With her fearless storytelling and boundary-pushing sound, the Nashville-based artist is shaping the voice of a new generation
Photo Credit: Kat Velasco
By THE SOURCE | AUG 2025
Country-pop is having a moment, and Kat Velasco is making sure her voice is at the center of it. Based in Nashville, the singer-songwriter has built a career on authenticity, mixing the grit of her Southern roots with big-stage ambition.
Velasco’s approach to music is both fearless and intentional. She blends the storytelling traditions of country with the energy and edge of modern pop, creating a sound that is as radio-ready as it is raw. Her lyrics carry the weight of lived experience, whether she is singing about personal heartbreak, hometown roots, or the resilience that comes from overcoming setbacks.
“I do not want to just fit into a lane,” Velasco says. “I want to help create the road for artists coming after me.”
Originally from Columbia, South Carolina, Velasco has never forgotten the foundation her hometown gave her. She has opened for BRELAND and Love & Theft, landed a track on the Billboard Canada Top 10, and earned praise for songs that balance vulnerability with strength. “Leave Me Wild,” one of her fan favorites, reflects that spirit with lines like, “I can shut down the bar, fall in love too hard and still admit that they all warned me. Just a southern girl, with a twist of hell raisin’ like you’ve never seen. So leave me wild, ’cause there ain’t no changing me.” It is a bold statement that captures her fearless energy and refusal to be anything but herself.
Photo Credit: Kat Velasco
Her influences sketch a clear lineage: Stevie Nicks for power and rasp, Kacey Musgraves for diaristic songwriting, and Miley Cyrus for the balance of anthems and vulnerability. You can hear each of them in flashes, but the mix lands in a lane that feels like Velasco’s own.
Most recently, Velasco dropped “Breaking My Own Heart,” a raw but soft track about overthinking love and letting past heartbreaks mess with something good. Co-written with Claire Douglas, Hannah Ellis, and Jason Massey, it blends her powerhouse vocals with bittersweet guitars and a steady groove.
From festival stages to acoustic sessions, Velasco’s presence resonates. She represents the rise of an artist who understands the cultural moment and is unafraid to lead it. With new music in the works, she shows no signs of slowing down.