The Wonder Women of Country are Here!

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Melissa Carper, Brennen Leigh, Kelly Willis (photo: Lyza Renee)


Do you feel a ripple in the space/time continuum? It’s because three of the most super powered women of country have joined forces to save country music and vanquish the forces of evil. Kelly Willis, Brennen Leigh, and Melissa Carper have officially united in what is being called the Wonder Women of Country, and we are definitely here for it.

This pairing isn’t entirely new. Though all three had collaborated with each other before, in late 2021 Kelly Willis approached Brennen Leigh and Melissa Carper, and asked them if they wanted to play some shows together. This wasn’t Willis asking them to be her backing band. Instead, all three women would get an opportunity to showcase their singing and songwriting skills as the three collaborated on each other’s songs.

Since then the trio has played dozens of shows on occasional tours, but after being nagged about offering actual music from the collaboration, they decided to make it official by going into the studio, recording a 6-song EP out March 15th, and officially calling themselves the Wonder Women of Country.

On Friday (2-16), the trio released their first single called “Another Broken Heart” with Kelly Willis singing lead. “This is a song I heard Monte Warden and Bruce Robison start writing in the other room,” says Willis. “I was so smitten with the verse I heard, that I could not help getting all up in this song’s business. I wrote a bridge and chorus for it and the guys did not seem to mind that I crashed their party. It’s a classic crying in your beer heartbreak song with a kind of 70’s style country/pop feel.”

The Wonder Women of Country were officially launched during a showcase at Austin’s legendary Waterloo Records on Friday afternoon. It was part of the greater Ameripolitan Awards weekend happening in Austin, with the trio also scheduled to perform on the awards show Sunday (2-18) evening.


All three women are well-accomplished in country music coming into this project. Kelly Willis is already considered part of Texas music royalty as a songwriter and performer, and needs no introduction.

Brennen Leigh might be from the upper Midwest, but spent years in Texas and most recently Nashville paying dues and has had her songs recorded by Lee Ann Womack, Rodney Crowell, Sunny Sweeney, Charley Crockett and others. Her last solo album, 2023’s Ain’t Through Honky Tonkin’ Yet is killer.

Melissa Carper has been playing bass and singing for many years, but finally stepped up as a proper solo artist with her albums Daddy’s Country Gold (2021) and Ramblin’ Soul (2022) that have both received critical acclaim. She’s also rumored to have a new album on the way this summer.

There is strength in numbers, and as can be heard in their debut song “Another Broken Heart,” these three talented women together might even be greater than the sum of their parts.

To pre-order their upcoming EP Willis, Carper, Leigh, CLICK HERE.

TRACK LIST:

  1. Fly Ya To Hawaii (Brennen Leigh, Melissa Carper)
  2. Another Broken Heart (Kelly Willis, Bruce Robison, Monte Warden)
  3. Won’t Be Worried Long (Melissa Carper, Brennen Leigh)
  4. A Thousand Ways (Kelly Willis)
  5. Hanging On To You (Brennen Leigh)
  6. I Have Met My Love Today (John Prine and Roger Cook)

© 2023 Saving Country Music

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