Sometimes, the best companion for a heartache is a jukebox chock-full of sad country tunes; songs where the steel guitar may not be the only thing crying.
As soon as the infectious opening steel lick on Dan Lepien’s newest single, “Jukebox My Troubles Away” strikes, it’s clear that the Wisconsin native has delivered a song to add to those jukeboxes. Spawned on a day that wasn’t going his way, Lepien’s newest effort comes equipped with some real-life hurt. Aren’t those the best sad songs?
We chatted with Lepien all about the song, his upcoming album, The Honky Tonk Traditional, hitting the road and more!
Pro Country: You’ve released a lot of music over the years, but you’ll be releasing your debut album, The Honky Tonk Traditional, on May 16th. Why did you feel it was the right time to release a full album, and how much are you looking forward to sharing a full project?
Dan Depien: Well, it’s been almost seven years since I started playing in bars, and that’s not 10,000 hours, but I figured at this point, I had grown a lot as a songwriter and vocally, so it was time for a debut. I have a great team with my producer, Greg Huberty, and he’s helped me capture the sound I’ve been looking for. I have the right batch of songs that accomplishes what I want to say with my debut full-length.
PC: You kicked off The Honky Tonk Traditional last year with two single releases, “Country Proud” and “Am I Dreaming Tonight.” Why did you feel that those were the right songs to introduce the album?
DL: “Country Proud” seemed like a great way to kick things off, because it’s a song that says “this is what I love,” and it goes back to the roots of who I am and where I came from, and there’s a lot of passion behind that. “We’re Just Gettin’ Started” was also a sentiment that I liked, because that’s how I feel about a career in country music. It’s a very long road, but like the song says, “anything truly great takes time.” My wife and I feel the same way about our marriage in the sense that you want to play the long game, and we both came into this relationship with a more mature point of view for the first time, and that helped us a lot.
PC: You just followed up your last single, “We’re Just Gettin’ Started,” with “Jukebox My Troubles Away,” a slow, sad gem of a song. How important was it for you to follow the up-tempo, boot-stomping lead single with a slow, sad song?
DL: I tend to gravitate towards the slower, more thoughtful songs as a listener, and I think this one captures that well. You’ve gotta be able to do upbeat songs and ballads as a country singer in my opinion.
PC: Can you take us in the room and talk about how “Jukebox My Troubles Away” came together?
DL: I was on my way back from HODAG festival in 2023, which is a very popular country music festival in Wisconsin. We were up there for a battle of the bands, and we didn’t do so well. We also had some miscommunications with the personnel there on the load in, and they ended up charging our guitarist to park and made him park in a lot that was a mile off the grounds, and just overall didn’t end up having the best experience. It didn’t help that after the battle of the bands, there was some grade-A top of the line pop-country. I ended up leaving in the middle of the afternoon, going to Kwik Trip, eating three donuts, and then hitting up a couple random bars on my way home, where I plugged the jukebox with some good country music. It was kind of a reckless night, and I’ve learned my lesson since then, but it did make for a song that’s meaningful to me personally.
PC: As lovers of sad songs, “Jukebox My Troubles Away” is one of our favorite songs in your catalog. Can you tell us a few of your favorite sad country songs?
DL: “Is It Raining at Your House” by Vern Gosdin, “A Good Year For The Roses” by George Jones, “You Ain’t Heard Nothing Yet” by Daryle Singletary, “Between an Old Memory and Me” by Keith Whitley, and one of the most underrated songs of all time, “Just a Little More” by Joe Nichols.
PC: The Honky Tonk Traditional is set for release on May 16th. With a few singles now released from the album, what can you say about what people can expect to hear from the rest of the album?
DL: Well it’s definitely a straight up honky tonk/traditional country album, but I think one thing that helps set it apart is that I wrote all of the songs on it. All are actually solo writes, besides one, so it’s definitely true to my life. There’s some darker songs, but there’s also some songs about how my wife has been a great, positive influence on my life. It does a great job of capturing the last 10 years of my life.
PC: Along with releasing The Honky Tonk Traditional, what do you have planned for the rest of 2025?
DL: We recently have acquired a couple new band members for my live band who have more ability to travel and do this more full-time, so in later 2025, I plan to get the band on the road more. Other than that, you can expect a steady stream of live band content, acoustic videos and fun stuff like that.
Pro Country 
Leave a comment