Hailey Whitters and Little Big Town Share the Story of "Fillin' My Cup"
The story behind Hailey Whitters' new single “Fillin’ My Cup” actually starts with the story behind her album The Dream.
And it goes like this.
In 2016, Whitters and Lori McKenna wrote a kind and uplifting song of finding the good in everything and every one. It was called "Happy People." Little Big Town liked the song so much that they cut it for their 2017 album The Breaker, and released it as the first single. Which meant money in the bank for Whitters. Enough money, in fact, to make her own album independently.
"@littlebigtown gave me my first single at country radio as a songwriter back in 2017 with 'Happy People'... I saved up all those royalty checks to self-fund my record, The Dream," Whitters shared on Instagram. "They’re a big part of my story and one of the main reasons I get to say today that I feel like I’m #livingthedream. Chuggin’ champagne now til Friday because I CANNOT WAIT for y’all to hear what we did together."
So Whitters' new song -- a collaboration with Little Big Town -- has actually been years in the making. She wrote the song with Nicolle Galyon and Hillary Lindsey, and the video was directed by Harper Smith. “I’d had the title 'Fillin’ My Cup' for a while, but then Nicolle had the brilliant idea to turn the lyric into a recipe,” Whitters says. “It’s a concoction of all of those little things in life that have a way of making my glass feel half full. It’s been a hopeful reminder throughout the year and just felt like the right note to start 2021 on."
“All the praise for The Dream has me quite choked up. This record was a labor of love for so many of us involved in the making of it, especially in the early days when it was just a handful of waitressing tips and Hail Marys," she added. "I’m humbled and proud to see it resonate the way it has.
"It’s been the best reminder to stay true to who I am as an artist and storyteller.”
(You can read more about the watershed moments that put Whitters on the Nashville map here.)
