Maren Morris References Hit Song ‘Circles Around This Town’ in a Sweet Letter to Her Younger Self
Earlier this year, country music star Maren Morris celebrated her 10-year anniversary of moving to Nashville. To commemorate the event, the singer took to Instagram to share a letter she wrote to her younger self about navigating Nashville and “driving circles around this town.”
Of course, Morris’s hit song, “Circles Around This Town,” which she released in January 2022, also celebrates her big move to Nashville. Here’s more about Morris’s hit single and her letter to her younger self.
The inspiration behind Maren Morris’s hit song ‘Circles Around This Town’
Morris’s lead single, “Circles Around This Town,” from her third studio album Humble Quest, was released on January 7, 2022. Morris wrote the song with Julia Michaels, Jimmy Robbins, and her husband, Ryan Hurd. The song peaked at 52 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 2022.
According to Music Row, the song also broke Amazon’s record for “most streams for a country song debut by a female artist.” In addition, “Circles Around This Town” also earned two nominations at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards in the categories of Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance.
In the lyrics of “Circles Around This Town,” Morris reflects on her journey to Nashville and the ups and downs along the way. In her opening lines, Morris sings:
“I swear I don’t know how I trusted/ A Montero with the AC busted/ A couple bad demos on a burned CD/ Would take me all the way to Tennessee/ I showed up to the new apartment/ First month’s, last month’s, two deposits/Hadn’t heard the sound of a door slam yet/ Thank god I was an optimist.”
The full music video of “Circles Around This Town,” directed by Harper Smith, can be viewed on YouTube.
Maren Morris has officially been in Nashville for a decade
Morris went into more depth about her early struggles in Nashville in a letter to her younger self, which she shared on Instagram with her 1.6 Million+ followers. The 32-year-old singer shared her Instagram post on January 2, 2023, which marked the tenth anniversary of her move to Music City.
In her intro paragraph, Marris wrote, “10 years ago, I packed up the U-Haul with a dream and a healthy dose of delusion, moved into a Craigslist place with two roommates I didn’t know and hustled to get into any writing room I could. 10 years later, I’m still driving circles around this town.”
The country star went on to address her young self in the Instagram post, writing, “I want to give my younger self a hug and say ‘Brace yourself, b****. It’s gonna get weird, but you’re gonna be so proud’.”
Morris also gives a message to her future self, ending the letter with, “Everything in my bones says this next decade will look even more different. Happier, untethered, and more lived in. I’m excited to know her.”
The last decade in Nashville has been defining for Maren Morris
The decision to pack up her bags and move to Nashville at the age of 22-years-old has certainly been career-defining for Morris. After moving to Nashville in January 2013, the singer’s first breakout single, “My Church,” came three years later. There’s no denying that 2016 was a big year for Morris, as two singles on her first studio album, Hero, repeatedly played on country music radio throughout the year. Of course, these two singles were “My Church” and “80s Mercedes.”
While Morris has made her voice known in Nashville as a talented musician, she’s also made her voice known as an activist. While country music traditionally caters to a more conservative audience, Morris has not been afraid to be more inclusive with her music and take a stand for underrepresented groups.
After getting into a Twitter dispute with Brittany Aldean, the wife of country singer Jason Aldean, over the transphobic rhetoric Brittany used online, Morris faced immense backlash from many conservative country fans. Fox News pundit Tucker Carlson even addressed Morris on his political show, calling Morris a “lunatic country music person.”
In response, Morris had her team arrange a T-shirt fundraiser where the shirts read “Lunatic Country Music Person” and listed the telephone number for the Trans Lifeline. In less than 24 hours, Morris raised over $100,000, which she divided between the Trans Lifeline and the GLAAD Transgender Media Program.
In “Circles Around This Town,” Morris sings: “Tryin’ to write circles around this town/ Tryna say somethin’ with meanin’/Somethin’ worth singin’ about.”
Over the last decade, Morris has definitely used her voice to say something with meaning, both on stage and for inciting change, asking for more inclusivity in country music.
