“Sometimes all it takes is a glass of whiskey to bring back every memory you thought you’d left behind.”
There’s a very familiar feeling at the heart of Michi’s new single “Whiskey” – that late night moment when a relationship is over but your mind just won’t accept it’s actually over. You’re going over in your head all the conversations you’d had, all the good times and you’re wondering if the person you’re missing is thinking of you too. “Whiskey” is a very straightforward country heartbreak song which takes that very specific feeling and makes it something that’s going to be instantly recognisable to a lot of people.
Set for release on November 6th 2026, the single is inspired by a break-up Michi had over 10 years ago whilst living in Washington DC. It started off as the excitement of first dates, of falling in love, and ultimately ended in heartbreak when she found out her partner had been unfaithful. The questions around that relationship have stayed with her all these years and rather than try to explain what happened or come to any kind of closure, “Whiskey” is simply sitting with those feelings. The central question is of course one that many of us can relate to: when you’re drinking and thinking about someone you’ve lost, do they ever stop and think about you? The country approach is absolutely the right one for a song of this nature. Michi grew up in Virginia and was very much a country girl at heart, with a real love of the genre and a dream of being a country star as a teen. She actually performed under the name Shelly Ray at one point (her aunt still refers to her by that name occasionally). “Whiskey” is a return to those early roots, to that very direct form of storytelling that has always been so effective in country heartbreak songs. It’s a very refreshing thing to hear a queer love story told in that country vein. She doesn’t in any way dilute the emotional core of the genre, she just brings her own experience to it and lets the heartbreak do the talking. The recording also has a very personal feel in terms of Michi’s life. The vocals and guitars were recorded in Madrid with producer Anto Vaquero, the drums/mix/mastering were done in Virginia by Lance Koehler (her long term collaborator). Michi reportedly recorded her vocals and guitars over and over again until she got the emotion she was after and handclaps were added to give it that feel of a room full of people in a country bar. It’s a recording that brings together her life now in Spain and the music she grew up with in the US.
There’s also a rather interesting backstory as to why “Whiskey” is the one arriving now. After being made redundant in December 2025 Michi found herself reaching for the guitar and back into songwriting rather than working on her CV. She decided to go for it and make her second album, put a Kickstarter up and it attracted over 200 backers and raised well over $20k. That support was absolutely crucial in making the project happen and “Whiskey” is the second single from the forthcoming album Short Story, following the title track which features Dunkan. Michi has spent many years getting her songs out there, including a performance at the Capital Pride Festival in Washington DC and she’s still going strong in terms of introducing country music to people in Spain. “Whiskey” is a song about heartbreak, about nostalgia and about the country story telling that she loves so much. It’s a song about missing someone, about remembering what went wrong and about just allowing yourself to feel that emotion even if there’s no answer at the end. Sometimes the past comes back to you with just one little memory and she’s found a very good country song to give that a voice.
English