Country Roads with Ben Earle

Mae Estes is country through and through, but as she explains in this episode, when she arrived in Nashville she felt too country for country! Fast forward 10 years and all her hard work is paying off, as people are falling in love with her throwback sound, her powerful voice, and her smart storytelling. Here, she tells Ben about her young life in Arkansas, and how some of the tough things she went through ended up being the perfect material for writing country songs. She explains how she learned early on the importance of hard work and how that could be her ticket out of her hometown, but the more she achieves in music, Mae admits that she grapples with what success means to her. Mae also shares one of the best full circle moments when it comes to the Grand Ole Opry, and recounts a real story that will restore your faith in love again.

Listen to the tracks Mae mentions on our specially curated Country Roads Podcast Playlist on Spotify, and follow us on Instagram @countryroadspod for more content and exclusive giveaways.
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The RD party has come to Country Roads! Russell Dickerson joins Ben fresh off the back of his barnstorming performances at C2C 2026, to talk about the road he’s travelled on to become the multi-platinum artist he is today. Russell talks about being a proud Tennessean raised on Country music, and how his musical influences changed and expanded - everything from Lil Wayne to Red Hot Chilli Peppers - when he moved to Nashville at the age of 10. He also lets us in on the kind of music he was making with his teenage band - Buried Under Broken Glass - and why they were prevented from performing publicly! Russell speaks about how he ended up attending Belmont University, where he met the likes of Florida Georgia Line and jammed in dorm rooms with singer songwriters that would go on to become lifelong friends and collaborators. He also shares the best story ever for any musician struggling to get a record deal, and why you should trust your gut when you feel you’ve got a hit on your hands.

Listen to all the tracks mentioned in this episode by saving the Country Roads Podcast Playlist on Spotify, and follow us on Youtube and Instagram - @countryroadspod - for more content and exclusive giveaways!

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Southern belle, Willow Avalon, joins Ben this week to talk about her incredible journey from a teenage runaway living dangerously in Atlanta, to honouring southern storytelling in her music and preparing for her biggest headline show to date - all thanks to a billboard in L.A. she blagged, a brownstone apartment she should never have been able to rent in New York, and a pet possum named Bowie that became her best friend!

Willow is perhaps the best example of the idea that underpins this entire podcast; that you’re everywhere you’ve ever been. Each one of the many places Willow has lived - including the tiny Georgia town she grew up in - has made an impact on her and her music, and she talks about them all here.

Check out every song mentioned in this - and every - episode of Country Roads, by listening to our specially curated playlist. Search Country Roads Podcast Playlist on Spotify, and be sure to save it so it’s right there whenever you need it!

You can also follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel @countryroadspod
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Alana Springsteen joins Ben to talk about everything from her childhood in Virginia Beach to performing in front of 40,000 people when she was just nine years old, to signing a publishing deal at just 14 and how her whole family up-sticks and moved to Nashville so she could pursue her dream. Alana’s childhood was anything but conventional, but still, she felt it was her purpose to connect with others through music, and that’s exactly what her debut album Twenty Something has done.

She speaks about all she’s learned about vulnerability and strength through the process of making music, and how the only version of herself that she’s chasing now is the most authentic one - hence why her forthcoming album goes even deeper than the last.

Alana also talks about how every guitar player has their own sonic fingerprint, why she lives for live shows, and what exactly goes into her signature drink - The Bubba!

Check out all the tracks mentioned in this episode on our Country Roads Podcast Playlist on Spotify. You can also watch this conversation on our YouTube channel @countryroadspod.

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Zach Top is here to kick off the second season of Country Roads, and true to our style, we go back to all the places that have made Zach the artist he is today, including the small hometown he described as, "You could smell it before you could see it!"

He tells us all about his hobby farm homeschooled upbringing, a sweet story about how his family band got their first gig, and how his first pub crawl went down in England. Zach and Ben get nerdy about guitars for a minute, and Zack explains how a viral hit led him to producer Carson Chamberlain which led him to Nashville, where he bided his time while working construction alongside writing songs.

He also opens up about some of his mistakes along the way, and he's honest about falling for some of the trappings of fame - and how he's put all that learning right back into his Grammy award winning album, Ain't In It For My Health.

If you're pleased to have us back, please show us some love by leaving a comment or review - and share us with all the country fans in your life. You can also follow us on Instagram for more content and exclusive giveaways, and subscribe to our Youtube channel - @countryroadspod.
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