Project will include collaborations with country stars
Electronic dance group Cheat Codes is prepping a country record for release this summer. The Los Angeles-based DJ trio shared the news with Billboard, stating they were inspired following 2021 country collaborations with Little Big Town, Lee Brice and Lindsay Ell.
“We had so much fun making [those songs], we just started working on a bunch of other ideas, and one turned into 13,” Trevor Dahl shares. “It’s why we got into electronic music, because we’re able to explore other genres and other artists and not be stuck in one lane.”
The untitled album is set to include new collaborations with Lady A, Jimmie Allen, Maddie & Tae and more of country’s biggest names. It’s due sometime this summer with further details to be announced.
Dahl and his bandmates Kevi and Matthew Russell drew inspiration for the project from Dolly Parton, Nashville, and California’s Stagecoach Festival.
“I’ve always loved that country-pop stuff, and being able to dive into it with our music is really cool and something that I didn’t necessarily think we would be able to do when we started,” Dahl shares as they tease a song concept Parton may appear on.
The trio says the family-friendly atmosphere of Stagecoach also helped direct them towards country.
“I guess it’s similar to EDM in a way, where country music is the music but it’s also the lifestyle. That’s what sells you on it,” Russell says after attending Stagecoach in April.
The group spent some time in Nashville recording the project where it embraced the city’s southern lifestyle.
“Everyone’s friendly, and everyone’s priorities are in a different place sometimes than if you’re in New York or in Los Angeles, where you’re worried about likes and being big on TikTok. So I think when you experience [being there], you connect with the lyrics a little bit more and understand the storytelling,” says Russell.
We’ll have more details as they become available.
