MacKenzie Porter: ‘Nobody’s Born With A Broken Heart’ – Debut Album Review

With a slew of #1 hits already under her belt in Canada, MacKenzie Porter is poised to make a name for herself in the states. On her debut full length with Big Loud Records, the singer-songwriter promises that Nobody’s Born with a Broken Heart.

Produced by Joey Moi, the nineteen track collection is sure to take listeners on a journey. Porter co-wrote on nine of the album’s tracks, enlisting Music Row heavyweights like Hillary Lindsey, Tofer Brown, Emily Weisband, Parker Welling, and more to contribute.

Best known for duet with Dustin Lynch on the #1 hit, “Thinking ‘Bout You,” Porter is thrilled to get these new songs to her fans. “Nobody’s born with a broken heart. We all start with the naivety and innocence of youth, but then life happens. There are so many circumstances and events in a lifetime that can slowly chip away at your heart, and in the end you’re this beautiful, imperfect, cracked, mess. But isn’t that what living really is? If you didn’t have the grit, would you really know the grace?” She wrote on Instagram. “That is what this record is about. These songs are those moments in my life. I hope they maybe heal a couple of those moments in yours.”

Despite being happily married with a new baby, much of the album revolves around the universal theme of heartbreak. “Every time I tell people that [the album is about heartbreak], they’re like, ‘well, you’re in a relationship and you’re happy.’ I am, of course, but there’s a lot of different elements of heartbreak in life.” 

The album opens with one of those such songs, “Easy to Miss,” a perfect slice of R&B tinted country pop that’s the perfect album kick off. The project was built around this track, allowing Porter to stretch herself vocally, lyrically, and stylistically.

Other songs centered around heartbreak include “Young at Heart,” “Confession,” and “Pay Me Back in Change.” On “Young,” Porter channels her inner “Picture to Burn”-era Taylor Swift, admitting that she can’t quite be mature in the aftermath of a breakup. On the powerful “Confession,” she’s more vulnerable, admitting she’s still in love with her ex, voice laced with sadness. Lastly, “Pay Me Back in Change” is lyrical brilliance, Porter imploring a guy to change in order to be a man who’s worthy of her. 

“You can’t pay me back in sorry // Can’t pay me back with what you say // All those pretty words lose meaning // If I’m still lonely the next day // Can’t pay me back with breakfast in bed // Or a Sunday matinee // The only thing that’ll settle this debt// Is if you pay me back in change”

Likewise “Strong Things” finds her drowning her sorrows in the bottle, while “Foreclosure” cleverly compares the end of a relationship to losing a house. “Sucker Punch” leaves her breathless after an infidelity, remembering both the good and bad moments that managed to take her breath away.

“Thought we were the champions// Thought we were the type// To never throw the towel in// Never lose a fight// Didn’t hear the train// ‘Til it hit me from behind// Feeling like a fool now// ‘Cause it caught me by surprise// When you laid it on me all at once//It hit me like a sucker punch”

On “Bet You Break My Heart,” the Canada native finds herself swooning over a guy who she knows isn’t good for her, while “Wrong One Yet” is a bit more optimistic, finding hope in a new relationship. Over airy music, her heart is aflutter as she muses, “I ain’t saying he’s the right one, but hell, he ain’t the wrong one yet.”

Porter is truly content on tracks like “Coming Home to You” and “Less is More,” both which find her achieving solace in simplicity. On the latter, she admits, “They say that we got nothing, but nothing here is everything.” LIkewise, “Coming Home” is a sweet midtempo which finds her soothing lilt soaring above strumming acoustic guitars and light percussion to achieve a whimsical and airy feel. Here, she loves what she has, and realizes that the grass isn’t always greener.

“There’s always gonna be bigger houses // Longer driveways with nicer cars // There’s always gonna be whiter fences // Redder roses, in a greener yard // Most people would kill for a // Higher up hill looking down on a better view // But I don’t want no bigger house if I ain’t coming home to you”

Porter puts her own spin on truck songs with “Along Those Lines” and “Pickup,”  with “Pickup” finding her wondering who’s riding shotgun now. With the catchy TikTok-able soundbite, she asks “Who’s that pickup picking up now?”

There are some  country bangers here in the form of “Walk Away” and “Rough Ride for a Cowboy.” Both find her putting a cowboy in his place, with “Rough Ride” settling into a wild west, horserace musical vibe. It’s uber catchy as she proclaims, “Now he’s ‘bout to learn what lonely looks like // When I cut him loose but his hands are tied // Nothing breaks his heart like breaking his pride // When he ain’t got the reigns on goodbye // That’s a rough ride for a cowboy.”

Other pieces of earwormy pop-country include “Have Your Beer,” a kiss off track that finds her toying with the old adage that one can’t have his cake and eat it too, musing “You can’t have your beer and drink it too.” Likewise, “Chasing Tornadoes” sounds like early 2000’s-inspired country in the best way possible, finding Porter flexing sounds that could best be compared to Some Hearts-era Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, or Gloriana.

Porter is as sensitive as she is tough, evidenced on songs like “Nightingale” and  the title track, “Nobody’s Born with a Broken Heart.” “Nightingale” is a poignant letter of encouragement to her current self to be more like her younger self. “The song is about just being the girl that I was when I moved to Nashville, who literally thought that anything was possible and that I was going to be on the radio and a star,” She reveals. “I wanted to think like her again.”

The album concludes with its stunning title track about the innocence of youth, inspired by her own young daughter. “My little girl is gonna come into this world with no negative thoughts or preconceived notions, and she’s going to have relationships and experience heartbreak,” She reveals. “And I hope she does, because that’s what shows that you loved and that you lived.” 

“I learned the hard way that growing up is hard // ‘Cause nobody’s born with a broken heart // Love’s a blade and God it’s sharp // Smooth as steel but leaves a mark // Proof of life is dying with scar // ‘Cause nobody’s born with a broken heart // Yeah nobody’s born with a broken heart.”

While heartbreak may be a prevalent theme on Nobody’s Born with a Broken Heart, MacKenzie Porter possesses a vulnerable honesty seen by the likes of early Kelsea Ballerini or Taylor Swift, sure to win over a whole legion of new fans.

Nobody’s Born With A Broken Heart Track List:

1. Easy To Miss (Hillary Lindsey, Emily Warren, Will Weatherly)*
2. Young At Heart (Tofer Brown, Lauren Hungate, Emily Weisband)
3. Bet You Break My Heart (Mark Holman, Chris Tompkins, Travis Wood)
4. Pay Me Back In Change (Emma Klein)
5. Rough Ride For A Cowboy (MacKenzie Porter, Lauren Hungate, Luke Niccoli, Lydia Vaughan)
6. Coming Home To You (Tofer Brown, Lauren Hungate, Caroline Watkins, Emily Weisband)
7. Strong Things (MacKenzie Porter, John Byron, Jacob Durrett, Lauren LaRue)
8. Confession (MacKenzie Porter, Emma-Lee, Karen Kosowski)
9. Wrong One Yet (Blake Pendergrass, Josh Thompson, Lauren Watkins)
10. Pickup (MacKenzie Porter, Will Bundy, Lydia Vaughan)
11. Nightingale (MacKenzie Porter, Mark Trussell, Parker Welling)
12. Have Your Beer (MacKenzie Porter, Jason Massey, Lydia Vaughan, Parker Welling)
13. Sucker Punch (MacKenzie Porter, Tommy English, Nick Long)
14. Walk Away (MacKenzie Porter, Chris DeStefano, Jon Nite)
15. Foreclosure (Jared Hampton, Harper O’Neill, Vinnie Paolizzi, Ash Ruder)
16. Less Is More (Devin Dawson, Zachary Kale, Jon Nite)
17. Along Those Lines (Rocky Block, Blake Pendergrass)
18. Chasing Tornadoes (Emily Landis, Jamie Moore, Lainey Wilson)
19. Nobody’s Born With A Broken Heart (MacKenzie Porter, Luke Niccoli, Lydia Vaughan, Parker Welling)

Country Swag Picks:

1. Wrong One Yet
2. Coming Home to You
3. Rough Ride for a Cowboy
4. Pickup
5. Chasing Tornadoes

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Visit her official website for tour dates and more.

Nobody’s Born With A Broken Heart are now available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released music here on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.