Hailing from the small mining town of Beauty in Eastern Kentucky, Presley’s comparisons have likened her to the strong females of country music who have blazed the trail before her: Bobbie Gentry, Dolly Parton, Patty Loveless, and Angaleena’s musical hero, Loretta Lynn. Writing in Nashville since 2002, Presley has established herself as a no-nonsense songwriter, unafraid to tackle the toughest of subject matters.
It was songs like “Knocked Up” and “Look It Up” (a Top 20 single for Ashton Shepherd) that began drawing the attention of writers and artists on Music Row. Not long after, Ashley Monroe and Miranda Lambert called up Angaleena and asked if she wanted to start a band. From that 2 a.m. phone conversation, the Pistol Annies were born.
Their first single, “Hell on Heels,” was written by Presley, Lambert, and Monroe and has been certified gold by the RIAA. Their album, also titled Hell on Heels, debuted at #1 on country sales charts and was picked by many critics around the country, including The New York Times, as the best album in any genre of 2011.
Never one to slow down, Presley has continued her role as a prolific writer since the inception of Pistol Annies, working with many of Nashville’s esteemed writers including Matraca Berg, Luke Laird, Hillary Lindsey, Erin Enderlin, and Lori McKenna. Selected by the Nashville Scene as one of the Top 10 songwriters of 2011, Angaleena Presley is truly poised to follow in the footsteps of her idol, Loretta Lynn.
2014 saw the release of Angaleena’s solo artist debut, American Middle Class.