Dustin Lynch Details Sixth Studio Album, ‘Killed The Cowboy’

Dustin Lynch is gearing up to release Killed The Cowboy, the follow-up to his 2022 project, Blue in the Sky. 

Releasing on Friday, September 29, the 12-track project serves as Lynch’s sixth studio album and takes inspiration from the country star navigating his personal life as a 38-year-old single man. Is he in a position to settle down and start a family, or will he continue to live out his life as bachelor?   

“When I’m off the road and working on my farm, I have a lot of inner dialogue. It’s a boxing match inside of me, between living in the moment and enjoying where I am, versus what’s the best version of me five, 10, or 20 years down the road,” Lynch explained in a statement. “What do I want to be? What do I want life to look like? Who do I want to be around?” 

Album Drops On September 29

He continued, “Killed The Cowboy is that back-and-forth. It’s me asking myself, ‘Am I okay? Or am I weird for not having found my person yet? And is she even out there?’ My hope is that this album finds someone who needs to hear it. I want Killed The Cowboy to embrace the single people of the world and lift them up, to let them know that you don’t have to live a ‘normal’ life to still be happy in your own skin.”

The project features the just-released title track, which was co-written by Jordan Reynolds, Devin Dawson, and Anderson East. The song finds the Tennessee native answering the age-old question “where did all the cowboys go.”

“It was that midnight stare/ That look in her eyes like a knife to the heart/ It was that poison kiss Cherry red lips, oh my God/ Leanin’ up against the bar and I know It wasn’t the smoke/ It wasn’t the drink/ And I got the proof If you wanna know what killed the cowboy/ A girl like you,” he sings on the chorus.

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Lynch connected to the song immediately.   

“When I first heard ‘Killed The Cowboy,’ I was drawn to its haunting melody, and then I got to thinking about the lyric and realized, ‘Damn, I’m this guy right now in my life,’” Lynch recalled. “Relationships can come in hot and heavy and then implode. But that heartbreak, in a weird way, also makes you feel alive, to have another person move you like that. You feel that roller coaster of emotion and passion, and that sparks me creatively as an artist.”

Killed The Cowboy features an impressive lineup of songwriters, including Dallas Davidson, Josh Thompson, Ashley Gorley, Zach Crowell, and more, plus a special guest: Lynch’s labelmate, Jelly Roll. Dustin Lynch co-wrote five of the tracks.  

With his latest single, “Stars Like Confetti,” continuing to climb the charts at country radio, Lynch is preparing to kickstart this next musical era with a bang. 

Dustin Lynch’s Killed The Cowboy Track List:

1. “Killed The Cowboy” (Jordan Reynolds, Devin Dawson, Anderson East)*

2. “Honky Tonk Heartbreaker” (Dustin Lynch, Hunter Phelps, Zach Crowell, Ben Johnson)+

3. “George Strait Jr.” (Dustin Lynch, Hunter Phelps, Jordan Reynolds, Andy Albert)*

4. “Chevrolet (feat. Jelly Roll)” (Chase McGill, Jessi Alexander, Hunter Phelps, Mentor Williams)^

5. “If I Stop Drinkin’” (John Morgan, Dallas Davidson, Kyle Fishman, Jordan Minton)*

6. “Only Girl In This Town” (Devin Dawson, Josh Thompson, Kyle Fishman)#

7. “Breakin’ Up Down” (Hunter Phelps, Zach Crowell, Blake Pendergrass, Brent Anderson)*

8. “Trouble With This Truck” (Dustin Lynch, Hunter Phelps, Ashley Gorley, Zach Crowell)*

9. “Blue Lights” (Jameson Rodgers, Jake Mitchell, Brent Anderson, Hunter Phelps)*

10. “Lone Star” (Devin Dawson, Jordan Reynolds, Alysa Vanderheym)*

11. “Listen To The Radio” (Dustin Lynch, Hunter Phelps, Randy Montana, Ben Johnson)*

12. “Long Way Home” (Dustin Lynch, Kyle Fishman, Andy Albert)*

* Produced by Zach Crowell

+ Co-Produced by Zach Crowell and Ben Johnson

^ Co-Produced by Zach Crowell and Ben Phillips

# Co-Produced by Zach Crowell and Kyle Fishman