Country Women Live: When Collaboration Becomes the Headliner
Gig Review: Country Women – Sophie Rose, Nicole Allen, Emilia Quinn & Rebecca Richards
Country Women launched as something more than your typical writers’ round — this felt intentional from the start. A space built on trust, community, and the simple belief that women in music don’t need to compete to be heard. What hit me almost straight away was that this wasn’t just a lineup thrown together for the night — these artists are genuinely good friends, and you could feel that chemistry in everything they did. The moment I saw sofas become part of the stage setup, I knew this was going to be about comfort, conversation, and real connection — both between the artists and with everyone in the room.
Hosted and curated by Sophie Rose, alongside Nicole Allen and Emilia Quinn, the evening found this lovely balance between structure and looseness — it felt deliberate, not just thrown together. There was room for storytelling, laughter, vulnerability, and — just as importantly — those moments of silence when songs needed space to properly land. What I loved was how Country Women actively encouraged the artists to take up space, a theme that quietly ran through the entire night.
Songs that shaped them
The night opened with all three artists sharing songs that meant something to them, rather than jumping straight into their own material — such a smart, disarming way to begin. It immediately built trust in the room.
Sophie Rose’s standout moment came with Angel from Montgomery, delivered with restraint and respect for the weight the song carries. Her vocal is one of those vocals where power isn’t required to create presence — it holds the room without forcing it. Nothing was over-sung or dressed up; the performance was allowed to sit exactly where it needed to, and the room followed. It was a reminder of how effective subtlety can be when the delivery is honest.
When Nicole Allen starts to sing, it’s the kind of vocal that instantly makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. There’s real power there, but more than that, there’s presence — the sort that fills a room without needing to push. It’s one of those moments that makes you stop and properly listen, and it genuinely makes me proud that she’s a British artist delivering that level of vocal and emotional impact. Her stripped-back take on Who Knew was one of the strongest moments of the opening section.
When Emilia Quinn steps into a song, there’s a clarity and conviction that cuts straight through. Her standout moment came with Mama’s Broken Heart, delivered with bite, humour, and absolute belief in the story she was telling. It was confident without being forced, sharp without being hollow — and a reminder that country music, when delivered, invites us all in before asking us to listen more deeply later. That opening section did something really important: it invited us all in before asking us to listen more deeply later.
Spotlight set: Rebecca Richards
The centrepiece of the night was a dedicated spotlight set from Rebecca Richards, and the shift in tone felt completely natural. With the room already settled, she had the space to tell her story properly — and she absolutely used it, with honesty, humour, and this disarming self-awareness that drew you right in.
Rebecca spoke openly about starting her music career later in life, returning to performance after decades away, and learning to trust the process without pretending the self-doubt just disappears. Rather than framing it as some big comeback narrative, it was simply context — lived experience behind the songs.
The Woman That I Am landed as a quiet affirmation, reflective and deeply personal. That openness carried into Amber, introduced with a single question — “Who or what is Amber?” — before unfolding into one of the rawest moments of the night. The room went properly still.
A looser moment followed with Tulsa Time, delivered with warmth, nerves, and audience participation. It wasn’t about polish; it was about connection, and it worked. Rebecca also reflected on her journey through Talent Is Timeless, which led to Nashville, co-writing and recording at Blue Ocean Way Studios. Love Affair With Nashville closed her set on a hopeful, grounded note.
Before stepping away, she presented dragon badges to the other artists — a small gesture that neatly summed up the ethos of Country Women: resilience, strength, and solidarity over competition.
The power round
After the break, the night moved fully into its power round, with Sophie Rose, Nicole Allen, and Emilia Quinn sharing original material alongside the stories that shaped it. By this point, the room wasn’t just listening — we were all properly invested.
Sophie Rose opened with Heartbreak Review, immediately grounding the round in emotional clarity. The song framed heartbreak not as collapse, but as something survivable, even useful. That thread continued through Healing in the Burn, leaning into resilience without forcing optimism, before deepening further with Where Did Your Head Go?. Released last year, the song explores the quiet heartbreak of emotional distance — that moment when someone close is no longer really there. Since supporting Morgan Wade, the track has found a wider audience, and live it trusted restraint over scale, letting the lyric do the heavy lifting.
Nicole Allen followed with Find Me, a song already carrying momentum but delivered here with real control rather than celebration. Context matters with Nicole’s songs: Find Me sits within an EP that reached number one on the UK Country iTunes chart, and that confidence shows live — not as swagger, but as genuine trust in the material. The mood shifted with Light Should Stay, leaning into stillness and the idea of quiet company, before closing her section with Like Nobody Else, a thoughtful reflection on self-compassion and boundaries.
Emilia Quinn brought a different energy to the round, rooted in conviction and lived experience. All three of her selections came from her second album, and that maturity was clear throughout. Call Me By Her Name was one of the night’s most affecting moments — imagined heartbreak delivered with restraint, allowing the room to go completely still. That emotional weight carried into Mama, a late-night phone call in song form capturing the realities of life on the road and the reassurance of home. It was a genuine treat to hear the French verse woven into the performance — something I’ve previously only heard live on the continent — adding an extra layer of intimacy and personal detail. It wasn’t just the room that felt the shift either — catching Nicole Allen’s genuinely shocked reaction when Emilia moved seamlessly into French said everything. One of those “wow” moments that reminded you these artists were still discovering each other’s songs in real time. Closing with Take It All, Emilia leaned fully into vulnerability, drawing a clear line between giving too much of yourself and learning where the limits need to be.
A big part of what made the night work was the space given to conversation between songs. The chat never felt like filler — it just felt human. There were moments of humour, self-reflection, and genuine checking-in, both with each other and with the room. It softened the edges, broke down whatever barrier might have existed between stage and audience, and reinforced that this wasn’t about performance alone, but about real connection.
The encores
Just when it felt like the night had reached its natural conclusion, the room refused to let it end. Loud, sustained calls of “we want more” brought the artists back for two encores, both of which became defining moments of the evening.
The first showcased stunning harmonies and genuine musical collaboration, voices weaving together instinctively rather than feeling overly arranged. That energy peaked with What's Up — a full-room singalong that felt so natural I honestly can't imagine this not becoming Country Women's signature song.
The second encore happened almost by accident. The crowd demanded it, but the artists themselves clearly weren’t prepared for it — and that only made it better. Jolene followed, driven by adrenaline rather than planning, with the audience fully carrying the moment. It was spontaneous, joyful, and entirely earned.
Closing thoughts
What Country Women ultimately delivered was a snapshot of four artists who feel firmly embedded in — and actively shaping — the UK country scene right now.
Sophie Rose continues to prove that power and presence don’t have to be loud to be effective. She’s found her sound, she’s found her crowd, and it shows. With a headline tour coming up this March and a second album on the way, it feels like she’s entering a new chapter — and I’m genuinely excited to see what the future brings.
Nicole Allen arrives at this moment fresh from a chart-topping number one EP, but it’s how it got there that really matters. It climbed to the top within 24 hours rather than landing there instantly, showing people actively discovering, checking out, and buying into what she’s doing. With more music expected this year — once again from a British artist operating at this level — it feels like she’s only just getting started.
Then there’s Emilia Quinn — a powerhouse in every sense, and no stranger to anyone who’s been following my coverage. With a stack of upcoming dates, including shows on the continent, she’s clearly in full promotion mode for that powerful second album. And knowing Emilia, there’s almost certainly something already in the pipeline to keep things moving.
Rebecca Richards rounded out the night by reminding everyone that it’s never too late to start — or restart. Her honesty, songwriting depth, and the way she was embraced on the night spoke volumes. She doesn’t feel like an outlier; she feels like part of the fabric of this scene.
What also stood out was the format itself. There’s a real sense that Country Women is planning to take this on the road in its current form — and honestly, it absolutely should. Opening together, then stepping back to give an artist their own dedicated spotlight, was such an inspired decision. It allowed the room to settle, built trust early on, and gave artists the space to tell their stories properly.
As a concept, Country Women feels like an incredibly effective way of showcasing artists around the country — not just giving them a slot, but giving them their own segment and room to breathe. It’s thoughtful, artist-first, and if this launch night is anything to go by, it has the potential to become one of the most meaningful platforms in the UK scene right now.
