In late 2023, Morris put out two songs, “The Tree” and “Get the Hell Out of Here,” that appeared to serve as her official exit from country music. She announced as much in a sweeping Los Angeles Times interview, but subsequently walked that statement back a little, clarifying that she’ll always feel connected to the genre but that she hoped to move away from some of its more harmful mechanisms.
The singer didn’t offer specifics, but it’s a solid bet that she was referring to the 2016 CMA Awards, when she teamed up with the Chicks for a performance of “Daddy Lessons,” a country-leaning track off her Lemonade album.
Responses to her performance were mixed. Plenty of viewers called it a highlight of the awards show, but Chicks frontwoman Natalie Maines subsequently said she fielded some unwelcoming comments from “racist a–holes.”
