00:00Me as a woman, I am the biggest fan of any woman that's in country music.
00:06I respect each and every one of them for what they do, and I hope that they respect me.
00:12And I'm just honored to just be in this genre in general.
00:22What's up guys? It's Emily Curl here with Refinery29, and we are at the CMA Fest in Nashville, Tennessee.
00:27And I'm so excited because I'm sitting next to Raelynn.
00:30Hey, hey.
00:31I'm such a big fan of country music, and it's so fun to be here to kind of see all
00:34the magic happen.
00:35What is the thing that you most look forward to when you do these festivals?
00:40This is my sixth CMA Fest, which is nuts to think.
00:43But my favorite thing about this every year is the fact that we do get to connect with the fans.
00:49No other genre does this.
00:50It's because of the fans that we are even in music.
00:53I just look forward to this part of the year every year.
00:55So switching gears here a little bit, Refinery29 is all about feminism and gender equality.
01:01And so it's something our readers really care about and really kind of lean into.
01:04And one thing I feel like that they've noticed is maybe sometimes in country music,
01:07it does feel like women are marginalized in the industry.
01:10How do you think that country music can better support and incorporate women,
01:14whether in artists or behind the scenes?
01:17The tide is turning.
01:18And this new music, all of this incredible new music that's coming out by all of these new country artists
01:23is getting heard, and it's all changing and turning.
01:27And I think it's an exciting time to be in country music.
01:30Yeah, no, absolutely.
01:31And I think one thing cool just that I noticed from just like following all the female artists
01:36is you can definitely see the support on social media or on Instagram
01:40where you can like really feel that people are supporting each other and encouraging each other.
01:44How do you think that social media kind of plays a role in your life as an artist
01:47and being able to connect with your fans or connect with other artists?
01:50I think social media is just so important because it gives us a way to connect with our fans.
01:54I don't ever want to just look cool.
01:55I want to look like a normal person.
01:57And that's one thing that I try to keep my Instagram.
02:00Of course, I'm going to have cool pictures, but I want to keep my Instagram very raw as well.
02:04We all have bad days, right?
02:06Oh my God, yes.
02:07How do you handle that kind of like the pressure of being kind of in the public eye
02:10when you do go through that?
02:11And what do you tell yourself to really bring yourself back from that?
02:14It's okay to have a day off.
02:15Like it's okay to not be perfect unless it's like my husband.
02:19Like I kind of don't look at my phone like an hour before my show
02:22because I just think it's really good for me to just kind of focus on what I'm going to do.
02:26And I think that that's a cool exercise that more artists could do.
02:29One last question.
02:30Our audience is young women who we always encourage to use their voice,
02:34claim their power, own their space.
02:36Love that.
02:37So what is your one piece of advice that has stuck with you that you wish every woman could hear?
02:42Everybody has their own lane.
02:44And like some people it takes two years to get where they want.
02:48Some people it takes ten years.
02:49But what is so beautiful is the journey getting there.
02:53My team, we have so many amazing memories.
02:56And like I don't know if we would have had those amazing memories
02:58if I would have just shot off to the roof, you know, right after the voice.
03:01But I think there's something about working for it.
03:04And I think not comparing yourself and just knowing you're unique in your own way
03:09and run with that.
03:10It's okay.
03:11As long as you stick to who you are every day and you just keep working hard,
03:15you're going to eventually get there.
03:16And people see it.
03:18People see hard work.
03:19You can't, I always say, you can't work this hard and not see some results.
03:22And so that's my new thing that I tell everybody.
03:23I'm like, listen, you just got to keep on going.
03:25Keep on going.
03:26It's going to be good for you.
03:27Everybody will have their time.
03:28It's just about letting each person have their time and being happy for them.
03:31That's important.
03:32Dang, I feel really inspired.
03:34I feel like I need to go juice myself.
03:36That was so beautifully said.
03:38Thank you so much for being here today.
03:40And I hope you have a great rest of your weekend.
03:42Our 2Ninners will see you soon.
03:44Bye.
03:45Bye.
03:45Bye.
