A singer and songwriter who mixes the honky tonk atmosphere of vintage country with the clever bite of indie rock, Nikki Lane is a barroom siren whose music is tough, witty, and bold, inhabiting Nashville archetypes while upending them at the same time. Lane's songs walk a fine line between sincerity and irony, but the passion and effectiveness of her vocals keeps her from sounding like a put-on, and her melodies mix rootsy twang and rock & roll edge with confidence. Lane introduced her talent with the 2011 debut Walk of Shame and added a soulful edge with 2014's All or Nothin' and 2017's Highway Queen. With 2022's Denim & Diamonds, she eased back on her country accents and added harder rock energy to her mix. A high-school dropout from Greenville, South Carolina, Nikki Lane was born Nicole Lane Frady on October 17, 1983. She spent her early adulthood working as an L.A.-based fashion designer. Lane later moved to New York City, where she started dating a musician with a taste for country. When he decided to leave New York to work on a recording project in Alabama, it led to a messy breakup. Nursing a broken heart inspired Lane to pick up the acoustic guitar and write a handful of sad, sassy country songs, inspired by Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard. What began as a form of self-therapy eventually developed into a serious avocation, and Lane wound up leaving town again, this time returning to the American South by settling in Nashville, where she opened a clothing boutique called High Class Hillbilly. Having relocated to the country music capital of the world, Lane sought out local musicians interested in working with her and began making the rounds of Music City clubs, building a local audience by putting her own spin on the genre. Hooking up with the indie IAmSound label, Lane released her debut EP, Gone, Gone, Gone, in July 2011, whose orchestral sound earned comparisons to mid-century icons (Tammy Wynette, Nancy Sinatra) and retro-revivalists (She & Him, the Secret Sisters). Several months later, Lane was back with the full-length Walk of Shame, a confident fusion of Old School country and retro-rock. After extensive touring in 2012, she signed to New West in 2013. Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys offered to produce Lane's New West debut, and 2014's All or Nothin' was recorded at his Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. The opening track, "Right Time," became a hit on streaming services, giving her profile a considerable boost. Lane was dating musician and songwriter Jonathan Tyler when she began work on her third album, and Tyler joined her in the studio, serving as producer for 2017's Highway Queen, with the songs "Send the Sun" and "Highway Queen" picking up considerable streaming play. That same year, Lane dueted with comedian Ben Hoffman on his second album as foul-mouthed outlaw country star Wheeler Walker, Jr., Ol' Wheeler. She traded vocals on the song "Fuckin' Around" under the alias Kacey Walker. She also added backing vocals on the 2018 LP Don't Talk About It from Australian alt-country artist Ruby Boots. Pop star Lana Del Rey approached Lane to contribute to her 2021 album Chemtrails over the Country Club, and Lane co-wrote and provided backing vocals on the track "Breaking Up Slowly." Lane changed up her approach on her fourth full-length project, 2022's Denim & Diamonds. The album, which boasted a stronger rock influence than her previous work, was produced by Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age, with fellow QOTSA members Dean Fertita, Alain Johannes, and Michael Shuman as part of the backing band. The LP also featured guest spots from Matt Helders of Arctic Monkeys and Carla Azar of Autolux. ~ Andrew Leahey & Mark Deming, Rovi

Benjamin Francis Leftwich

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