When the clock struck midnight to ring in 2025, it also marked nine years that Wynn Williams has been playing music professionally. Over the course of those nine years, Williams has released an album, two EPs and a host of singles that have cemented him as one of the brightest rising artists in Texas.
On August 29th, Williams will add a second album release to his catalog, this time, in the form of Country Therapy, a 12-track offering that, while undeniably, wholly country, gives all types of country music fans something to chew on. Of course, there’s traditional sounds, which are paired with 90s-inspired songs and rocking country anthems. Rounding out the track list is a rollicking cover of George Strait’s “The Fireman,” which breathes new life into the King of Country’s iconic hit.
We chatted with Williams all about Country Therapy, growth, keeping a busy touring schedule and more!
Pro Country: Your new album, Country Therapy, is your first album release since your self-titled debut in 2020. With five years having passed since its release, how do you look back at that album and the momentum it created for you?
Wynn Williams: That record was awesome. I worked really hard on it. When we put it out, everything was rocking and rolling, and then, of course, we had the pandemic put a stopper on all of the momentum we had. It was challenging to overcome that; it’s been a grind to get back to the point I’m at now. That time taught me a lot about the music business and how to go through a project and work with a producer. Since then, we’ve put out a bunch of singles, as well as the Your Love EP. Now we’ve got this record coming out on August 29th. It’s exciting to have new stuff coming out!
PC: You began releasing singles from Country Therapy last April with “Hear You Say It.” With more than a year of releases leading up to the full album, how much are you looking forward to getting to whole project released for people to hear?
WW: I’m really excited to get it out. It breathes new life into some of the songs we put out last year. “Hear You Say It” is a great song, and I feel like it never got the attention it deserved. I’m hopeful that with the release of the album, it will get that attention. And that goes for many of the songs on this record. There’s hall of fame songwriters on this record: legends like Dean Dillon, Rhett Akins, Keith Stegall and so many more. I’m so lucky to have so many amazing songs on this record.
PC: You co-wrote two of the songs on Country Therapy, and the rest were written by some of the hall of fame songwriters you mentioned. How much did you enjoy leaning into the songwriting community, and what was it like to have songs by such talented writers at your disposal?
WW: It’s so cool. I don’t know that I ever thought that I’d have the ability to record songs by guys like that. It’s a catch 22, because I’d love to have my own songs on the record, but the reality is when you’re so busy on the road, it’s so hard to get creative. Especially when you’re doing all of your own social media and booking all of the hotels and flights. When we were putting songs together for the record, I knew the best songs in the world are sitting on a shelf somewhere in Nashville, Tennessee, so I went and tried to find them. Fortunately, we found some killer songs that are finally about to see the light of day.
PC: “Country Therapy” serves as the opening track on its album and was the second single release from the album. What drew you to both have “Country Therapy” serve as the opening track and title track on its album?
WW: The song is an up-tempo, feel-good song that sets the tone for the whole record. When we were putting everything together, we were trying to decide on the album title, and we went with Country Therapy because I’ve got such a versatile list of influences from country to pop to big band to western swing. I love everything. I don’t want to be a one-trick pony. I want to make a bunch of different kinds of music that any type of country music fan can turn on and hear elements of 90s stuff, newer stuff, and super traditional 70s and 80s stuff. The idea is to have something for everyone on this record so they can disconnect from this crazy world and listen to some great country music.
PC: “Denver to Dallas” is one of the songs you wrote on Country Therapy, and has been the top-streamed single from the album prior to its release. Can you take us in the room with yourself, Jeff Hyde and Brice Long and talk about how the song came together?
WW: Brice brought that idea to the table. When we were writing it, I started falling in love with the idea. It was such a breath of fresh air, because you don’t have those kinds of songs anymore that tell a story. On top of that, the hook doesn’t even rhyme [laughs]. It floats out there on its own. I was in the room and I’m a writer on the song, but I was in the room with two of the greatest songwriters in Nashville, who will likely be in the Hall of Fame themselves for the songs they’ve written. I was lucky to get in the room on that day with that idea. I’ll give all the credit to those guys. The way they craft songs is phenomenal.
PC: “Diamonds Make Babies” has previously been recorded by greats like Dierks Bentley and Joe Nichols. On your cut, you injected a Mexican-flavor on the song. How much fun did you have making the song your own and recording it?
WW: It was a lot of fun! That’s a Chris Stapleton song, and it’s been recorded several times, and each time, it was recorded like the demo. Each artist brought their own thing to it, but I got with Brandon Hood and we wanted to make it our own. He suggested what we recorded, and I think it’s perfect, because so many people go on their honeymoons to Mexico or to the Caribbean. It’s a fun, tongue-in-cheek song.
PC: You close Country Therapy with a cover of George Strait’s “The Fireman.” Is there a pressure that comes with cover such an iconic song by an even more iconic artist?
WW: There’s a lot of pressure. I was a little apprehensive about covering that song, to be honest. When we got into the studio, Brandon and the musicians started messing around with the feel of the song. Gordon Mote was next to me, and I was having trouble and thinking we were making the song too rocking. It’s an iconic song, and I didn’t want to mess it up. Gordon said, “You know what, Wynn? George is going to love this.” If Gordon is saying that, I’m going to take him at his word. I hope everyone listens to our version and sees that we still paid homage to the original and gave it a modern flare.
PC: Bruce Bouton, Gordon Mote and Larry Franklin are just a few of the A-list studio musicians that played on Country Therapy. What is it like to be in the studio, watching them work and collaborating with them?
WW: It’s so cool. Watching them work and seeing things come together in the studio is one of the most incredible things you can witness. You go from having a song, which can literally just be an acoustic guitar and a vocal recorded on an iPhone, to seeing the full production come together. That might be one of the most fun parts of playing music for a living: going into the studio and creating something from nothing.
PC: What do you hope listeners take away from Country Therapy after listening all the way through after its release on August 29th?
WW: I hope that every kind of country music fan can find something they like. We have traditional sounds, modern sounds and more rocking stuff. If someone listens to the whole record, from start to finish, there will be a song on there, if not three or four, that they’ll like.
PC: You’ve been in the midst of your “Country Therapy Tour” for a few months, with several more dates laid out into the fall. How much have you enjoyed staying busy on the road, and how much are you looking forward to continuing to hit it hard with the release of Country Therapy?
WW: It’s really exciting to have all of these dates. It’s been exciting to get out of the state, and out of the country, to play places we’ve never played before. At the same time, it’s exciting to revisit places as well. I’ve got a great team around me, and it’s really awesome to see everybody working together. It feels like things are coming together. I’ve been doing this full-time for nine years. Ten years is my timeline, so to speak. If there’s going to be something that happens in this business, it’ll happen in ten years. I’m on year nine now, and it feels like things are really picking up. I’m looking forward to playing all of these dates and starting to put things together for next year.
PC: With your busy tour schedule on the books and Country Therapy releasing in a few weeks, what else do you have planned for the rest of 2025 and going into 2026?
WW: We’re going to do a ton of touring. We’ll be promoting the record as best we can along the way. As an independent artist, it’s challenging to not have the marketing strength and budget of a label. We’re trying to do things organically, hit the road as much as possible and do the social media things that are happening right now. I think there’s something to be said about going on the road and playing shows face-to-face. You learn a lot about yourself, the business, and how to work with a team. These nine years have taught me a lot. Hopefully I get to do it for another nine [laughs].
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