Country star Dustin Lynch was at an impasse. The only way forward was to have ‘Killed the Cowboy’

LOS ANGELES — Ahead of his sixth studio album, “Killed the Cowboy,” Dustin Lynch sensed some inner conflict. There’s the sole collaboration, with 2023 breakout star Jelly Roll, “Chevrolet,” a reimagination of Dobie Gray’s 1973 hit “Drift Away”. The pair harmonize in the chorus: “She said, ‘Give me a six-pack, some Brooks & Dunn / If you want a country girl, you just found one, let’s slip away’ / Yeah, ‘In your Chevrolet.’” There are songs co-penned by Lynch created solely to bottle the energy of a weekend night on Broadway in Nashville and there are songs to fall in love with a Texas girl. “This is the most open and honest I’ve been with an album because it really is me discovering what’s next for me, my life, and honestly, a little bit of therapy,” Lynch says. Am I too guarded?” Those questions aren’t exactly answered on “Killed the Cowboy,” and frankly, if they were, Lynch wouldn’t be honest to his audience.