetz Arena (+,&) 5/14/2026 Estero, FL Hertz Arena (@, &) 5/15/2026 Savannah, GA Enmarket Arena (@, &) 6/18/2026 Oklahoma City, OK Zoo Amphitheatre (+,&) 6/19/2026 Independence, MO Cable Dahmer Arena (+,&) 6/25/2026 Salem, VA Salem Civic Center (+,&) 6/26/2026 Wilmington, NC Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park (+,&) 7/23/2026 Pikeville, KY Appalachian Wireless Arena (#, %) 7/24/2026 Cary, NC Koka Booth Amphitheatre (#, %) 7/25/2026 North Charleston, SC North Charleston Coliseum (#, %) 7/30/2026 Gilford, NH BankNH Pavilion (@, %) 7/31/2026 Canandaigua, NY CMAC (@, %) 8/13/2026 Austin, TX Moody Center (#, &) 8/14/2026 Corpus Christi, TX Hilliard Center (#, &) 8/15/2026 Fort Worth, TX Dickies Arena (#, &) @ Kameron Marlowe + Dylan Marlowe # Kaitlin Butts & Gabriella Rose % Laci Kaye BoothThe post Ella Langley & Megan Moroney Become The First Pair Of Female Country Artists In History To Go #1 On The Billboard 200 And Hot 100 Simultaneously first appeared on Whiskey Riff.