Maren Morris says she has no regrets on speaking out

Maren Morris has no regrets about the political stances that made her a lightning rod in country music. 

Telling Rolling Stone in an interview published Thursday, September 3, that she's found genuine peace with where her career has landed. 

"I never have a moment of, 'Gosh, I would be in a much different place, a better place career-wise, if I had just played the game and kept my mouth shut and kissed the proverbial ring,'" Morris, 36, said. 

"I feel a little bit more at peace and vindicated, because I've not changed my tune."

Morris reflected on the toll of constantly having to publicly defend her positions in past years, recalling "having to be in every conversation, win every battle, clap back at every assh---" after facing backlash for calling Brittany Aldean "Insurrection Barbie" over transphobic comments Aldean had made online. 

Morris turned that controversy into a fundraising moment, selling a "Lunatic Country Music Person" T-shirt, a phrase borrowed from a dismissive Tucker Carlson remark, and raising $150,000 for LGBTQ+ charities in the process.

The interview also revisited a 2023 Los Angeles Times conversation in which Morris described stepping back from parts of the country music industry, comments that sparked significant backlash from some fans who interpreted it as her abandoning the genre altogether. 

She clarified that characterisation earlier this year in a TikTok and Instagram video, saying at the time, "As an artist, and as a Texan, I feel like I have pretty thick skin. You have to if you're in this line of work. But for years I've seen comments on my videos, or articles posted about me that say, 'She said she hates country music.' And it's exhausting because I can't reply to all of them and be like, 'Cite your source.'" 

Fellow Highwomen member Brandi Carlile praised Morris's trajectory to Rolling Stone, saying, "I've been watching Maren's moves, and I'm feeling really proud of her." 

Morris no longer feels the need to keep re-litigating the "leaving country music" narrative, telling the outlet she doesn't want to keep beating what she calls a "dead horse," particularly since she spent this past summer actively performing country music with her own band. 

She's set to celebrate the tenth anniversary of her debut album, Hero, with a show at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium in the coming weeks.