Earlier this week on Instagram I was sharing my favorite albums of 2021 so far in my stories. I realized that somehow I hadn’t actually written about anything off of Amythyst Kiah’s album Wary + Strange. It’s a roots and Americana album in which Amythyst Kiah opens up about being a black, queer woman from Tennessee who has faced some traumatic experiences in her life. The song I’ve chosen to highlight is “Wild Turkey”, which is about her mother committing suicide by drowning herself in a river. It’s an excellent album all around, and I highly recommend taking a listen.

Also in case you’re wondering the other albums that made my favorite albums of 2021 so far list are Amythyst Kiah’s fellow Our Native Daughters band member, Allison Russell’s Outside Child, Japanese Breakfast’s Jubilee, Hiss Golden Messenger’s Quietly Blowing It, and girl in red’s if i could make it go quiet.