And did the fog make us sleep on one of country’s most dynamic young voices?
By Bridget Sinden
Maggie Antone has been winning people over with her voice since she was singing along to the radio from her car seat I’m sure. But more people need to hear her. She released her debut album “Rhinestoned,” back in June 2024 and we feel like she hasn’t received near the amount of love that she should have given how much we love her voice. It’s old and new at the same time. It’s happy and sad at the same time – more folks need to know about this girl!
So, that’s our job at Wild Hearted – we are obsessed and now need to talk about it.
Released last year as a 10-song, 37-minute collection, the album showcases everything that makes Antone compelling: sharp wit, genuine emotion, and the kind of charisma that makes you want to be her friend. The Richmond native got her start through voice lessons, musical theater, and national anthem gigs around her hometown, but it was her recording of Tyler Childers’ “Lady May” that won the internet over and launched her toward bigger stages.
We love her playfulness and heart-on-the-sleeve humor, (very Wild Hearted) qualities that can make songs about heartbreak, wild nights, and complicated relationships feel spontaneous and in real time; like she’s right there in the room making up a story.
“Johnny Moonshine,” the album opener, perfectly showcases Antone’s storytelling abilities through her creation of an “enigmatic” character “with a checkered past and a heart of gold”. The fictional Johnny represents Antone’s knack for character-driven narratives that feel real even when they’re completely imagined. As she playfully admits, “I always joke that Johnny Moonshine is my future husband. It’s just a joke, but I hope he’s real. That’d be kind of cool.” She has the ability to take what is simple love song and make it into something more complex and entertaining, and addictive.
The album blends “Americana and country vibes” and it’s not like she’s trying to reinvent the genre; but she’s definitely adding her character and voice that is all hers. Songs like “i don’t wanna hear about it” show a deeper part of her character delivering an amazing emotional performance that his hard to ignore.
But honestly, it’s her playfulness that really draws us in:
This is a girl after my own heart and someone that I’d definitely be able to hang with. That’s the beauty of great artists; they’re able to create an immediate intimacy with their audience through their music – I guess that is the art!
And not to get too heady about it, so here’s a fun little ditty to end the article that will have you skipping out the door!
Wild Hearted Take
What we love about her is that she’s not trying to be the next anyone—she’s focused on being the first herself.
It’s not just her voice or her songwriting—it’s her understanding that great country music has always been about real people living real lives with all the good and the bad that that entails – but always with a little flair. As she sings in the title track Rhinestoned “she’s a high class stoner, head held high but she hangs low, shining bright through a cloud of smoke, she’s Rhinestoned.”
Stay Wild. Stay Raw. Stay Country
