Meels has released her new single “Lonely USA” today via Nashville-based Lost Highway Records. The singer-songwriter accompanies herself on banjo, while Fats Kaplin, whose credits include John Prine and Jack White, threads fiddle through the track as the arrangement gathers speed and intensity. The song follows a young woman imagining a life beyond the fictional town of Lonely, USA. Its train-whistle imagery and the line “Dreaming of a city where they all know my name” frame that urge to leave.

Meels said she wrote “Lonely USA” during her first stretch of back-to-back tours. The story centers on a character eager to leave a place associated with heartbreak, but the songwriter said the setting also became a metaphor for moving into unfamiliar territory. She described the song as being about “that restless feeling of wanting to see what’s out there,” along with trusting instinct and believing that something better may be waiting beyond the horizon.

“Lonely USA” was produced by Hush Kids member Peter Groenwald and Justin Francis, whose credits include Jelly Roll and Leon Bridges. Groenwald previously worked with Meels on Tales from a Bird’s Bedroom. The new track was recorded at Nashville’s Sound Emporium, with Jamie Dick, Kenosha Kid’s Robby Handley, Todd Lombardo, and Ilya Portnov also joining the sessions.

Raised in Mill Valley, California, as Amelia Einhorn, Meels grew up listening to John Denver, Iris DeMent, The Beatles, and Peter, Paul and Mary. In 2025, she shared stages with Old Crow Medicine Show, Molly Tuttle, and Kaitlin Butts, and she has since opened select dates for Margo Price and Carter Faith. Meels also joined Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on its All The Good Times: The Farewell Tour. Earlier this year, she released the seven-track EP Across The Raccoon Strait. In fall 2026, she is scheduled to appear at Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion, AMERICANAFEST, and Bourbon & Beyond before rejoining Old Crow Medicine Show on the road.

Listen to Meels’ “Lonely USA” here.