Indifferent (song)

''Am I Okay?'' is the second studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Megan Moroney, and was released on July 12, 2024, via Sony and Columbia Records. The album is produced by Kristian Bush, who also produced Moroney's debut album '' Lucky''. Moroney wrote or co-wrote all fourteen songs on the album, which was preceded by the release of the lead promotional single "No Caller ID" on January 19, 2024. Additional promotional singles followed, including "28th of June", and "Indifferent". In the week leading up to the album's release, Moroney put out two more singles: "Man on the Moon" and "Hell of a Show". The album's title track was released as its lead single to country radio on August 26, 2024.

A deluxe edition of the album was released on October 4, 2024.

Background

''Am I Okay?'' follows Moroney's debut album '' Lucky'', released the year prior. Moroney announced the album on May 3, 2024, along with the promotional single "Indifferent". The album has been described by a press release as showcasing "endless ways that heartbreak upends our lives". Moroney has established an "emo cowgirl" style since the release of her first single due to the emotions displayed in her songs, and this album has fully committed to that style.

In an interview with ''Billboard'', Moroney discussed re-teaming with Kristian Bush for a second time, stating "he's a huge part of the sound we've created. I love that everything sounds very live. You can tell it's real people playing the instruments. We go into the studio and we're like, 'I'm a songwriter first, so what sounds best to amplify the story I'm telling?' He's brilliant, and I don't see us not working together", and expressed that she felt more pressure making ''Lucky'' than ''Am I Okay?'' because she was so busy recording this album that she "didn't have time to overthink it". Describing how the songs were written organically, Moroney explained "There would be things going on in my personal life and I wanted to write about it. I wrote it to be therapeutic, and then I look down and I'm like, 'Oh, I have a whole album, and all these songs go together', and added that she assigns a color to each of her projects because she "associates color with emotion". She stated that "when I wrote 'Miss Universe,' the oldest song on the album, I was like, 'That's my royal blue color,' and I hoped the rest of the songs I wrote for the album would fit into that blue. I think, 'Indifferent,' 'Am I Okay?' 'Man on the Moon,' all of those feel like that. Royal blue is this powerful color—it can be strong and it can be sad. So, everything in my world is blue right now."

Moroney stated she had been developing the album "living in the studio" since the release of ''Lucky'', alongside her touring. The track listing was revealed on June 28, 2024.

Critical reception

''Am I Okay?'' received favorable feedback from critics upon release. ''Rolling Stone'' described ''Am I Okay?'' as displaying Megan Moroney "deep in her feels" with references to therapy ("No Caller ID"), fears of dying alone ("Third Time's the Charm"), blasé resignation ("Indifferent"), and a "mournful goodbye ballad" inspired by the loss of her uncle in the September 11 attacks ("Heaven by Noon"). Despite the heaviness of topics at hand, the outlet said the album avoids being a "dour" project, citing Moroney's "deft way around a lyric" coupled with producer Kristian Bush's "radio-ready" touch combining to make it "one of the most enjoyable listening experiences of the year". Chris Willman of ''Variety'' declared that the album "proves that she's a country keeper" with a songwriting effort focused on real-life experiences that "feels closer to the bone than it does in most Music City fare". He highlighted the lyricism and variety in material from the sadness of tracks like "No Caller ID" and "Heaven by Noon" to the humor of "Miss Universe" to the upbeat nature of "Man on the Moon" and "Indifferent", and also spoke favorably about the album's heavy reliance on steel guitar and Moroney's vocals that range between an everyday drawl and a raspy edge. ''Holler'' writer Jof Owen rated the album a 9/10, favorably describing it as "something that's been created by a woman, for women and about women". AP writer Maria Sherman referred to ''Am I Okay?'' as more "expansive" than her debut album, saying that "while most of the songs on this 14-track collection veer into less optimistic territory, Moroney's increased confidence is heard where it matters most: in the strength of her songwriting". Several publications drew comparisons to Taylor Swift on the track "Noah".

Commercial performance

''Am I Okay?'' debuted at number 9 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and number 3 on the ''Billboard'' Top Country Albums chart dated July 27, 2024, with 43,000 first-week units.

Track listing

Personnel

Musicians
* Megan Moroney – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (1–13), acoustic guitar (14)
* Justin Schipper – steel guitar (tracks 1–13), electric guitar (1, 3, 8, 10, 11, 13), banjo (7), Dobro (9, 10, 12), acoustic guitar (10)
* Travis McNabb – drums (tracks 1–4, 6–9, 11–13), percussion (1, 3, 4, 6–9, 11–13)
* Brandon Bush – synthesizer (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6–8, 10–13), piano (1, 2, 5, 7, 10), programming (1, 4, 6, 10), background vocals (1), organ (2, 4, 7, 8, 11, 12), keyboards (3, 4), percussion (4, 8), vocoder (8), bass (10), Mellotron (12)
* Justin Niebank – programming (tracks 1, 2, 4, 7–13)
* Ted Pecchio – bass (tracks 1, 3–6, 8, 9, 12, 13)
* Kristian Bush – acoustic guitar (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6–10, 13), backing vocals (1), mandolin (3, 7, 11, 13), electric guitar (8)
* Benji Shanks – electric guitar (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6–9, 13), background vocals (1), acoustic guitar (3, 6–9, 13)
* Hayley Corbett – background vocals (tracks 1, 6)
* Juli Griffith – background vocals (tracks 1, 6)
* Celia Dawson – background vocals (track 1)
* Charlie Worsham – acoustic guitar, electric guitar (tracks 2, 11, 12); 12-string guitar, banjo (10)
* Tom Bukovac – electric guitar (tracks 2, 10, 11)
* Carole Rabinowitz – cello (track 9)
* Krista Wilkinson – viola (track 9)
* David Angell – violin (track 9)
* David Davidson – violin (track 9)
* Vince Gill – background vocals (track 13)

Technical
* Kristian Bush – producing
* Nathan Dantzler – mastering
* Drew Bollman – mixing (all tracks), recording (tracks 1, 2, 4–7, 9–14)
* Justin Niebank – mixing
* Luke Campolieta – recording (tracks 1–4, 6–13), vocal engineering (1–13)
* Seth Morton – recording (tracks 1, 6, 13)
* Buckley Miller – recording (tracks 3, 8, 9, 14), vocal engineering (14)
* Matt Rausch – recording (track 13)
* Mike "Frog" Griffin – project coordination
* Harrison Tate – engineering assistance
* Austin Brown – engineering assistance (tracks 1, 4–7, 9, 13)
* Steve Cordray – engineering assistance (tracks 2, 10–12)
* Michael Walter – engineering assistance (tracks 3, 8, 9)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Accolades

References

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2024 albums
Albums produced by Kristian Bush
Megan Moroney albums
Sony Music albums