Lori McKenna: The Songwriters

Lori McKenna is one of country music's most versatile songwriters, masterfully conveying that much-coveted quality all country singers search for in a tune: authenticity. She's able to do it across spectrums of sound, too, penning twangy pop hits as frequently as salt-of-the-earth Americana. Maybe the secret is walking the walk—the scrappy folk of her “Young and Angry Again” indicates she hasn't lived life on the sidelines.