There’s nothing we love more than highlighting incredible female artists in country music. Today, our spotlight shines on talented singer-songwriter, Brooke Lee, who recently released her stellar project, Desert Darling. Keep reading to learn more about the project and Lee’s story.

“I’m from Charlotte, North Carolina originally. I grew up around music. My grandparents were pastors, so from the age of three, I remember going in and watching my grandfather play piano and sing,” began Lee. “When I was thirteen, I went with my dad to see a rock band called Blue Monday and at the venue, there was a lead that was a female front, and she was so entertaining and engaging, and that was kind of the moment for me where ewe was like, “Can I do that?!” It was so cool.”

Lee caught the bug for music early, finding music to be both healing and enticing from a young age. “I always knew that I wanted to be involve with music as much as I possibly could. It was a very healing thing for myself growing up listening to it,” shared the songstress. “I love everything from Led Zeppelin to Joan Jett, but I grew up listening to artists like P!NK and Miley Cyrus, Sheryl Crow, and Stevie Nicks. […] My dad is a gym coach, and he found an iPod in the lost and found, and when I was in fifth grade at the end of the year he gave it to me, and it was all Rihanna and Pink, and everything in that world. I didn’t really grow up much on country music, which is fun now because I listen to the melodies that I create and it leans more Pop.”

The Turning Point:

With an eclectic music taste and a true passion for singing, Lee found herself starting her first band at just fifteen years old. She played cover songs around town with her guitar player, truly honing in on her performance skills. Just a few years later, she took her first trip to Nashville, Tennessee, and that’s when things really started shifting. “Something about being around all these creatives was just so magical and inspiring to be around. It was a no brainer for me to move to town.”

“I started dipping my toe into the country music scene and visited Nashville for the first time. I fell in love with it, and also was like how am I going to make a career out of cover songs like Joan Jett and all of the other people that we were covering, so it was fun diving into the country scene.” Then at twenty-one, the songstress officially made the move to Music City.

While in Nashville, Lee found herself on the performing side of things first. “I definitely started more on the performing. I played three nights a week every week before I moved to town. I started coming out here to Nashville before I moved, and around then is when I really started diving into it,” she shared. The singer also worked at Free People, where she made a connection that would change the trajectory of her blossoming career.

“I ended up dressing this songwriter who was at this company for publishing and I asked her for some advice. […] She ended up sending a cover I had posted to Derek Wells, who started Artist Development at this publishing company called Spirit, and a year later, they ended up signing me to my first publishing deal. […] It was my only offer on the table, and I felt like I was just thrown into it, and now I’m grown in it, and I love it so much.”

Today:

Flash forward to today, Lee has grown into her artistry and her honest songwriting. “I’ve always been someone who likes to write in color, and I feel like a lot of things that I write about are a poem that I thought about in the moment,” she shared, adding, “I want the listeners to be right where I was when I was inspired to write a song. I love the whole storytelling aspect of country music.”

Lee’s incredible knack for story-telling is on full display on her recent EP, Desert Darling. “We started talking about a project a little less than halfway through the year last year, and I wanted to start out 2026 with a project and a staple piece of who I am. Like this is Brooke. I knew I wanted it to be a chapter and for there to be a storyline,” shared the singer-songwriter.

For Lee it was important to connect to fans, while remaining true to her story so far. “We started digging into what are the stories that helped me grow most and what are the most important stories that I need to say. My mom growing up called me a wild child, so my whole thing is to stay that way and keep that youth in you and kids in you, so I wanted to tell stories that other wild childs can connect with. The whole thing is my nineteen to twenty-five, and it kinda starts out with the free-sprite spring break love, and throughout it moves to a place where you’re on your own and standing freely on your own.”

The entire project is a cohesive story that any person can find a piece of their heart in; despite, being deeply person to Lee. “One of my favorite parts of it is in the first track of the EP it talks about feeling weightless and having that feeling because of someone else, and then in “Just Because,” the last track, it ends with feeling weightless because of your own self, and knowing that you can live life for you and you’re allowed to do that,” she shared, adding, “It was also crazy personal because my band got to play on it. All these people that walked through this with me got to be on the project and it was really special.”

This marks just the beginning for Lee, who is embarking on an a new era in her career and in her life. She promises more new music up her sleeve, as well as, shows coming soon. Stay tuned!

Connect:

To keep up with Brooke Lee, follow her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok.

Brooke Lee’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.