Megan Moroney Finds a New Perspective on Sophomore Album, ‘Am I Okay?’

Upon first inspection of Megan Moroney’s sophomore album, Am I Okay?, one would think the rising country star is keeping up old somber habits. The blue-tinted album cover, which shows Moroney checking her pulse, and the title itself both evoke sad or even morose connotations. 

But any expectation of a downer of a record is immediately blown out of the water once one hears the title track: I’ve been playing less Black Keys, baby / And my friends swear I’ve gone crazy / I don’t know how to act / I don’t know what to say, she sings.

When you’re in a bad situation for a little too long, happiness can feel strange. That’s the onus behind how “Am I Okay?” throws the listener off-balance with an unexpectedly optimistic message. This isn’t the “Emo Cowgirl” we’ve come to know. This is Moroney in a whole new light. 

“That was where I was at in life,” Moroney tells American Songwriter. “I met someone. I wrote it within two weeks of knowing this person. I think we nailed that giddy feeling when you meet someone you’re excited about.”

Am I Okay? is the follow-up to Moroney’s 2023 debut album, Lucky. While her sophomore record isn’t completely set apart from her debut, it has key differences. The sentiments of the album—heartbreak, love, and friendship—are largely the same, albeit seen from a different perspective. There are more loved-up moments this go-around, the title track being a prime example. While both of Moroney’s projects are emotional rollercoasters, Am I Okay? reveals a few more high points than heart-wrenching tear-jerkers. 

Moroney started working on what would become Am I Okay?, prior to her debut album’s release. Shortly after cementing the debut’s track listing, she penned “Mama I Lied,” a poignant song that sees Moroney finally being honest with herself (and her mom) about a bad boyfriend. Mama I lied / He ain’t a good guy / He makes me cry sometimes out of the blue / I’m not sure why.

Though the track came too late to be added to Lucky, “Mama I Lied” finds a comfortable home on Am I Okay? Because some of this album was written around the same time she was finishing up Lucky, it feels like an extension of what we already know about Moroney. It’s like she’s picking up a conversation she already started. 

Writing consistently is important for Moroney. Her songwriting is quickly becoming one of the most laudable aspects of her work. She credits her success in that department to practice. “I think it’s good to write all the time because it’s a muscle that needs to be activated often in order to keep getting better,” she says. 

Moroney has certainly gotten better. This new set of songs feels singular and always puts her cleverness as a songwriter on full display. One of the standout tracks on Am I Okay? is “Man on the Moon.” In it, Moroney dreams about sending her ex to the farthest reaches of space. Another town or state won’t cut it / He’ll find a way to come around again, she sings. Most of Moroney’s biggest songs center around just such a genius, playful hook. But “Man on the Moon” flexes that muscle more perfectly than most:

Someone take this cowboy far away
Somewhere far let him fly
Out of this world and off my mind
C’mon there’s gotta be a rocket somewhere taking off soon
I think it’s time we put another man on the moon

Elsewhere, Moroney pushes herself as a songwriter by looking at her past. While most of Lucky was written with the present in mind, new songs like “Noah” revisit old relationships. All the girls they want you / But never quite like me / Noah, do you think about me? 

“Because these are things that I have never written about, it was therapeutic,” Moroney says of looking to her past. “I wrote this whole record while I was on the road. So I had to write about the past. If I wrote about my everyday life, it would be songs about going to catering, playing, and going to sleep. That’s what I’m doing every single day.” 

Moroney, who has a stacked schedule of live shows throughout 2024, considered how the new tracks would sound in concert while in the studio. “I wanted to make sure I had tracks that would be good live songs,” Moroney explains. “I was going into the writer’s room thinking, ‘I have enough sad songs; I don’t need any more.’ I wanted songs that I knew would sound insane live.” 

Moroney says Am I Okay?, out July 12, has “a little something for everybody.” And indeed, from unexpected uppers to arena-shaking anthems to the inevitable sad ballad, this soaring second effort easily avoids the dreaded sophomore slump.

Photo by CeCe Dawson / Courtesy Sweet Talk PR