Lindsay Ell Reveals Plans for Sophomore Album, ‘heart theory’

Ell is putting her heart on the line...

Written by Lauren Laffer
Lindsay Ell Reveals Plans for Sophomore Album, ‘heart theory’
Lindsay Ell; Photo credit: Jeremy Cowart, Album package design: Glenn Sweitzer/Fresh Design

Lindsay Ell is sharing the deepest parts of her soul on her upcoming sophomore album, heart theory. Set for release on August 14, the project will follow the Canada native’s journey through the seven stages of grief.

“If theory is the science of music, heart theory is the science of a heart,” Ell shares in a press release. “I hope this road map can be a comfort if you need it, reassurance when you need to remember to believe in yourself or maybe just a glimpse into a memory that’s made you who you are.”

Each of the 12 songs appearing on heart theory are broken into categories: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, testing, and acceptance, each of which chronicle Ell’s personal experiences and allowing others to find themselves in the stories.

For heart theory, Ell enlisted the help of some of Nashville’s brightest songwriters, including Kane Brown, Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard, Corey Crowder, Brandy Clark, Laura Veltz, Nicolle Galyon, Joey Hyde and more. She completed the project with producer Dann Huff through the quarantine, each working from separate locations. “If my last record was called The Project, this could be called The Process,” she commented on working through the obstacles.

See the full track list for heart theory below. Pre-order your copy now.

heart theory track listing(with writers)
a journey through the seven stages of grief

shock
1. “Hits me” (Lindsay Ell, Tyler Hubbard, Corey Crowder)

denial
2. “how good” (Lindsay Ell, Brandy Clark)
3. “i don’t lovE you” (Adam Hambrick, Melissa Fuller, Neil Medley)

anger
4. “wAnt me back” (Lindsay Ell, Kane Brown, Matt McGinn, Lindsay Rimes)
5. “get oveR you” (Lindsay Ell, Gordie Sampson, Kelly Archer)
6. “wrong girl” (Lindsay Ell, Steph Jones, Matt McGinn, Luke Niccoli)

bargaining
7. “body language of a breakup” (Lindsay Ell, Laura Veltz, Sam Ellis)

depression
8. “good on you” (Lindsay Ell, Sam Ellis, Micah Premnath)

testing
9. “The oTHEr side” (Lindsay Ell, Jessie Jo Dillon, Matt McGinn)
10. “gO to” (Lindsay Ell, Nicolle Gaylon, Jordan Reynolds)

acceptance
11. “make you” (Lindsay Ell, Brandy Clark)
12. “ReadY to love” (Lindsay Ell, Jessie Jo Dillon, Matt McGinn, Joey Hyde)