Settling Down

"Settling Down"
Single by Miranda Lambert
from the album Wildcard
ReleasedSeptember 21, 2020 (2020-09-21)
GenreCountry
Length3:17
LabelRCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Jay Joyce
Miranda Lambert singles chronology
"Bluebird"
(2019)
"Settling Down"
(2020)
"Drunk (And I Don't Wanna Go Home)"
(2021)

"Settling Down" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Miranda Lambert. It was released on September 21, 2020, as the third single from Lambert's seventh studio album Wildcard.[1]

Lambert performed the song live at the 54th Annual Country Music Association Awards.[2]

Composition[edit]

Lambert wrote the song with Luke Dick and Natalie Hemby, the same team that wrote her previous single, "Bluebird", and it was produced by Jay Joyce.[3] Lambert developed the song's hook while having an earlier conversation with her bus driver about her relationship with Brendan McLoughlin ("am I settling up or settling down?") and brought that to the writing session, and together they wrote a song "full of paradoxes" that highlighted the whirlwind life of an artist touring the country while also desiring the homestead lifestyle following Lambert's fresh marriage to McLoughlin.[3] Lambert also noted that McLoughlin was one of the song's most ardent supporters and lobbied for its release as a single: "And you know, he was out there with us on the road and he was hearing, when I was hanging with radio, that people were responding to it."[3]

Music video[edit]

The music video for "Settling Down" was directed by Trey Fanjoy and premiered on October 21, 2020.[4] It was shot on location at Lambert's farm outside Nashville, Tennessee and features her husband, Brendan McLoughlin, marking the first time Lambert has had a love interest in one of her music videos: "I'm like, 'You're cute, you're here, and you're free.' It was fun; he did such a great job... and our little dog is in it, and our ponies. It's at my magical-happy place an hour away from Nashville."[5]

Chart performance[edit]

"Settling Down" debuted at number 45 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart dated October 3, 2020,[6] and at number 49 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart dated October 17, 2020.[7]

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Certifications for "Settling Down"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[15] Platinum 80,000
United States (RIAA)[16] Platinum 1,000,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Miranda Lambert - Settling Down - Daily Play MPE®Daily Play MPE®". daily.plaympe.com. Archived from the original on 2020-10-23.
  2. ^ "The CMA Awards Promise to Bring Top Country Stars Together 'Safely, All in One Room'". Billboard.
  3. ^ a b c Tom Roland (October 20, 2020). "Makin' Tracks: Miranda Lambert Crafts a Through-Line From 'Bluebird' To 'Settling Down'". Billboard. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  4. ^ Claire Shaffer (October 21, 2020). "Miranda Lambert Shows Off Her Husband in 'Settling Down' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  5. ^ Tomás Mier (October 21, 2020). "Miranda Lambert and Husband Brendan McLoughlin Are 'Settling Down' in 'Magical' Music Video". People.com. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  6. ^ "Country Airplay". Billboard. October 3, 2020.
  7. ^ "Hot Country Songs". Billboard. October 17, 2020.
  8. ^ "Miranda Lambert Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  9. ^ "Miranda Lambert Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  10. ^ "Miranda Lambert Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  11. ^ "Miranda Lambert Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
  12. ^ "Miranda Lambert Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  13. ^ "Country Airplay – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  14. ^ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  15. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Miranda Lambert – Settling Down". Music Canada. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  16. ^ "American single certifications – Miranda Lambert – Settling Down". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 1, 2022.