Lainey Wilson’s career felt like a ‘Whirlwind.’ On her new album, she makes sense of life and love

AP Music Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Lainey Wilson will release her fifth studio album, “Whirlwind,” on Friday. She says the title perfectly encapsulates the last few years. A little over a decade ago, Wilson lived in a camper trailer and hit open mic nights to make it in Nashville. Now she’s a Grammy winner, the first woman to win entertainer of the year at the CMAs since Taylor Swift in 2011, she’s acted in the hit television show “Yellowstone” and in June, she was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. On “Whirlwind,” Wilson is able to translate the madness of her life and career to that of everyone else’s, like on “Good Horses” with Miranda Lambert and “Hang Tight Honey.”