Kacey Musgraves Talks Next Album, Lil Nas X Controversy & More

Kacey Musgraves is ready to kick her feet up, ride her horse and spend quality time with her husband. Since dominating this year's award show season, particularly with her Album of the Year win at the 2019 Grammys, the 30-year-old titan is more than ready to give her mind, body and muse some much needed TLC. And there's no question about it; she deserves it.

As her touring schedule (briefly) takes a pause, iHeartRadio caught up with the star during her two-weekend stint at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Musgraves was the only country-specific act on the bill, but it was clear just a few moments into our time together that her views on the sonic landscape are anything but traditional. Bound only by her own inspiration, she is a creative at heart and one that doesn't limit herself to the confinements of a genre. Dolly Parton and John Prine run strong in her line of idols, but as we're seeing with the success of Golden Hour, there's a shift taking place in the industry and Musgraves is one of the many pioneers at the convention-bucking forefront, reminding us that the labels simply aren't as important as they used to be.

Scroll on below to read what Musgraves had to say about her next album, the controversy surrounding Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" and why she's going to continue to invite her LGBTQ fanbase to a party they might've never felt welcomed to attend.

How do you feel representing the country genre tonight?

I feel good. I mean, I wouldn't say that I'm a country artist or a country singer or a country singer/songwriter; I'm just a writer. I'm an observer on life. I'm inspired by many different things, so to be bringing my version of all that here is really exciting.

That exact genre talk has been a consistent talking point for you. Is her music country? Is her music pop? Either way, it's stellar.

Thank you. Well, just finding a lane where all my influences can hang out together without sounding contrived is my main goal.

Who are you excited to see at Coachella?

Well, unfortunately, I have to leave right after my performance, but I've been talking to Janelle Monae a little bit about maybe doing something together. Donald Glover, maybe. I would love to be able to stay and see all their sets, but I have to get home.

I know you also really dig tonight's headliners: Tame Impala. What would a Tame Impala and Kacey Musgraves collaboration sound like?

Yes, I know. Oh my God. It would sound awesome. I can find a lot of similarities in Tame Impala's music with mine. Its lyrics that are conversational that you could find yourself saying in any real situation in life, but kind of set to a dreamy backdrop.

So much happened between between the release of Pageant Material and Golden Hour. What would you like to experience before working on the next album?

Just having the space and the time to just get back to living real life always brings out some inspiration for me. I don't get to be home a lot, so spending time there and with my husband, just riding my horse and catching up with friends. Just having the chance to shift your focus away from touring, work and just getting back to life always populates ideas in my head for me because I'm just inspired by the little nuances of just being a human. I have gotten to write a few new songs this week and it's been really inspiring. I'm excited to see where all that goes.

You mentioned to Variety that you wrote one song that might dictate the tone and the texture of the next era. Can you share a little about that track?

I think so. I mean, it can be kind of freaky as a creative person meandering along until the next creative wind comes alone. You have no idea if the inspiration's gonna find you again. When it's there, I feel like you just have to tune into it and notice and all it takes is one song or one little idea, and it can spark an entire record or a visual moment in your mind. I feel like I've stumbled upon something that could snowball into something else for me. It feels kind of like, lyrically, an ode to where I used to be a little bit, but, musically, it seems brought up to speed.

As a writer, when I hit that stride, I run with it.

Yeah, you have to be present to pay attention to it. I'm inspired by the idea that inspiration is all around us all the time in little ways and it's available to everyone. No one deserves it more than the other, but it just depends on what it is that you notice about real life that could be turned into something.

You wrote Golden Hour in your late twenties. I'm also an '88 baby. I'm curious as to how you've adjusted to early thirties.

I think women are kind of tagged with a little bit of that societal expectations that age can bring negative things, but I find it to be the opposite for me. I mean, I'm really enjoying it. I'm enjoying mentally and confidence-wise a slower pace of things. What sums it up for me, turning 30 and this whole past year and everything, is less but better. Just only having enough space for what you really want and what you really need.

Learning to say no is a big part of it, too.

And saying no! That's okay and it actually makes room for things that you are really excited about, so you're not spreading yourself too thin whether it's with how many friends you have or how many f**king clothes you have in your closet. It's just making sure that what you do have is quality. I just think that's a nice thing for me to hold on to right now.

All the shine you're received has been because you've always stuck to your MO even with "Merry Go 'Round" until now. Considering how fickle the industry is, I was wondering about your take on Lil Nas X and that whole controversy surrounding "Old Town Road."

Look, it's interesting. I think anybody that has something to say for themselves deserves a chance to be heard and I'm personally really tired of the conversation of "What is country?" or "What is not country?" It's been so beaten to the ground. Country has been many different things for many years, and the only thing that I really care about is if something's authentic to itself. Is it authentic? Does it move me? Is it a good song? Those things, to me, mean more than whether or not somebody's male or female singing them, whether or not it fits into a certain genre specific box, whether they're gay, whether they're straight, whether they're black or white or whatever. It's just like, "Can we just look at the music?" Because really that's why we're here. That's the whole reason any of this conversation's even existing and I think it can be taken so far away from that sometimes. But, I'm like, "Who really gives a sh*t if you can say that this is country or not? Is it special? Or does it move you in some way?" It's so subjective. Everything speaks to different people for different reasons. I'm just like, "Just do your thing." I'm gonna do mine.

You have an exhibit coming out to the Country Music Hall of Fame later this year. What kind of stuff are fans going to see?

Oh my gosh. Well, there's only a few embarrassing photos that I've pulled. I had to tell my mom to put the rest in the box at home. It's gonna be starting in '88 and bringing everybody up to speed until now. Visually, I think that it'll be something really fun to look at. You know I love sparkle and color. It'll just be a timeline of some of my most favorite memories and possessions up until now. I'm really excited. I went home to Golden and I helped curate all of this stuff with my mom because she's kept everything of mine. Like all the outfits I've ever worn, and all the pictures. I'm glad somebody's been keeping track of that sh*t 'cause I haven't.

We're putting together a nice little thing, but it starts in Golden, Texas and it ends now. It feels a little bit funny, I have to say, at 30 to be putting together something like that. You don't think of that being something that you do until you're 70 and looking back on your life, but I appreciate the Country Music Hall of Fame. I am a fan of bringing young people together to learn about what country music's about. It's actually a really great genre and the Hall of Fame itself is really interesting. Even if you don't like country or you don't know anything about country music, the articles that they have in there are undeniably cool. They have Elvis' Cadillac. It's completely gold. There's like 24 karat gold all over it. They have Dolly Parton clothing. They have a bunch of cool stuff anyway, so it's gonna be fun.

Speaking of fans, you have a big LGBTQ following. With Pride month approaching, what do you have to say to your queer following that has been championing you along?

Well, we have some rainbow body paint coming out, so get yourself some. But, I would mostly just have to say thank you. I have a lot of people in the LGBTQ community coming up to me and saying, "I grew up in a small town. I love country music and I've always felt like it was a party that I wasn't invited to." That really broke my heart because country music really is about real life, real people and real songs. Though, I don't fully align myself as just being in just the country music genre, it would be very important for me to have people feel included there. I love the gay community. I really do. Like, I would die, I would die for them. Secretly, I feel like, well, not even secretly, I feel like I'm a gay male trapped inside my own body or maybe a drag queen. I feel like my best when I look almost like a drag queen.

Let's talk about that wig on RuPaul's Drag Race.

He did it. [points to stylist] It was stacked like he laid that sh*t right. I think I have a bulging disc just from that one show. If you can't go big at RuPaul's then you just need to go the f**k home.

This conversation has been edited for clarity and length.

Photo: Getty Images