Emily Zeck Releases 'Johnny Walker' Single Before Debut Album BROKEN IN

Emily Zeck, the Florida-based singer-songwriter, saddles up for Halloween with 'Johnny Walker,' out now. The final single from her full-length debut album Broken In, out Friday, November 20, is a spaghetti western thriller and the most cinematic track on the record, complete with horses, an angry mob, ominous thunder, rattlesnakes, cracking whips and gunfire.

'This song came to life like a good bonfire story on a camping trip in the mountains,' Zeck shares. 'Three friends acting out an old western thriller, one line at a time.' She wrote it with Bonner Black and Zack Runyon, two of the close friends she says are game for any idea she brings them, 'no matter how absurd.'

'My absolute favorite part about songwriting is telling a story so vibrant, you can nearly create an entire movie in your head as you listen to the song,' she says. 'I wanted the listener to feel every intense moment. I figured my chances of directing a spaghetti western film are slim, so this is truly my shot at creating a storyline that hopefully gets people as excited as I was while we were writing it.'

'Johnny Walker' completes the run of singles ahead of Broken In, following the title track 'Broken In' (August 28), ride-or-die anthem 'Willie High' (July 17) and 'Old Is Gold' (April 10), which Saving Country Music said 'gives you goosebumps in how it reminds you of vintage Dolly Parton.' Already hailed by Holler as 'everybody's favourite 'surfer with a honky tonk heart,'' Zeck calls her sound 'Coastal Cowgirl.' 'Equal amounts yeehaw and aloha,' she says, 'and 100% authentic, straight from my soul.'

Produced entirely by Collin Nash, Broken In pulls from spaghetti western scores, classic southern gospel, The Beach Boys and Shania Twain. 'Each song is like its own little movie,' Zeck says, 'inspired by completely different things than the next.' With two EPs behind her, she set out to make a full album from the very first writing session, carrying one lesson with her: 'More is more.'

The title doubles as a status report on where she is as an artist. 'I feel like my awkward 'fitting-in' phase has finally ended and I'm really coming into my own,' she explains. 'That's something that only happens with time and repetition, just like breaking in a pair of boots.'

Elsewhere on the record, 'Ruby,' written for her daughter, is the album's most tender moment. 'I wrote it when I was pregnant, recorded it right before she came into this world, and now I get to sing it to her before bed,' she shares.

'At the heart of it all, I'm a storyteller with a love for making connections through melodies and lyrics,' she concludes.

Broken In Tracklisting

'Broken In'

'Willie High'

'Ruby'

'Johnny Walker'

'Old Is Gold'

'One Beer Belly'

'Older Whiskey'

'Forever Will It Be'

About Emily Zeck

Emily Zeck is a singer-songwriter and lifelong surfer whose sound, which she calls 'Coastal Cowgirl,' blends classic country storytelling with the laid-back spirit of Florida's beach culture. Raised in Vero Beach, Florida, Zeck fell for country music at 12 and was singing Gretchen Wilson covers in local dive bars before she could drive. Her neighbor Jake Owen encouraged her early on and gave her a pep talk before her first gig at 13. After a stint in electronic pop, she returned to her country roots with the EP Coastal Cowgirl Blues (2024), which first brought her surf and country influences together on record. She followed it with the EP Loud Mouth Women (2025), whose standout single 'It Ain't Me' reached listeners across generations and drew comparisons to 'Harper Valley P.T.A.' Her full-length debut, Broken In (November 20, 2026), was produced by Collin Nash. It draws on spaghetti western scores, southern gospel, The Beach Boys and Shania Twain, and marks her arrival as a storyteller fully in her own voice. Zeck lives in Satellite Beach, Florida, where she surfs, raises her daughter and runs a beach-inspired apparel line.

Photo Credit: Jared Sanders

Recent Articles

Emily Zeck to Release Debut Album BROKEN IN

10/23/2026

Greylan James Makes GRAND OLE OPRY Debut

10/26/2026

Reba McEntire's Extended Interview Covers THE VOICE and Fans

10/24/2026