Ella Langley performing in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in February 2025, the year she released “Choosin’ Texas”. Photo BrDen, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
“Choosin' Texas” by Ella Langley
What it took directly
- stated"Choosin' Texas" took from a story Miranda Lambert told about being pulled over with a pet kangaroo in the passenger seat"She was telling me this story about how she got pulled over once. She had the kangaroo in the passenger seat, dog in the back, and she said she got pulled over and the kangaroo ended up getting her out of a ticket" Ella Langley, quoted by Ben Rogerson, MusicRadar (24 September 2026)
- stated"Choosin' Texas" took from a writing retreat with Miranda Lambert, Luke Dick and Joybeth Taylor"I had the amazing opportunity to sit down in a room with Miranda, Luke [Dick], and Joybeth [Taylor] on a writing retreat about a year ago." Ella Langley, to Katie Bowlby, Country Living (October 17, 2025)
- stated"Choosin' Texas" took from four writers riffing on one line around a dinner table until a first draft existed"We just all jumped on it and started writing it," Joybeth Taylor, co-writer, on the Ten Year Town podcast, reported by Melissa Manzi, Holler (September 23, 2026)
- statedthe record's sound took from Langley's request in the studio for "an '80s country thing""Ella came in and she was saying, ‘I want this vibe to be like an '80s country thing,’" Tom Bukovac, session guitarist, in conversation with engineer Dave Clauss, quoted by Ben Rogerson, MusicRadar (24 September 2026)
- statedthe intro guitar lick took from Tom Bukovac, who played it straight into the desk the way 1980s session players did"I just started coming up with that lick, and I thought it'd be cool to record it direct like the guys used to do in the '80s." Tom Bukovac, session guitarist, in conversation with engineer Dave Clauss, quoted by Ben Rogerson, MusicRadar (24 September 2026)
- statedthe recording took from a band picked by three people: Rachel Loy and Spencer Cullum (Lambert's choices), Ben Flanders and Tom Bukovac (Langley's), Charlie Worsham, Dave Cohen and Aksel Coe (West's)"Miranda suggested bassist Rachel Loy and her pedal steel player Spencer Cullum, Ella wanted her band leader Ben Flanders, and Tom Bukovac, both on electric guitars. I suggested the acoustic guitarist, Charlie Worsham, keyboardist Dave Cohen, and drummer Aksel Coe." Ben West, co-producer, to Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
- statedthe recording took from three days at the Sound Emporium studio in April 2025, booked by production coordinator Kelsey Granda"Kelsey Granda, the production coordinator, booked the studio, Sound Emporium, and the musicians, for three days of sessions, in April 2025." Ben West, co-producer, to Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
What it learned to do
- documentedthe song's production learned from its three co-producers, Langley, Lambert and Ben West, with engineer and mixer Dave Clauss"Dandelion was co‑produced by Langley, fellow country star Miranda Lambert, and Ben West, and largely engineered and wholly mixed by Dave Clauss." Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
- statedBen West learned from indie rock first, then Nashville's rule that the lyric and the story come before everything"the most important adjustment I had to make to making music in Nashville was the realisation: Wait a minute, the number one priority here is communicating the lyric and making sure the music enhances the story." Ben West, co-producer, to Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
- statedthe record's sound learned from Dave Clauss's way of working fast, balancing as he goes so a take sounds finished at once"He’s balancing as he goes, and it immediately sounds like a record." Ben West, co-producer, to Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
- documentedJoybeth Taylor learned from Nashville, where she moved at 18 to become a songwriter"got her start in Nashville at age 18 when she moved to Music City to pursue her dreams of being a songwriter." Melissa Manzi, Holler (September 23, 2026)
The tradition it sits in
- inferredthe song's '80s country sound comes from Ronnie Milsap, one of the references Langley played her co-producer"She played me a bunch of great sonic references, like Ronnie Milsap" inferred: Ben West says Langley played him Ronnie Milsap records as references when they first wrote together; he does not say Milsap shaped this song
- documented"Choosin' Texas" comes from traditional Nashville record-making, where session players serve the melody"The colossal success of Ella Langley’s ‘Choosin’ Texas’ and parent album Dandelion shows that traditional Nashville record‑making still works in the 21st Century." Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
- stated"Choosin' Texas" comes from the Nashville session player's rule of never stepping on a melody"The session musicians are not going to step on a melody." Ben West, co-producer, to Paul Tingen, Sound On Sound (August 2026)
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