Maddie & Tae Celebrate Traditional Country With Debut Album

It's easy to lose sight of who you are and what you stand for when you earn great success — especially at a very young age. But country newcomers Maddie & Tae still stay true to their genre and what they believe, despite their debut single rocketing to the top of the charts: that country music is great.

“People forget how great country music is, and we haven’t,” the duo’s Maddie Marlow dishes to CMT.

Marlow and bandmate Tae Dye kept this in mind as they recorded their debut album, Start Here, which is slated to drop next week. It's refreshing to hear that one of the fastest-rising young acts in country music are so keen on sticking to the basics and growing from their roots.

“It’s nice knowing we’re putting the banjo, the fiddle, the steel and the mandolin back out front,” Marlow says of their freshman record.

To help stay true to the country vision the girls had in mind, they enlisted the help of mega-producer Dann Huff, who is the man behind the scenes of projects by Faith Hill, Keith Urban and Hunter Hayes. He understood the direction the girls were looking to go, and also knew how to get them there.

“[Country music] is what we love,” Marlow continues. “Dann Huff understood that and helped us put those things front and center. We wouldn’t have had it any other way, but we’re so glad he really got it.”

The duo are set to hit the road this fall on their very first headlining tour. Start Here will be available Aug. 28.

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