EMILY NENNI TO RELEASE MOVIN’ SHOES, ANNOUNCES “HONKY TONK NIGHTS” TOUR DATES

Emily Nenni will release Movin’ Shoes on May 1, 2025, via New West Records. The 13-song set was produced by John James Tourville (of the Deslondes) and recorded and mixed by Matt Ross-Spang (Margo Price, Jason Isbell) at Southern Grooves in Memphis. Movin’ Shoes is Nenni’s follow-up to her critically acclaimed 2024 album Drive & Cry. Rolling Stone named it one of “The Best Country Albums of 2024” and called it “the most exciting hard-nosed honky-tonk record of the year,” while Bandcamp said, “In a genre overstuffed with craggy male singing voices, Emily Nenni is a breath of fresh air.” Saving Country Music said, “Emily Nenni has released a fun, infectious, twangy, diverse, and career-defining album that will renew your spirits in the state of country music.”

Movin’ Shoes eloquently and wryly blends southern soul from Memphis and Muscle Shoals with southern rock from Macon and outlaw country from Austin. In addition to some of her most incisive lyrics, the album features some of her most powerful vocal performances. These songs percolate with new sounds, like the Rhodes organ that kicks off the supremely funky title track and the Lone Star harmonica that weaves throughout her bluesy cover of Paul Simon’s “Tenderness.” Nenni cites Sly Stone and Linda Ronstadt’s Motown covers as specific influences, but the old styles sound fresh and current because her personality and charisma come through in every note. “This isn’t strictly honkytonk like my former records, even though it’s still all the same influences,” Nenni explains. “I’m just drawing from more artists and genres than I have in the past.”

Today, Holler premiered the video for the album’s first single, “Livin’ in Shame,” which was filmed in one take with Nenni singing the song in reverse. Nenni says, “I’m proud to work with Joshua Shoemaker for the third time. ‘Livin’ in Shame’ is encouraging myself and others to be kinder to ourselves and our bodies, because we have been too critical for too long. This is filmed in reverse to convey the message of the song, with makeup being swiped away and left with the bare bones. I worked with a linguist who taught me to mouth the song backwards. This video was very outside of my comfort zone, but so is voicing my insecurities out loud.” Director Joshua Shoemaker said, “I grew up on Spike Jones and Michel Gondry and was always in awe of how they were always pulling off magic tricks. The reverse lip sync is something that sounds good in theory, but takes a talented linquist to really figure it out. On top of that, the artist has to put in a lot of work to learn essentially a new version of the song. I was really blessed to have both of those things in Emily and our linguist, Liam Porter. Not only did he transcribe the song in reverse, he sat down with Emily and coached her through the performance. Emily crushed it, of course, and made my job pretty easy.”

Movin’ Shoes is an album about how we treat each other and how we treat ourselves—whether we’re at the honkytonk or not—and Nenni writes and sings like someone who has seen enough shit go down that she’s not going to allow anymore, at least not on her watch. “When I was writing these songs, I was thinking about just how hard it is to live in this world,” she says. “How are we leaving our mark in this world? How are we interacting with other people and with ourselves, too? The world is scary, but there’s so much beauty to it. And so much of that beauty comes from how we treat each other and ourselves. That’s the album’s entire message.”

Confident in its touchstones and compassionate in its insights, Nenni has made the album of her career.

Whenever Emily Nenni is onstage, she welcomes everybody to the dancefloor. The California-born, Nashville-based singer-songwriter wants the honkytonk to be a place of escape, where fans can shed their troubles for a few hours and feel safe and free. Launching April 11 in Bakersfield, CA, Nenni will host a tour of “Honky Tonk Nights” across the country and will be selecting the most “honky tonkin’” bands in each city to curate a special night of dancing. Please see the initial Movin’ Shoes tour dates, with many more to be announced, below.

Movin’ Shoes will be available across streaming platforms, compact disc, and standard black vinyl. A limited “Pure Gold” color vinyl edition and a limited compact disc edition both signed by Emily Nenni will be available at Independent Retailers and are available for pre-order NOW via NEW WEST RECORDS.

Movin’ Shoes Track Listing:

1. Movin’ Shoes
2. Talkin’ To Your Toothbrush
3. Take My Money
4. Not A Winner
5. Livin’ In Shame
6. What Have I Done Wrong
7. Tenderness
8. Honky Tonkin’
9. Home With My Dog
10. Good Ma’am
11. Yes It Hurt
12. Talk To Me
13. You Only Said It To Hurt Me

Emily Nenni On Tour:

April 11 – Boots in the Park, Bakersfield, CA
April 23 – Tractor Tavern, Seattle, WA
April 24 – The Showdown, Portland, OR
April 25 – Trout Lake Hall, Trout Lake, WA
April 28 – The Independent, San Francisco, CA
April 30 – Zebulon, Los Angeles, CA
May 1 – Pappy + Harriet’s, Pioneertown, CA
May 2 – The Wayfarer, Costa Mesa, CA
May 4 – Valley Bar, Phoenix, AZ
May 7 – The Lonesome Rose, San Antonio, TX
May 8 – Austin, TX, Sagebrush
June 19 – Live Oak Music Festival, San Luis Obispo, CA
July 3-5 – Rotterdam Bluegrass Festival, Rotterdam, NL
July 10 – Sjock 50, Gierle, BE