After ‘Austin,’ Country’s Dasha Is Back With A ‘Perfect Storm’ Of A Summer Song

Entertainment

Fresh off the success of her country-pop smash, “Austin,” Dasha is looking to the future of her music career with optimism. Still, the singer-songwriter can’t resist a hit of nostalgia, particularly when it comes to love.

On Friday, Dasha unveiled a music video for her new song, “Didn’t I.” In it, she reconnects with a former boyfriend at a drive-in theater as a pair of her exasperated pals look on. Just how long the newly rekindled flame will last is anyone’s guess, but for now, they’re content to revel in one another’s company and dance.

In an interview with HuffPost, Dasha described “Didn’t I” as a musical follow-up to “Austin,” which was an ode to a lover who couldn’t commit.

“I’m the princess of the backsliding community. I’m just so nostalgic,” she explained. “There’s something about my past that really intrigues me, including men in my past. It’s kind of me admitting, ‘Oops! Here I am again. My bad.’ Nothing’s wrong with it, it’s just … not the best choice for moving-on purposes.”

Watch the music video for “Didn’t I” below.

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The songwriting process, Dasha added, was a “perfect storm” of sorts, too. She and fellow musicians Ben Johnson and Emily Weisband were holed up in a recording studio just outside of Nashville when they learned a tornado warning had been issued.

“So we had 45 minutes to write and record a song,” she said.

“Didn’t I” is Dasha’s first new release after signing with Warner Records in March. The track will be featured on an expanded edition of her second album, “What Happens Now?” due out later this year.

The California native has spent her summer riding high on the breakout success of “Austin,” which was praised by The New York Times as “one of the signature country songs of this year.” Earlier this month, the song hit No. 19 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, which measures the 100 most popular songs in the U.S.

Dasha performed her breakout hit, "Austin," at the 2024 CMT Music Awards in April. — Dasha performed her breakout hit, “Austin,” at the 2024 CMT Music Awards in April.

Thanks to an easy-to-replicate line dance, “Austin” began taking off on TikTok in January. It gave Dasha a mainstream boost, too, and she went on to perform the song on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and at the CMT Music Awards. Next month, she’ll kick off her first headlining tour, “Dashville, U.S.A.,” with a trio of European performances before making her way through the U.S. this fall.

Speaking to HuffPost in March, Dasha said she was grateful to see “Austin” catching on in a major way, given the overall scarcity of female artists on the country charts.

“Country is such a male-dominated space, but I honestly see that as a lane wide open and being a really exciting opportunity rather than a challenge.”