On 'Take It Like a Man,' Amanda Shires takes aim for the heavens

"I know the cost of flight is landing."

Amanda Shires sings this line in the chorus of "Take It Like a Man," the title track of her new album. It would be easy to read the lyric as specific only to the song, but the line encapsulates so much of what makes Shires an artist deserving of the word "singular." Within her songwriting, her activism, her musical collaborations and her personal life, Shires always takes aim for the heavens, landings be damned.

Such fearlessness requires vulnerability. Since breaking through with 2011's , Shires has ventured into increasingly personal territory with each release, writing nuanced, image-rich songs that illustrate the complexities of the many roles she plays: musician, songwriter, band member, activist, wife, mother, woman, human. She's a dedicated collaborator, too: She plays with her husband, , in his band the 400 Unit, and in 2019 she formed the critically acclaimed supergroup with fellow artists Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby and Maren Morris. Shires has also become one of the more outspoken figures in music, country or otherwise. Not content merely to tweet a vague message of support, Shires puts her money where her mouth is: attending protests for outlets like , stumping for progressive political candidates and making concerted efforts to create opportunities for marginalized artists.