Karley Scott Collins ‘Flight Risk!’ – Debut Album Review

Karley Scott Collins’ debut album, Flight Risk  is out now, September 26th on all streaming platforms. Take a listen and read our full review below.

With a soulful voice and an undeniable gift for storytelling, country newcomer Karley Scott Collins is making her mark with her debut album Flight Risk, out now via Sony Music Nashville. The 16-track LP, co-written in full by the Florida native, showcases her mix of lyrical depth and heartfelt delivery.

Produced alongside Grammy winner Nathan Chapman, the project leans into heartbreak, a theme that perfectly complements Collins’ honeyed, aching tone. “It’s a special thing that really, only artists get to experience – turning pain and things that could’ve broken you into something you’re proud of,” Collins says. “Releasing a full album has been my goal since I started writing songs. I grew up collecting vinyl and listening to full records, so creating an album and telling an entire story from top to bottom is what I’ve always wanted to do.” 

The LP kicks off with the roaring “Denim,” a fiery anthem aimed at a bad-boy ex. Sliding electric guitars punctuate her biting lyrics, just as she intended. “‘Denim’ is very specifically about my most recent ex – so when he hears it, someone will need to check on him,” she shares.

“Denim// Got into my blood I let him // Salt into the cut // Set fire and tell me it’s raining // Good liar you had me baby // Venom // One hell of a blue jean lesson // He know that he looks like // Sweet heaven and I loved him // The devil in denim”

On “Quit You,” Collins channels shades of Brandi Carlile, her voice cracking with raw emotion as she wrestles with unhealthy addiction to someone. Meanwhile, “Easy to Leave”is a ’90s-inspired ballad about a breakup that made moving on all too simple.

“But you made it easy // To lose your number // Call my mother // And tell her that you’re crazy // You know how to make it easy // To drive by your house // And not even slow down // Forget the way I kissed ya // I don’t even miss ya // Don’t know which side of you to blame // But don’t ya know you went and made it // Easy to love you // Then you made it easy to leave”

“Music to Cry To” is an especially clever bluesy ballad, while “Runner” finds her guarding her broken and beaten heart. The soaring “Shoot Out All the Lights,” co-written with Greg Kurstin (Adele, Sia, Kelly Clarkson), builds into a theatrical country ballad that rivals the greats.

Still, Flight Risk isn’t all heartbreak. Collings lets loose on the script-flipping “Cowboy Shit” and beckons an undeniable attraction on “Bad Bad.” She gets her toes tapping to the poptastic “Left Me Alone,” as she realizes that she’s going to be just fine. “It’s just that moment you realize you’re okay, like ‘Now I can listen to Bob Dylan again, without thinking about you,’” she explains of the track. “That one’s pretty specific, in that I woke up one day and realized ‘Oh my God, I’m free. I’m okay.’”

Elsewhere, “Girlfriend” delivers playful early-2000s pop-rock energy, while “Heavy Metal” offers a gripping country tale of generational trauma and the weight of holding on too long.

One of the album’s most vulnerable moments comes with “Only Child,” where Collins reflects on the bittersweet solitude of growing up without siblings. “Got your own space, don’t have to share,” she sings, the chorus shifting from lighthearted to heavy as she confronts the loneliness of watching her parents age. “Used to not have to, and now you don’t get to, Share it with no one, And damn it’s lonely Only child.”

The LP ends with “Madman,” an introspective look at losing yourself and your sanity in the haze of someone else. “You made a madman out of me,” She claims, voice laden with emotion and realization. “Didn’t know reckless was something I could be // Somewhere between love and insanity, Oh, you made a madman, A madman out of me.”

With Flight Risk, Karley Scott Collins presents a collection that feels as intimate as pages from a diary, chronicling the highs and lows of her early twenties. It’s honest, relatable, and reminiscent of the kind of storytelling that propelled artists like Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris, and Taylor Swift into superstardom.

“Ultimately, I want people to walk away feeling like they know me and some of my story,” she says. “I still have a long way to go and a lot of goals I’ve yet to reach, but there’s nothing in the world I’d rather be doing for the rest of my life.”

Country Swag Picks:

1. Easy to Leave
2. Cowboy Shit
3. Shoot Out All the Lights
4. Denim

Flight Risk Track List:

1. Denim (Karley Scott Collins, Sara Bares, Stephan Lee Benson, Alex Kline)
2. Easy to Leave (Karley Scott Collins, Nathan Chapman, Aaron Zuckerman)
3. Quit You (Karley Scott Collins, Nathan Chapman)
4. Cowboy Sh!t (Karley Scott Collins, Sam Backoff, KK Johnson)
5. Music to Cry To (Karley Scott Collins, Alex Kline, Joybeth Taylor)
6. Left Me Alone (Karley Scott Collins, AJ Pruis, Joybeth Taylor)
7. Shoot Out All the Lights (Karley Scott Collins, Greg Kurstin)
8. Bad Bad (Karley Scott Collins, Emily Falvey, Emma Kleinberg, Dan Pellarin)
9. Runner (Karley Scott Collins, Sam Backoff, Zane Callister, Ashley Ray)
10. Girlfriend (Karley Scott Collins, Alex Kline, Summer Overstreet)
11. I Used to Love Him (Karley Scott Collins, Alex Kline, Scott Stepakoff)
12. American Boy (Karley Scott Collins, Alex Kline, Joybeth Taylor)
13. Heavy Metal (Karley Scott Collins, Sam Backoff, KK Johnson)
14. Daddy’s Habits (Karley Scott Collins, Alex Kline, Lydia Sutherland)
15. Only Child (Karley Scott Collins, Marti Lynn Dodson, Alex Kline)
16. Madman (Karley Scott Collins, Kathleen Higgins)