Girl (Maren Morris album)

Girl is the second major label studio album by American singer Maren Morris, released on March 8, 2019 through Columbia Nashville.[7] It was preceded by the single "Girl”.[8] The promotional single "Common", featuring Brandi Carlile, was released alongside the album pre-order on February 8. The track was later nominated for Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards. Morris embarked on the Girl: The World Tour in support of the album.[9]

Girl
Studio album by Maren Morris
Released	March 8, 2019 (2019-03-08)
Recorded	2017–2019
Genre	Country R&B[1][2][3] pop[4]
Length	46:59
Label	Columbia Nashville
Producer	busbee Maren Morris Greg Kurstin[5]
Maren Morris chronology
Hero (2016) Girl (2019)
Singles from Girl
"Girl" Released: January 18, 2019 "The Bones" Released: May 20, 2019 "To Hell & Back" Released: March 30, 2020[6]

Release and promotion

The album's lead single "Girl" was released on January 18, 2019 and was described as "an upbeat, optimistic single with a strutting, indie-rock guitar sound". The album's first promotional single "Common" features Brandi Carlile and was released on February 8. The collaboration was nominated for Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.[10] "The Bones" was released on February 22 as the second and final promotional single of the album.[11] On August 16, 2019 the song was sent to radios as the second single from the album. It peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Morris' highest charting solo single to date, as well as hitting number one on the Country Airplay chart of February 2020 becoming Maren’s third number one for that chart. With that being said, Maren teased fans on social media that from having another consecutive hit, that GIRL will be having another single. In March of 2020 she released “To Hell & Back” as the third single from GIRL.

In support of the album, Morris embarked on Girl: The World Tour, which began on March 9 and concluded on November 16, 2019.[12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	66/100[13]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[14]
Exclaim!	8/10[15]
The Guardian	[16]
Paste	7.1/10[17]
Pitchfork	6.3/10[18]
Rolling Stone	[19]

Girl received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 66, based on 8 reviews.[13]

Melissa Novacaska from Exclaim! said, "What's impressive about Girl though is how strong Morris's vocals have grown, along with the maturity and uniqueness of each song. It's clear that Girl isn't a sophomore slump, but rather an album worth investing in."[15] AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine called Girl "bright, shiny, and big, an album designed to appeal to any imaginable audience", noting how Morris goes for a "pan-cultural pop" soundscape that draws from different genres and delivers straightforward messages that's backed by equally strong production. He concluded by finding criticism in the album's songwriting following that musical direction, "By foregrounding her lyrical intent and offering no room for interpretation, Morris winds up with songs that feel less imaginative than their execution, a flaw that is by no means fatal but does mean that Girl plays on a smaller scale than intended."[14]

Rolling Stone editor Rob Sheffield felt that fans of Morris's "scrappy attitude on Hero" will be oft-put by the "happy midtempo love songs" found in the album's second half but said that tracks like "All My Favorite People", "Flavor" and "Make Out with Me" will satisfy them, concluding that, "She might be on her best behavior on this LP, but the liveliest moments come when she gets out of line."[19] Laura Snapes of The Guardian felt the record goes for "neither gutsy grandstanding nor Vegas-adjacent pop" throughout its track listing, criticizing the "biographical sincerity ("Great Ones", "Gold Love", "Make Out with Me")" for lacking conviction and the misuse of Morris's "compellingly hardbitten voice" on songs that don't involve fractured romances, saying that Morris should take inspiration from fellow country artist Kacey Musgraves when recording her third album.[16]

Commercial performance

Girl debuted and peaked at number four on the US Billboard 200 with 46,000 album-equivalent units, of which 25,000 were pure album sales in its first week. It is Morris' second US top-five album.[20] The album broke the record for the largest streaming week ever for a country studio album by a woman, with approximately 24 million streams in its first week.[21] On February 26, 2020, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over 500,000 units.[22] The album has sold 91,000 in traditional albums,[23] and has earned at least 636,000 equivalent album units as of April 2020.[24]

Track listing

Credits adapted from Tidal.[25]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Girl"	Maren Morris Greg Kurstin Sarah Aarons	Kurstin	4:10
2.	"The Feels"	Morris Jimmy Robbins Laura Veltz	busbee Morris	3:07
3.	"All My Favorite People" (featuring Brothers Osborne)	Morris Ryan Hurd Mikey Reaves	busbee Morris	3:19
4.	"A Song for Everything"	Morris Robbins Veltz	busbee Morris	3:14
5.	"Common" (featuring Brandi Carlile)	Morris Kurstin Aarons	Kurstin	4:05
6.	"Flavor"	Morris Robbins Veltz	busbee Morris	3:16
7.	"Make Out with Me"	Morris Julian Bunetta John Ryan	busbee Morris	2:16
8.	"Gold Love"	Morris busbee	busbee Morris	3:23
9.	"Great Ones"	Morris Hurd Reaves	busbee Morris	3:41
10.	"RSVP"	Morris Natalie Hemby Jon Randall Mark Trussell	busbee Morris	3:34
11.	"To Hell & Back"	Morris Jessie Jo Dillon Veltz	busbee Morris	3:15
12.	"The Bones"	Morris Robbins Veltz	Kurstin	3:17
13.	"Good Woman"	Morris Kathleen Edwards Ian Fitchuk	busbee Morris	3:31
14.	"Shade"	Morris Hemby Tyler Johnson	busbee Morris	2:51
Total length:				46:59

2020 rerelease

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
15.	"Just for Now"	Morris busbee	busbee Morris	4:00
16.	"Takes Two"	Morris Aarons Kurstin	Kurstin	3:33
Total length:				54:32

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.[26]

Musicians

• Charlie Bisharat – violin
• Jacob Braum – cello
• busbee – percussion, programming, bass guitar, keyboards, piano, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer, electric guitar
• Brandi Carlile – duet vocals (track 5)
• Kathleen Edwards – background vocals (track 13)
• Alma Fernandez – viola
• Ian Fitchuk – piano, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer, percussion
• Natalie Hemby – background vocals (track 14)
• Ryan Hurd – background vocals (tracks 3, 9, 12)
• Greg Kurstin – drums, percussion, bass guitar, piano, keyboards, synthesizer, organ, omnichord
• Songa Lee – violin
• Rob Moore – violin, viola, octave viola
• Maren Morris – lead vocals, background vocals
• John Osborne – electric guitar
• T.J. Osborne – duet vocals (track 3)
• Aaron Sterling – drums, percussion, programming
• Laura Veltz – background vocals (tracks 4, 11, 12)
• Patrick Warren – string arrangement (tracks 7, 13)
• Derek Wells – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin
• Ben West – Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer

Technical

• Julian Burg – recording
• busbee – producer (all tracks except 1, 5, 12), recording, mixing
• Maren Morris – producer (all tracks except 1, 5, 12)
• Dave Clauss – digital editing, recording, mixing
• Michael Freeman – assistant engineer
• Mike "Frog" Griffith – production coordination
• Greg Kurstin – producer (tracks 1, 5, 12), recording, mixing
• Rachel Kurstin – production coordination
• Randy Merrill – mastering
• Rob Moose – violin, viola (tracks 7,13)
• Maren Morris – producer
• Zack Pancoast – assistant engineer
• Alex Pasco – recording
• Nathan Spicer – recording
• Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
• Matt Tuggle – production assistant (track 5 only)
• Brian David Willis – digital editing

Imagery

• Marwa Bashir – hair
• Samuel Burgess-Johnson – Maren Morris font design
• Joseph Cassell – styling
• Tracy Fleaner – creative director
• Nicki Fletcher – cover design
• Jamie Nelson – photography
• Lorrie Turk – makeup

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2019) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[27] 29 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[28] 14 Scottish Albums (OCC)[29] 22 UK Albums (OCC)[30] 72 US Billboard 200[20] 4 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[31] 1 US Digital Albums (Billboard)[32] 2 US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[33] 2

Year-end charts Chart (2019) Position US Billboard 200[34] 105 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[35] 10

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[22]	Gold	525,000[36] / 91,000[23]
^*sales figures based on certification alone sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
Various	March 8, 2019	Digital download streaming	Columbia Nashville

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Girl - Maren Morris Review". AllMusic. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
2. "Album Review: Maren Morris' 'Girl'". Variety. March 7, 2019.
3. "Maren Morris Is the Future of Country Music". Time. March 14, 2019.
4. Sheffield, Rob. "Review: Maren Morris Makes Her Bid for Top 40 Glory With 'Girl'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
5. Laffer, Lauren. "Maren Morris Announces Powerful New Single 'Girl' Sounds Like Nashville". Sounds Like Nashville. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
6. "Future Releases for Country Radio Stations". All Access. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
7. "GIRL by Maren Morris on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
8. Hudak, Joseph (January 17, 2019). "Maren Morris on Her Women's Anthem 'Girl': 'We're Well Aware of What We're Up Against'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
9. "Maren Morris Reveals Dates for Massive Tour Supporting New Album, 'Girl'". Variety. January 17, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
10. Freeman, Jon (February 8, 2019). "Hear Maren Morris, Brandi Carlile's New Duet 'Common'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
11. Freeman, Jon (February 22, 2019). "Hear Maren Morris' Optimistic New Song 'The Bones'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
12. Freeman, Jon (January 17, 2019). "Maren Morris Sets Dates for Headlining Girl: The World Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
13. "Girl by Maren Morris". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
14. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Girl - Maren Morris". AllMusic. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
15. Novacaska, Melissa (March 6, 2019). "Maren Morris - Girl". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
16. Snapes, Laura (March 8, 2019). "Maren Morris: Girl review – country or pop, or stuck in the middle". The Guardian. London: Guardian Media Group. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
17. Johnson, Ellen (March 8, 2019). "Maren Morris: GIRL Review". Paste. Wolfgang's Vault. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
18. Asaph, Katherine St. (March 9, 2019). "Maren Morris: Girl". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
19. Sheffield, Rob (March 5, 2019). "Review: Maren Morris Makes Her Bid for Top 40 Glory With 'Girl'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
20. Caulfield, Keith (March 17, 2019). "Juice WRLD Scores First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 With 'Death Race for Love'". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
21. Asker, Jim; Caulfield, Keith (March 18, 2019). "Maren Morris' 'Girl' Enters at No. 1 On Top Country Albums Chart With Record Debut-Week Streams". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
22. "American album certifications – Maren Morris – Girl". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 1, 2020. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
23. Bjorke, Matt (March 10, 2020). "Top 10 Country Albums Pure Sales Chart: March 9, 2020". RoughStock. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
24. Trust, Gary. "Maren Morris' 'The Bones' Tops Another Chart & Sets a Record". Billboard. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
25. "Try the TIDAL Web Player". listen.tidal.com. Retrieved 2019-06-24.
26. Girl (booklet). Maren Morris. Columbia Records. 2019. 19075-90186-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
27. "Australiancharts.com – Maren Morris – Girl". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
28. "Maren Morris Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
29. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
30. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
31. "Maren Morris Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
32. "Maren Morris Chart History (Digital Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
33. "Top Album Sales". Billboard. March 23, 2019. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
34. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
35. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
36. Bjorke, Matt (March 9, 2020). "Country Music's Most-Consumed Albums Chart: March 9, 2020". Roughstock. Retrieved March 23, 2020.