With the right promotion team, it can be assumed that any song written by Josh Kear, Hillary Lindsey or Carrie Underwood will make it to the No. 1 position of our MusicRow CountryBreakout Chart.
So it doesn’t hurt that the three songwriters teamed for “Two Black Cadillacs,” a title released by 19/Arista Nashville and carried to the top of our chart this week by Underwood’s powerhouse vocals.
With the song, Underwood unashamedly stretches her boundaries with this attitude-heavy, murder ballad. Given that country music fans have generally taken a liking to murder tunes from a female perspective (think Miranda Lambert‘s “Gunpowder and Lead” and Reba‘s “The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia”), “Two Black Cadillacs” has proven a smart, head-turning step towards maintaining her palatable image among radio fans for the intense subject.
Music videos, equally liable as the song they represent, develop images of legendary entertainers. Director Paul Brown’s video interpretation of “Two Black Cadillacs” gives a chic, dignified and powerful display. The video becomes a no-holds-barred chronicle of the lyrics, until it takes a surprisingly haunting turn at the clip’s end.
This release should not only pay short-term dividends on the charts, but if played correctly, will prove a sound investment for elevating Underwood’s career to further heights.
Watch the video below:
About the Author
Eric T. Parker oversees operations and contributes editorial for MusicRow's print magazine, MusicRow.com, the RowFax tip sheet and the MusicRow CountryBreakout chart. He also facilitates annual events for the enterprise, including MusicRow Awards, CountryBreakout Awards and the Rising Women on the Row. eparker@musicrow.com | @EricTParkerView Author Profile
