Nikki Lane reinvents the nostalgic sounds of 1960s country music for a modern audience, mixing Southern twang with lush orchestral arrangements and the occasional pop/rock hook. A high-school dropout from Greenville, South Carolina, she spent her early adulthood working as an L.A.-based fashion designer. Lane later moved to New York City, where a messy breakup inspired her to pick up the acoustic guitar and write a handful of sad, sassy country songs inspired by Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard. What began as a form of self-therapy eventually developed into a full-time obsession, and Lane wound up leaving town again, this time returning to the American South by settling in Nashville.nnHaving relocated to the country music capital of the world, Lane began building a local audience by putting her own spin on the genre. The Gone, Gone, Gone EP, whose orchestral sound earned comparisons to mid-century icons (Tammy Wynette, Nancy Sinatra) and retro-revivalists (She & Him, the Secret Sisters), appeared in July 2011, followed several months later by the full-length Walk of Shame. After extensive touring in 2012, she signed to New West in 2013. Her debut for the label, All or Nothin', was issued in May of 2014. Three years later, Lane released Highway Queen -- which she co-produced with singer/songwriter Jonathan Tyler -- on New West. ~ Andrew Leahey