NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Today, Waco, Texas native Kayla Ray has released her new twangy jam, “No. 9 Diesel,” available now for download and stream via Real AF Records/Average Joes Entertainment. Paired with the release of the single is an official music video directed by Julian Mendoza and exclusively premiered by Bridge Magazine.

“I’ve always admired the really slicked-up crooners of swing, big band, and jazz,” shares Ray. “I love their sultry torch songs that lean hard on innuendos and play with phrasing and time. I’ve always wanted to write something that bent that direction, and No. 9 Diesel is my attempt at just that.”

“No. 9 Diesel” arrives as a breezy single that showcases Kayla Ray’s signature self-proclaimed “amerikinda” sound. The track’s lyrics convey a sense of freedom, adventure, and resilience often associated with americana music. Ray embraces a carefree attitude, urging to take life easy and slow while enjoying the ride. 

Kayla’s long-awaited label debut album, The World’s Weight, is a collection of songs doused in days of fall-too-hard love and nights of brown-liquored therapy. Ray decamped to Oklahoma City to cut much of the project with producer Giovanni Carnuccio III at Castle Row Studios. The 11-track project is due on June 7th via Real AF Records/Average Joes Entertainment. 

“‘The World’s Weight’ is a vulnerable reflection of many of my life’s more recent chapters,” says Ray. “Challenge, triumph, love, and heartbreak are the fabrics of living and I really tried to explore this without shame or hindrance here. I’m so proud of this album and the fact that I got to create it with some of my sweetest friends. I can’t wait to put it into the world.”

The World’s Weight Tracklisting:
1. “The Place I Fell In Love With You” (Kayla Ray, Justin R “Buffalo” Rogers)
2. “Likes To Drink Alone” (Kayla Ray, Lauren January, Giovanni Carnuccio III)
3. “Good Old Days” (Kayla Ray)
4. “The Highest Point In Seven Counties” (Kayla Ray, Jason Eady)
5. “The World’s Weight” (Kayla Ray, Joshua Barnard)
6. “The Least You Could Do” (Kayla Ray)
7. “No. 9 Diesel” (Kayla Ray)
8. “Until My Dying Breath” (Kayla Ray)
9. “Carolina Pines” (Kayla Ray)
10. “My Ever-Loving Mind” (Kayla Ray, Eric Middleton)
11. “Clear As Mud” (Kayla Ray)

Kayla Ray Live Dates:
4/11 – Yorkville, Ill. @ The Law Office Pub & Music Hall
5/15 – Meridien, Kan. @ The 1890 Ice House
5/16 – Denver, Colo. @ The Black Buzzard
5/17 – Limon, Colo. @ South Side Food & Drink
5/18 – Pueblo West, Colo. @ Copper River
6/10 – Hampstead, N.C. @ Upstairs Hampstead
6/11 – Dunn, N.C. @ Bird’s Nest Listening Room
8/23 – Red Lodge, Mont. @ Jimmy’s Roadhouse

For more information on Kayla Ray, visit her website and follow her social media channels linked below. 

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