Shaboozey discusses new concept album The Outlaw Cherie Lee and Other Western Tales

Shaboozey has released a new concept album, The Outlaw Cherie Lee and Other Western Tales, and discussed it with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe on Weekend Edition Sunday. The record imagines life in the Wild West: an outlaw group takes over a town and accidentally kills its sheriff, not knowing the sheriff had a daughter who comes looking for revenge. "This outlaw group came into this town and took over," Shaboozey explained. "In the chaos of all that, they accidentally took the life of this sheriff."

The title character, Cherie Lee, draws on women in Shaboozey's own life, including his sister and mother. "I have a lot of women figures in my life," he said, describing the character as someone "out for vengeance" and "out for blood." The song "Sweet Revenge" carries that theme most directly, following the character on a mission to track down everyone who wronged her.

The album mixes songs, instrumental pieces and spoken-word interludes voiced by guest stars, including Jamie Foxx on "Hell Is Hot." Shaboozey says the format was deliberate: "I've always wanted to be a filmmaker," he said, and his goal was an album that "did feel like a movie," with features that worked more like an ensemble cast than a typical guest list.

Asked whether Cherie Lee's story reflects his own life, Shaboozey said the process taught him about himself along the way: "everyone has a little outlaw and a little cowboy to them," he said, half-joking that there is probably someone out there seeking vengeance against him too.

A studio version of the album followed on August 11, covered separately in Shaboozey's own release-day story, and Shaboozey has since been booked alongside Lainey Wilson for Global Citizen Festival. The country concept album joins the rest of the year's releases in the release calendar.