Dierks Bentley Finds Growth, Grit & Grace I New Album "Broken Branches"

Country music has long celebrated the drifters, the dreamers, and the underdogs. On Broken Branches, Dierks Bentley cements his legacy as one of the genre’s most reflective storytellers, delivering what might be the most sonically rich and emotionally revealing album of his career.

Photo Credit: Robby Klein

With over two decades of chart-toppers and accolades behind him, Bentley could easily rest on his laurels. Instead, he’s evolving. Again. Broken Branches feels less like a collection of songs and more like a weathered journal, its pages filled with bruised hope, resilience, and a reverence for the path less taken. It’s the work of an artist who, as Bentley puts it, “just loves making country records.”

Leaning into raw honesty and vivid songwriting, Bentley surrounds himself with a compelling cross-generational cast of collaborators. From legends like John Anderson to rising stars Riley Green and Stephen Wilson Jr., the lineup mirrors the album’s message: bridging the past, present, and future of country music with grit and heart.

“Everyone that’s come to this town,” Bentley shares with All Country News and other outlets, “is doing something probably a little bit different than what their families did before. They’ve come here chasing this crazy honky-tonk country dream... and with that comes faith, brokenness, redemption.”

That ethos permeates Broken Branches. At its core, the album is about daring to be different, about embracing the parts of ourselves that don’t fit neatly into expectations. Bentley uses the image of a “broken branch” not as something damaged, but as something unique, something brave enough to grow in a new direction.

Album Highlights Include:

• “Something Worth Fixing”Written by Stephen Wilson Jr., Luke Dick, and Bentley himself, the track is a metaphor-laced anthem of redemption and perseverance.

• “Standing In The Sun”Written by Kyle Sturrock, this warm and wistful tune captures a moment of quiet clarity, a pause in life’s storm.

• “Well Well Whiskey”Penned by Seth Ennis, Devin Dawson, and Jordan Reynolds, the song brings a clever twist on heartbreak drinking songs, pairing levity with loneliness.

• “Broken Branches” (feat. John Anderson and Riley Green)The title track—written by Zach Abend, Beau Bailey, and Graham Barham—serves as the album’s emotional anchor, uniting generational voices in a celebration of the outsider spirit.

Bentley has never been afraid to experiment, but this album feels like a homecoming in its own way. There’s no high-concept production here, no over-polished gloss. Just great songs, played by great musicians, led by an artist who knows exactly who he is.

“I don’t know if I learned anything new about myself,” Bentley admits. “I just know I love living in Nashville, I love the community, and I love what’s happening in country music right now. It’s a great time to be a part of it.”

With Broken Branches, Dierks Bentley doesn’t just add another album to his already decorated discography. He offers a statement of purpose, one that doesn’t shout so much as it resonates. In a time when it’s easy to chase trends or settle into formula, Bentley chooses to reflect, to look back at the road behind him and forward to the horizon ahead, all while staying firmly planted in the present.

There’s a quiet courage in that. A willingness to sit with the discomfort of change, to honor the people and places that shaped him, and to hold space for the misfits and dreamers still carving out their place in the world. Broken Branches doesn’t try to be perfect. It doesn't need to be. Its imperfections are what make it human, and what make it matter.

“Everyone that’s come to this town is chasing something,” Bentley muses. And in chasing that “crazy honky-tonk dream,” he's found something deeper: clarity. Community. Perspective. The record plays like a love letter to the genre, to the people who keep it alive, and to the winding, unpredictable road that brought him here.

Whether you're a longtime fan or a newcomer to his music, Broken Branches feels like a personal invitation to slow down, lean in, and listen, not just to the songs, but to the stories behind them. Because when an artist digs this deep, we all walk away knowing a little more about ourselves, too.