Emily Zeck to Release Debut Album BROKEN IN

Emily Zeck will release her debut full-length album, Broken In, on Friday, November 20. Zeck, who describes her sound as 'Coastal Cowgirl,' offers a one-line definition to match: 'Equal amounts yeehaw and aloha,' she says, 'and 100% authentic, straight from my soul.'

The album's final single, 'Johnny Walker,' arrives Tuesday, October 27. Zeck describes the record as a string of short films: 'Each song is like its own little movie,' she says. 'Johnny Walker' started around a campfire. 'This song came to life like a good bonfire story on a camping trip in the mountains,' Zeck explains. 'Three friends acting out an old western thriller, one line at a time.' 'Johnny Walker' was written by Zeck, Bonner Black, and Zack Runyon, and produced by Collin Nash.

Steeped in spaghetti western grit, the track plays like a movie in the listener's head, complete with horses, an angry mob, ominous thunder, rattlesnakes, whips, and gunfire. '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.'

Broken In takes its name from one of the album's tracks, but Zeck says it also 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.'

The album was produced entirely by Zeck's longtime friend Collin Nash, whom she calls 'an absolutely brilliant writer, musician, and producer.' Zeck wrote most of the songs with close friends Bonner Black, Jake Ohlbaum, and Zack Runyon. 'My co-writers challenge me in ways that continuously improve my own storytelling,' she says. The live room got the better of her more than once: 'I found myself forgetting my own lyrics because I was distracted by how killer they sounded,' Zeck admits.

The title track turns 'Broken In' (August 28) into a dating philosophy. 'Every woman has had to 'train' a man at some point in their dating life,' Zeck says. 'At some point, though, you've hit your limit.' 'Old Is Gold' (April 10) honors the heirlooms of loved ones who have passed, 'whether it's a trinket, an item of clothing, or a kitchen table that's hosted Thanksgiving for 50 years,' she explains. 'Willie High' (July 17) toasts the ride-or-die friend, and '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. Across it all, Zeck pulls from spaghetti western scores, classic southern gospel, The Beach Boys, and Shania Twain. 'I get bored too quickly with one genre,' she admits. 'I need them all!'

Zeck didn't so much discover country music as come back to it. '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 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 and recorded live with a full band. 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