Morgan Wallen is one of the most popular country artists out there currently. Even though I don’t listen to music on a daily basis, if I heard his voice over the radio, I would be able to tell it’s him. His music consists of drinking his heart out, losing his girl, finding the love of his life at a bar, partying, fishing, etc. Wallen’s characteristics blend in with a lot of common country music stereotypes, and he plays into the stereotypes proudly. He loves drinking, girls, and country life.

Country music is a topic of controversy to some people with many finding it enjoyable and with others finding it unlistenable. I for one, am right in the middle of that scale, finding country music enjoyable at times, but never really going out of my way to listen to it. “Bro-Country” refers to country music aimed towards the male demographic oftentimes in a party or frat tone, which Wallen has solidified as his style.

Released on March 3rd, 2023, “One Thing at a Time” is an album filled with whiskey, women, woes, and partying. The album’s 36 songs make up a run time of one hour 52 minutes with an overall stereotypical country tone. Even the title of the first song “Born with A Beer In My Hand” screams that this is going to be a country album.

Wallen experiences plenty of heartbreak and drama with his love life in this album. Country music deals with that often and I think there are some great country songs that talk about heartbreak.

At times, however, it feels like Wallen is superficial in some of the things he says, and I can’t really connect with him. For example, on “’98 Braves” Wallen compares his love life to the Atlanta Braves saying, “That Atlanta magic got put out by them damn Padres, And I guess destiny ain’t always meant to be, kind of like you and me that day.”

I guess it makes sense because he lost his girl like the Braves lost to the Padres, but that comparison doesn’t hold any weight unless you are a fan of the Braves.

Songs like “Devil Don’t Know” are just dramatic and don’t really make me feel bad for Wallen. On this song he compares his breakup to being worse than going to hell and being with the devil himself which is just a little cliché if you ask me.

Despite everything I see as boring or as typical, same-old country; there are some highlights to this album. I think the sound of this album is pretty good. The instruments and music are listenable throughout the album even though sometimes they can sound similar. Even though there is a lot of heartbreak on this album, there are still moments like on “Thinkin’ Bout Me,” that is upbeat and catchy. Even though Wallen is dealing with jealousy and missing a girl he once had, he isn’t whining and complaining the whole time. He’s just questioning whether this girl even thinks about him.

One thing is for sure about this album: Wallen knows exactly what his audience wants to hear. Songs about losing a girl and wanting her back might be cheesy, but they’re relatable and it can hit home to a lot of listeners. Wallen manages to pull our heartstrings in catchy and relatable ways.

“One Thing at at Time” will be on repeat for me this summer and has opened my ears to something I wouldn’t normally listen to.

Matthew Yokum is a first-year Communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.