Essie Country Notes

July 22, 2026

I’ve been thinking about doing this for quite some time. My goal is to make this a weekly feature every Wednesday night. It’s simply a short newsletter I’m calling Essie Country Notes.

This week, I thought I’d share a little behind-the-scenes look at how I choose an Essie Country Song of the Week.

There are plenty of good country songs—but good isn’t good enough.

Over the past two years, I’ve sampled thousands of songs on Spotify searching for those that meet the standards of an Essie Country Real Country Song of the Week.

I often don’t listen to an entire song. Most of the time, I can tell within the first twenty seconds whether it’s worth hearing all the way through.

If a song starts with finger snapping and hand clapping, I move on to the next one. If a song takes too long to get started—with a lengthy pause or an extended instrumental intro—I usually move on before the vocals even begin.

If the vocals have a pop sound, a pop phrasing style, or simply don’t sound country to me, I don’t hesitate to keep looking.

One test I give every serious candidate is what I call the “endurance test.” What is the endurance test? If I can listen to a song five times in a row without stopping and still enjoy it, it earns consideration as an Essie Country Song of the Week. Many good songs fail that test.

As you can see, I don’t simply pick any country song. Every selection goes through a careful process to make sure it represents the authentic country music Essie Country was created to promote.

I know many of these standards are subjective. They reflect my own tastes and what I believe country music should sound like. Still, I hope that process has consistently led me to select some of the finest authentic country songs recorded and becomes an Essie Country Real Country Song of the Week. 

If you haven’t had a chance yet, I invite you to listen to this week’s Song of the Week. In my opinion, it’s a Nashville-overlooked gem—“Dizzy” by Triston Marez.

https://essie-country.com/2026/07/18/dizzy/

Thanks for reading Essie Country Notes. Until next Wednesday, keep enjoying country music, the way it’s supposed to sound.